The shared facility will lead to a better understanding of human health and disease at a molecular level
The GW4 Alliance will open a £2.3 million shared facility for cryo-microscopy on 1 September 2017 at the University of Bristol.
The facility will provide researchers across the Great West region with a suite of state-of-the-art microscopy and analysis tools, enabling them to better understand the molecular processes responsible for cell function or malfunction.
It is hoped that the shared GW4 facility will accelerate new insights into human health and disease, and will attract the world’s most talented scientists to collaborate with the leading universities in the region.
The facility has been established following awards from Wellcome and co-investment from the universities of the GW4 Alliance, and will be housed in the Life Sciences Building at the University of Bristol, as part of the Wolfson Bioimaging Facility.
Professor Christiane Berger-Schaffitzel, University of Bristol said: “We are absolutely thrilled that this joint effort by Bath, Bristol, Cardiff and Exeter came to fruition. Electron cryo-microscopy is a game-changer for molecular biology today, and our new facility will be instrumental for accelerating cutting-edge research projects of many scientists in the South West and Wales.”
Professor Philip Ingham FRS FMedSci HonFRCP, Director of University of Exeter’s Living Systems Institute said: “The establishment of this state of the art facility will be crucial in maintaining the position of GW4 institutions at the forefront of biomedical research. Cryo-electron microscopy is revolutionising the field, transforming the way we analyse the molecular components of living systems. We are very grateful to Wellcome for their support, without which this initiative would not have been possible.”
GW4 Director Dr Sarah Perkins said: “We are delighted to support the cryo-EM facility which will provide researchers across with access to a multi-user cryo-microscope with a cutting-edge detector, and a suite of analysis tools. This facility will put the Great West on the map as a centre of excellence for structural biology research and equipment and we hope it will further encourage collaborative working across the GW4 Alliance and beyond.”
The facility will be unveiled at an opening ceremony on 1 September 2017 by GW4 Chair of Board, Professor Nick Talbot (Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research and Impact, University of Exeter), and Director of Science at Wellcome, Dr Jim Smith.
The event will showcase the state-of-the-art capabilities of the GW4 Facility for High-Resolution Electron Cryo-Microscopy and will bring together leading experts in life sciences from across the GW4 Alliance to discuss research ideas and collaboration.
Established in 2013, the GW4 Alliance brings together four leading research-intensive universities: Bath, Bristol, Cardiff and Exeter, to deliver globally competitive research and build a highly skilled workforce.
