Investment in nanoscience innovation to benefit healthcare sector
Seven projects to receive £6.5m in funding
Funding of more than £6.5m has been awarded to seven business-led projects that will focus on developing therapeutics and diagnostics using nanotechnologies.
The UK’s Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and the Technology Strategy Board will provide the grants.
Critical Pharmaceuticals, Johnson Matthey, Mologic, Nanomerics, OJ-Bio, Renishaw Diagnostics and Sharp Laboratories of Europe will lead the projects.
The investment aims to ensure that the UK can become an early adopter of these novel technologies and rapidly meet the challenges posed within the worldwide healthcare sector, by translating early stage ideas from academia and commercialising them by building supply chains with businesses.
The funding is part of a two-stage initiative under the Nanoscience through Engineering to Application Grand Challenge for Healthcare.
The university partners on two of the funded projects initially received three years of funding from EPSRC and these projects will follow on to scale-up the technologies developed in the first stage.
EPSRC chief executive, David Delpy, said: ‘This is the second example of pulling nanoscience research originally funded by the Research Councils through to application by co-funding with the Technology Strategy Board. This approach actively supports economic growth while contributing to advances in healthcare technologies."
Iain Gray, chief executive of the Technology Strategy Board, added: ‘Nanoscale technologies are at the heart of the innovations that will be developed through these seven interesting and exciting projects.
‘They will address challenges in building the supply chain across enabling nanoscale technologies and the healthcare sector, and take ideas from basic proof-of-concept or process to pilot technology demonstration.’
