New Eli Lilly PhD Scholar begins research within UCC Future Pharmaceuticals

23 Mar 2026

Welcome to our latest PhD Scholar, Natalia Blas Gallego who has embarked on her research journey with Dr. Florence McCarthy, School of Chemistry, Future Pharmaceuticals, UCC.

Natalia will undertake a PhD in Medicinal and Pharmaceutical Chemistry under the topic “Novel Isoquinolinequinone N‑oxides Targeting Multidrug‑Resistant Cancer Cells”. This work directly addresses SDG3 (good health and wellbeing) by the discovery of new pharmaceuticals to treat clinically relevant diseases.

Natalia is a Lilly PhD Scholar supported by Eli Lilly and Company philanthropy, which has funded 12 PhD scholars at UCC to date. Natalia will undertake her research within UCC Future Pharmaceuticals, an interdisciplinary cluster aimed at advancing research and innovation in the pharmaceutical sciences through interdisciplinary collaboration and strategic partnerships and she will be mentored through her research journey by Dr. Michael Carroll, at Lilly Kinsale.

Dr. Florence McCarthy, School of Chemistry said “A key limitation in cancer treatment is the development of resistance to chemotherapy and it is critical to address this challenge. This Lilly funded scholarship offers Natalia the opportunity to build new molecules in Cork to screen against uniquely resistant cancer cell lines with our collaborators in Portugal and identify new compounds effective against drug-resistant cancers. The input of her industrial mentor, Dr. Michael Carroll, at Lilly Kinsale will be key to successful delivery of new chemical entities in this discovery phase.”

Professor Anita Maguire (Head of School of Chemistry and Director of UCC Future Pharmaceuticals) welcomed Natalia to UCC saying: ‘Congratulations to Florence and Natalia - this opportunity reflects the impact of research from Florence and we look forward to exciting outcomes from Natalia’s PhD research over the coming years. Sincere thanks to Lilly for ongoing support for early career researchers at University College Cork. Natalia will benefit from ongoing engagement with Lilly mentors throughout her research, complementing the expertise of Dr. McCarthy”

Natalia’s research journey began with a research visit to the Eli Lilly and Company Kinsale site along with another Lilly funded scholar Claire Kelly. During the visit, scholars met their industry mentors, toured the state‑of‑the‑art facility, and presented their research projects to senior leadership at Eli Lilly (pictured below).

Congratulations to Natalia, and a huge thank you to Eli Lilly for their support through this programme.