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New biomedical research units announced

  • Last modified date:
    31 July 2008

Three new biomedical research units will be at the forefront of a £10 million drive to prevent, diagnose and treat illnesses such as heart disease, asthma and obesity, Public Health Minister, Dawn Primarolo announced today.

The new National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Biomedical Research Units in Liverpool, London and Nottingham will focus on ‘translational research’ that will take advances in basic medical research out of the laboratory and into the hospital clinic - meaning patients will benefit more quickly from new scientific breakthroughs. 

The units will work in the major areas of ill-health and clinical need which have traditionally received relatively limited amounts of research funding: heart disease, gastrointestinal disease and liver disease. They also help to ensure that the UK retains its position at the top of the international league table for biomedical research.

The Biomedical Research Units will complement the existing twelve NIHR Biomedical Research Units in Bristol, Leeds, London, Nottingham, Oxford, Sheffield and Southampton and the twelve NIHR Biomedical Research Centres in London, Oxford, Cambridge, Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle.

Each new Biomedical Research Unit will receive £3.4 million over the next four years (representing a total investment of £10 million), enabling these smaller, but excellent, research groups to significantly increase their ability to undertake translational research.

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