Cutting-edge bioscience facility showcased to Minister

Teesside University’s cutting-edge work in research and training, bringing innovation to bioindustry and developing the health and bioscience workforce of tomorrow has been showcased to the Government Minister for Science, Research and Innovation.

George Freeman MP visited the University’s Darlington campus where he was given a tour of the National Horizons Centre (NHC), a £22.3m national centre of excellence for biosciences and translational healthcare.

The NHC brings industry and academia together with world-class facilities to deliver research, partnerships and training with real-world impact.

Minister Freeman was shown round the NHC’s cutting-edge laboratories and training spaces and spoke with academics about their work advancing knowledge in areas such as diseases-specific research, biomanufacturing, engineering biology, digital health and data science.

His tour of the NHC was part of a wider visit to Darlington where he opened the neighbouring RNA Centre of Excellence operated by the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI).

Minister Freeman said: “It is vital that academia and industry work hand-in-hand, pairing innovative new discoveries with increased investment and growth, and Teesside University's National Horizons Centre is a great example of that close relationship.

“The work here will help to transform the future of healthcare through quicker disease identification and faster delivery of medicines, while both public and private investment is delivering new high-skilled jobs to the North-East, which is vital to growing the local economy.”

Together with Fujifilm Diosynth Biotechnologies, the CPI and NHC form the Northern Bio-Accelerator Partnership (NBioP), a strategic partnership dedicated to making the North East an innovation hub for bioprocessing, biomanufacturing and biopharmaceuticals.

Director of the NHC, Professor Vikki Rand, said: “We were delighted to welcome Minister Freeman to the NHC and showcase our work discovering diseases earlier, developing novel treatments and delivering life-saving medicines quicker, safer and more affordably.

“Teesside University’s ambition is to deliver innovation which ensures that everybody benefits from progress.

“The NHC is a perfect example of this mission in action. Together with our partners in industry we are developing impactful solutions which are advancing bioscience and healthcare research and addressing the technical and digital skills needs of the sectors and boosting the bioeconomy.

“At the same time, through a full pipeline of training, we are developing a highly-skilled workforce and creating vital and rewarding jobs within this region.”

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