Worth a total of £225 million, the Global Challenges Research Fund (GCRF) is supporting projects in developing countries over the next four years.
Professor Colin Robinson, Head of the School of Biosciences is among academics from other UK universities who are joining forces with researchers in developing countries across the world to tackle some of the world’s most serious challenges.
Professor Robinson, working with colleague Professor Mark Smales, will lead a £4.8 million research grant into the establishment of biopharmaceutical and animal vaccine production in Thailand and neighbouring South East Asian countries. It aims to apply world-leading UK expertise to enable these countries to produce their own animal vaccines and biopharmaceutical (protein) drugs.
At the moment, new generation protein medicines – especially anti-cancer drugs – are typically available to only 1-5 per cent of SE Asian patients, purely because of the high cost of imports. The UK team also includes groups from UCL, Imperial College and London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine