5th shortlisted entrepreneur - Dr. Emmeline Hill

Our 5th shortlisted entrepreneur - Dr. Emmeline Hill
Traditionally Thoroughbred horses have been selected using only a mix of visual assessment combined with historical bloodline data to infer their likely genetic composition. However, research led by Dr Emmeline Hill at UCD in 2009 resulted in the world’s first successful identification of a performance-related gene in Thoroughbred horses. This gene was found to predict sprinting ability and stamina potential, which can immediately identify a Thoroughbred as a potential sprinter, middle-distance or long-distance horse. Following this breakthrough, Equinome was co-founded by Dr Hill and Jim Bolger, the well known Irish horse breeder and trainer, and the Equinome Speed Gene Test was commercially launched last January.

The company has already secured major clients in Australia, France, Ireland, UK and USA and with new products scheduled for 2011 and 2012, Equinome’s vision is to become the global industry standard for the provision of genetic information to the Thoroughbred horse industry. Other members of Equinome’s team are Donal Ryan, Managing Director and Professor David MacHugh, Scientific Director.
www.equinome.com