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Innovate UK is to invest up to £8 million in collaborative R&D projects to stimulate the development of regenerative medicines and cell therapies in the UK.

The aim of this competition is to address the challenges of developing regenerative medicines and cell therapies as clinical treatments and commercial products. We are seeking proposals that advance the development and commercialisation of novel regenerative medicines and cell therapies. The focus is on the preclinical testing, clinical development and manufacture of regenerative medicines and cell therapies, and the development of underpinning tools and technologies.

Proposals must be collaborative and led by a business. Innovate UK expect to fund mainly industrial research projects. Small businesses could receive up to 70% of their eligible project costs, medium-sized businesses 60% and large businesses 50%.

It is expected projects will range in size from total costs of £500,000 to £2.5 million, although projects outside this range may be considered.

This is a two-stage competition that opens for applicants on 8 July 2015. The deadline for expressions of interest is at noon on 2 September 2015.

There will be a briefing webinar for potential applicants on 16 July 2015.

For further details and registration at the briefing event follow the link here..

KTN Regenerative Medicine Community Event

Funding opportunities and translational R&D support capabilities

15th July 2015, The Mermaid Conference & Events Centre, Puddle Dock, Blackfriars, London, EC4V 3DB

Find out more and register here

This event will look at forthcoming funding opportunities in Regenerative Medicine and Cell Therapies and the current UK infrastructure to support sector growth in the coming years.

The day’s agenda will provide an opportunity to:

• Hear latest information from a range of funders, research and support organisations
• Find out more about Innovate UK’s forthcoming Regen Med Funding call
• Get insight into what funders are looking for in applications
• Have 1-2-1 partnering meetings withdelegates to set up early collaborations
• Speak to funders and support organisations on themed roundtables to get more insight on various mechanisms and support.

Find out more and register here

Supported by:

Organisations also supporting the event and roundtables:

H2020 National Contacts Points from Innovate UK
Enterprise Europe Network

Scientific discussion meeting organised by Professor Sir Ian Wilmut FRS, Professor Johan Hyllner and Professor Chris Mason

The importance of cellular structure was first recognised by the British scientist Robert Hooke and described in Micrographia (Royal Society, September 1665). In this meeting, world-leading researchers will describe the way in which new approaches to cell therapy are being provided by our progressively greater understanding of the biology of cells, in particular different populations of stem cells.

This event is intended for researchers in relevant fields and is free to attend.

For further information and to register please use the below link.
https://royalsociety.org/events/2015/10/cells-from-robert-hooke-to-cell-therapy/

The Department of Health has published a report from the Regenerative Medicine Expert Group (RMEG)  ‘Building on our own potential: a UK pathway for regenerative medicine’.

The report is the culmination of work carried out by RMEG and provides an update on the progress being made to support UK regenerative medicine.  In addition, it provides advice on the next steps to make the UK a world leading location for the field, for the benefit of patients and the economy alike. It addresses issues ranging from the development of regenerative medicines (including clinical trials, licensing, regulation and traceability), their evaluation and commissioning in the NHS, and how to embed supporting systems, data considerations and training in the healthcare service.

A link to the report is provided here

EPSRC Landscape Fellow in Engineering Tissue Engineering and Regenerative Medicine

Fixed-Term for 24 Months (2 posts available)

Loughborough University in conjunction with Keele University, University of Leeds, University of Nottingham, University of Sheffield and University of York, is making two early career Fellowships available for exceptional candidates from the tissue engineering and regenerative medicine communities with an engineering and physical science background. Fellowships can be held at any of the Institutions.

Fellows will be developed for leadership roles in cross-disciplinary, large scale, translational interface science. Their work will include directed and individual research and they will contribute training to the EPSRC Centres for Doctoral Training held by the collaborators. Candidates are required to submit a translational research proposal (4 pages), a personal development plan (2 pages) and an Institutional letter of support, together with a Loughborough University application form. Candidates with excellent submissions will present their plans to a panel at interview.

As a minimum, satisfactory progression through the penultimate year of PhD Studies is essential. Demonstrated leadership skills and potential would be advantageous.

