Medical researchers in Nottingham have received a £23.6 million package of government funding to expand their pioneering work into new treatments and diagnostics for a wide range of health problems.
NCSEM-EM partners, The University of Nottingham and Nottingham University Hospitals Trust will establish a large new Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) which will incorporate two existing smaller Biomedical Research Units in the city. The Nottingham BRC will be the leading UK hub in five key areas of health research:
- Deafness and hearing loss
- Gastrointestinal and liver disease
- Respiratory medicine
- Musculoskeletal disease
- Mental health technology
At the core of the Biomedical Research Centre will be Nottingham’s world-leading expertise in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). It means the latest medical imaging research and technology pioneered here can be translated into real benefits for patients in all five of the BRC’s research areas.
The funding is part of a record package of £816 million research support announced by the Department of Health. Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said: “The UK has so often led the world in health research, we are now making sure we stay ahead of the game by laying the foundations for a new age of personalised medicine. We are supporting the great minds of the NHS to push the frontiers of medical science so that patients in this country continue to benefit from the very latest treatments and the highest standards of care.”
Dr Maria Koufali, Deputy Director of Research and Innovation, for Nottingham University Hospitals NHS Trust, said: “The new Centre in Nottingham will drive innovation and internationally competitive translational research in therapeutic areas which are highly relevant to the health of our patients and public. NUH is one of the leading NHS trusts in developing research which will address important clinical questions and improve outcomes for patients. The new Biomedical Research Centre will further strengthen Nottingham’s position as a leading city for research and innovation.”
More information is available from Professor Ian Hall in the Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, University of Nottingham.
There will also be a joint Biomedical Research Centre involving the University of Leicester, University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust and Loughborough University focusing on cardiovascular, respiratory and lifestyle conditions – find out more.