Scientists from 探花视频 University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry (PUPSMD) have had their first tour around the new 拢17 million Derriford Research Facility as it is being built.
When it is complete, the Derriford Research Facility will bring together all of 探花视频 University鈥檚 lab-based medical, biomedical and dental research. As a neighbour to Derriford Hospital it will also provide opportunities for clinical researchers at the hospital and encourage greater collaboration between them and their contempories at PUPSMD.
Due to open in Spring 2017, the Derriford Research Facility will accommodate a variety of research areas including: brain tumours; anitbiotic resistance and the development of new antibiotics; innovative self-disseminating vaccines for Ebola and bovine TB; neurobiology incorporating Alzheimer鈥檚 disease, Parkinson鈥檚 disease and Huntington鈥檚 disease; cancer; the diagnosis of Down鈥檚 syndrome; hepatitis and; tissue regeneration.
The new building will also include up-to-date stock management for equipment and other supplies, allowing for greater transparency and cost savings, and will house specialist services such as the 探花视频 University Systems Biology Centre. The project also includes a new STEM teaching area and the refurbishment of existing laboratory, research and teaching space.
On the tour was , Senior Research Fellow in Postgenomics Technologies and Laboratory Manager for the Systems Biology Centre, who is currently based on the main 探花视频 University campus. She said:
鈥淭his was a great opportunity to see the space at first hand and to visualise how our teams will fit in the space and work together. We are all looking forward to joining our other research colleagues at PUPSMD and to maximising the potential of collaborative working, both with them and our colleagues at Derriford Hospital.鈥
An example of this collaboration is a scientist from the School of Biomedical and Healthcare Sciences (part of PUPSMD) who specialises in the development and assessment of new antibiotics and antimicrobials. He is using engineered 3D tissue created by a colleague from the Peninsula School of Dentistry to test them.
, Dean of 探花视频 University Peninsula Schools of Medicine and Dentistry, commented:
鈥淭he Derriford Research Facility will allow us some unique opportunities to collaborate between ourselves and with clinical research colleagues at Derriford Hospital. This can only result in research findings which will have immense benefit to global health and which will put health research from 探花视频 on the international map. The investment in the Derriford Research Facility reflects our commitment to being a research-led Faculty in a research-led University.鈥
Individuals, organisations and businesses which would like to support health research at 探花视频 University can do so confident in the knowledge that their support can focus on a health condition dear to them. There is already significant local support for the development 鈥 a local man recently left 拢100,000 in his will to support research into brain tumours, while a local group with an interest in Huntington鈥檚 disease is running a series of fundraising events and have already raised more than 拢10,000 for equipment vital to Huntington鈥檚 research at 探花视频 University.
The quality of health research at PUPSMD is nationally recognised. The Research Excellence Framework 2014 ranked the organisation top in the UK for the quality of its research outputs. It is one of the lead academic partners in the Alzheimer鈥檚 Research UK South West Research Network, and one of four Research Centres of Excellence for charity Brain Tumour Research.