Tyndall Lecture [IOP] -February 2026

Tyndall Lecture [IOP] – University of Limerick

February 2026

We are delighted to announce that Dr Sayantan Bhattacharyya (Postdoctoral Fellow, Department of Physics), under the mentorship of Associate Professor Nanasaheb Thorat, PhD, FRSM, Department of Physics and member of the Bernal Institute and Limerick Digital Cancer Research Centre—has been awarded a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship (MSCA-PF). With a success rate of only 8–9% this year, this represents a highly prestigious achievement for both researcher and mentor.

The funded project, SCOPE – Spatially Structured Chip-based Cognition Platform for Molecular Mapping and Therapy-Induced Neurocognitive Dysfunction Modelling in Pediatric Medulloblastoma, will develop a hybrid organ-on-a-chip system to investigate how standard treatments, including craniospinal irradiation and chemotherapy, disrupt neurodevelopment and contribute to long-term cognitive impairment in childhood brain tumours. The project builds on Prof. Thorat’s pioneering research in cancer, integrating nanomedicine platforms, Raman spectroscopy, and 3D metastatic cancer models, and is supported by a grant of €252,728.64.

Along with Prof. Thorat, Dr Christophe Silien will act as a key collaborator within SCOPE. His laboratory’s expertise in imaging physics, Raman imaging, nonlinear CARS imaging, and AI-driven Raman analysis will significantly advance the scope and impact of the project. This achievement highlights the excellence in translational nanomedicine and cancer therapeutics research within Physics at UL and contributes to the University’s outstanding success in this highly competitive EU funding scheme.