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How Will New £18m 'Gene Therapy Innovation Hubs' Transform Care for Patients?

on Thursday, 15 April 2021.

LifeArc, the Medical Research Council (MRC) and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) have announced an £18m investment to create a new national network of cutting-edge 'Gene Therapy Innovation Hubs'.

This will support three new facilities for the clinical development of new genetic treatments. It will have the potential to transform care for millions of patients, particularly people with rare and life-threatening genetic diseases.

The sites will be located at King’s College London, NHS Blood and Transplant in Bristol, and the University of Sheffield.

The Innovation Hubs will provide the environment for academic-led clinical trials of novel gene therapies, so that patients can benefit from the most innovative research. Gene therapies have great potential to treat many conditions, and the UK already has a world-leading genetics research ecosystem. The new Hubs will help academics to access clinical materials, facilities and expertise to progress gene therapy research into clinical trials.

The Hubs will enable access to Good Manufacturing Practice facilities for clinical trial materials, as well as translational support and regulatory advice. The Hubs will act as a coordinated network, so that technical skills and resources can be shared, with the objective of enabling innovative gene therapy research.

Dr Melanie Lee, CEO of LifeArc, commented: "Recent innovations in gene therapies hold enormous potential for treating conditions such as rare diseases, but often promising ideas – particularly in academia – are not making it through to patients. Through our collaboration, we aim to meet the need for researchers to have access to the essential facilities and translational advice to progress promising research."

Comment

At the 2020 PING Conference run by VWV on Britain's Great Life Sciences Future: Genomics, Personalised Medicine and AI, we heard an array of excellent speakers from Genomics England, Cell and Gene Therapy Catapult, Congenica, and others. We were treated to some really exciting news about the UK's lead in these exciting and innovative areas, which are going to shape the future of life sciences and treatments of patients in novel ways.


If you would be interested in hearing more about these issues and being invited to attend PING meetings, please contact Paul Gershlick in our Pharmaceuticals & Life Sciences team on 07795 570072, or complete the form below.

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