The Milner Therapeutics Institute launched a new functional genomics screening laboratory (FGSL) in Cambridge, U.K. The lab will support research and innovation in functional genomics, which explores links between genes and diseases, according to Sir Tony Kouzarides, PhD, professor and director, Milner Therapeutics Institute, University of Cambridge.
Key representatives from the three FGSL partners—the Medical Research Council (MRC), AstraZeneca, and the University of Cambridge—attended the new facility launch. The lab reportedly will be the first center to offer arrayed CRISPR screening on this scale for chronic disease through collaborations with researchers from across the U.K. This will enable more laboratories to identify novel targets for drug discovery across a range of diseases including cardiovascular, inflammatory, respiratory, and metabolic conditions, noted Kouzarides.
The inaugural projects selected to collaborate with the FGSL are with research teams at the University of Birmingham and the University of Cambridge and will investigate cellular pathways in liver regeneration and inflammatory bowel disease, respectively. The call for proposals to collaborate with the FGSL is ongoing and incoming proposals are reviewed twice a year.
“We are delighted to have opened the Functional Genomics Screening Lab here at the Milner Therapeutics Institute in Cambridge, U.K.,” continued Kouzarides. “This collaboration with the MRC and AstraZeneca is a fantastic example of what can be achieved when academia and industry share expertise and resources, and I’m excited by the FGSL’s potential to deliver new diagnostics and treatments to people with chronic diseases.”
“The U.K.’s new Functional Genomics Screening Laboratory marks a key milestone in enhancing the national ecosystem needed to improve our understanding of how genetic variance impacts health and disease,” added Patrick Chinnery, PhD, executive chair, MRC. “The insights gained from the laboratory, along with the broader efforts of the MRC-led U.K. human functional genomics initiative, will pave the way for the next generation of diagnostics and targeted treatments to improve health outcomes. I encourage researchers to collaborate with the new lab, which the MRC is pleased to fund and support.”
“The launch of the Functional Genomics Screening Laboratory marks an exciting milestone, showcasing the immense potential of functional genomics in increasing our understanding of disease biology and expanding the therapeutic world available to us,” said Steve Rees, senior vp, discovery sciences, AstraZeneca. “We look forward to the insights this pioneering partnership will unlock as we work side-by-side to push the boundaries of science for people with chronic diseases.”