MRC National Institute for Medical Research, London
Science for Health
Technology Transfer
Scientists are skilled in conducting research but are not expected to be experts in research protection and commercial development. NIMR’s dedicated Technology Transfer Liaison officer supports staff by providing mechanisms and structures and encouraging scientists to be alert to potential exploitation opportunities. Basic technology transfer activities such as material transfer agreements, collaboration agreements and confidentiality agreements can be dealt with locally and speedily.
Research at NIMR supports the primary mission of the MRC, to encourage and support research to improve human health. Research findings can influence healthcare in many ways including bringing new drugs to the market, improving diagnostics, and assisting industry research. Scientists at NIMR actively engage in this translational process in a variety of ways. MRC Technology (MRCT), the exclusive commercialisation catalyst for the MRC, works to translate cutting edge scientific discoveries into commercial products and it offers support to NIMR translational activities.
Patents
Some NIMR research findings are patented and some patents are licensed for further development. One recent patent, that is now available for industrial exploitation, concerns the crystal structure of the influenza virus neuraminidase protein. This may help in the development of new drugs against the influenza virus.
Diagnostics and collaborations
NIMR have been involved in the production of diagnostic equipment for field use in malaria and regularly supply reagents such as flu serum/viruses, hybridomas and transgenic mice for use in diagnostic and pharmaceutical research laboratories as well as other academic laboratories. Scientists are also involved in collaborations with industry or hosting/ supervising PhD students funded by industry. Many have consultancies with biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. One major current area of collaboration is influenza research.
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Structure of N1 neuraminidase complexes
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