A webinar will be held at 11.00am on Monday 13 April to provide further details of the Fellowships.

The grade and salary shown apply to Loughborough University only.  This will vary according to the Institution although the salary paid will be on a similar scale.

Interviews will take place on Friday 26 June 2015.

For full details please follow the links provided here:

Job Description and Supporting Information

CONTACT

Informal enquiries to:

Professor David Williams (Email: D.J.Williams@lboro.ac.uk  Tel: +44 (0)1509 227668)

The Wellcome Trust and the scientific committee comprised of Peter Coffey, Robin Franklin, Charles Ffrench-Constant and Amy Wagers are organising a conference entitled the Biology of Regenerative Medicines, which will take place 22^nd-24^th April 2015 at the Wellcome Trust Genome Campus, in Hinxton, UK.

Registration and further details available through the following link: https://registration.hinxton.wellcome.ac.uk/display_info.asp?id=432

A wide representation of researchers from the regenerative medicine and stem cell community is encouraged to attend the meeting.

A flyer for the conference available: Regenerative_Medicine_2015-Flyer.

Innovate UK, the National Centre for the Replacement, Refinement and Reduction of Animals in Research (NC3Rs), the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), and the Medical Research Council (MRC) aim to support projects that will improve the discovery (early stages when active substances and their potential uses are identified) of new human and veterinary medicines, agrochemicals and chemicals and their assurance for effectiveness and safety as they are developed.

Proposals must be collaborative and led by a business. We expect to fund mainly industrial research projects in which a large business partner can claim up to 50% public funding for their project costs (60% for SMEs).

We expect projects to range in size from total costs of £500,000 to £1 million although we may consider projects outside this range.

This is a two-stage competition that opens for applicants on 23 March 2015. The deadline for registration is noon on 29 April 2015 and the deadline for expressions of interest is noon on 6 May 2015.

There will be a briefing event and webinar for potential applicants in London on 26 March 2015.

Further details can be found on the Innovate UK website under Forthcoming competitions.

The database, which is launched today, has identified over 100 sources of funding from 34 organisations, totalling over £3bn for which cell therapies are believed to be eligible; of this around £100m is earmarked specifically for the sector. Fully searchable, it is designed to help researchers identify quickly and accurately appropriate sources of funding for their work, as well as provide an up-to-date snapshot of the UK environment.

Data was collected in the first half of 2014 from the research councils, medical research charities, other UK Government-funded organisations (such as the UK’s innovation agency, Innovate UK and the National Institute for Health Research) and EU bodies. With each funding scheme categorised by research stage, eligibility criteria, therapeutic area and closing date, the database lists schemes open for submission as of July 2014 and will be updated regularly. Grants in the database cover a broad size range, with the smallest at £5,000 and the largest a €20m Horizon 2020 call, with the majority not exceeding £1m.

To read the full press release click here

The funding database can be accessed through the following link:  UK funding database

The MHRA and HTA have announced a new ‘One stop shop’ regulatory advice service for regenerative medicine.  This follows as a response to the July 2013 House of Lords Science and Technology Committee report which called for a single source for regulatory advice for researchers, developers and manufacturers seeking to deliver regenerative therapies. The service will provide a single point of access to comprehensive and consistent advice which had previously been provided by the regulators, the Gene Therapy Advisory Committee (GTAC) and R&D staff.

Regulation of regenerative medicine spans the four health research regulatory bodies – Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA), Human Tissue Authority (HTA), Medical and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the Health Research Authority (HRA).   They have now jointly established a new regulatory advice service to improve coordination and consistency of guidance for the regenerative medicine community:  http://www.mhra.gov.uk/NewsCentre/Pressreleases/CON465944

Dr Rob Buckle, MRC Director of Science Programmes and Director, UK Regenerative Medicine Platform welcomed the announcement, “This new service provides a significant boost for UK regenerative medicine. By bringing together four research regulatory bodies under a single entry point, the landscape will be considerably simplified for users. This will help to smooth the translational pathway for all those UK workers engaged in regenerative medicine”