Models of disease
This call is now closed for applications and is only available for reference purposes.
As part of our strategic initiatives to target ‘bottlenecks’ in translation, the MRC aims to commit up to £10 million for research grants on the evaluation and validation of human and animal models of disease, in vivo, in vitro and in silico.
Background
As part of our strategic initiatives to target ‘bottlenecks’ in translation, the MRC aims to commit up to £10m for research grants on the evaluation and validation of human and animal models of disease, in vivo, in vitro and in silico.
Models are seen as valuable tools for developing new health interventions, both where they help identify pathways of disease and potential treatable targets as well as suitable platforms for testing effects of interventions and in predictive toxicology. Recent consultation with stakeholders has highlighted the need to build capacity and strengthen multidisciplinary interactions in this area.
In many complex and often chronic human diseases, the natural history is not well characterised and better research tools for assessing the effects of interventions on disease pathways would make a major contribution to improving the speed and reliability of treatment development and evaluation. Investing in research models, targeted at areas of unmet need, will help to accelerate the translation of advances in basic biological and clinical research into patient benefit and enhance the international academic and commercial competitiveness of the UK in the diagnostic, toxicological and therapeutic sectors.
Focus of the call
The MRC invited applications to evaluate and qualify the potential of existing human or animal models of disease in identifying disease mechanisms or interventions which hold promise for the detection, prevention or treatment of disease. The call includes in vitro and in vivo disease models and also the development of in silico models based on experimental data from animal and human studies.
Research studies should focus on further developing and validating existing models using available tests to demonstrate the similarity of symptoms, treatment response and disease mechanism between the model and the clinical disease state. Comparisons between models would also be welcome.
Studies may propose the use of existing in vivo, in vitro or in silico models in new applications and disease areas. Research applications may include, as well as a strong core of work on evaluation, qualification and development of the model(s), the use of models in better understanding of disease mechanisms and proof of concept studies.
Partnerships with industry and charities are strongly encouraged. Priority will be given to areas of high unmet need and to applications focussed on models likely to be most informative in the development of treatments and/or preventive measures.
All studies must:
- Have a clear and testable hypothesis, and use well evidenced tests.
- Be based on a sound scientific rationale with supporting preliminary data.
- Provide evidence of the model(s) validity by addressing its simulation of the clinical state, its predictive accuracy and its clinical utility.
- Contain a clear plan for data analysis, relating explicitly to the primary research question.
- Consider the applicability and next steps for knowledge transfer and translation into patient benefit in the short to medium term.
- Include all required expertise, especially in relation to statistics and study design.
- Demonstrate strong understanding of the appropriate regulatory frameworks and clinical research governance.
- Make any data originating from the study publicly available.
The call specifically excludes:
- The creation of new disease models;
- The use of existing models for fundamental research and drug screening;
- ADMET pharmacokinetic studies.
Partnerships
Applications including partnerships with charities or industry are strongly encouraged where these add value to the research for example in terms of access to expertise, technologies, reagents, patient groups or funding. The MRC does not have the capacity to broker these arrangements.
Applications involving tangible charity contributions may be announced as joint MRC/charity funded studies.
The terms of collaboration, particularly in relation to industry, must be determined early in the study development and relevant agreements must be put in place. Partnership arrangements should ensure transparency in the development of the study design and in the analysis and publication of results (including if these are negative). Consideration should also be given to issues such as: relative responsibilities, governance arrangements, regulatory approvals, indemnity, intellectual property rights, reporting and access to data and samples.
Assessment process
Proposals will be assessed by a specially convened panel including representatives of MRC Research Boards and additional independent experts. The decision of the panel will not be open to appeal. Please note that MRC reserves the right to amend this process if demand is unexpectedly high.
Assessment criteria
Key assessment criteria will be:
- Potential importance of the research in terms of knowledge transfer or translation for patient benefit (taking into account novelty, timeliness, scientific value);
- Significance of the topic (either health burden, unmet clinical need or biological importance);
- Ability of the investigators to deliver the research proposed;
- Strength and clarity of collaborations, especially with industrial partners;
- Quality and suitability of the research environment and of the facilities;
- Value for money;
- Ethical considerations and governance arrangements.
Panel membership
- Professor Graham Henderson, Chairman, Department of Pharmacology, University of Bristol;
- Professor David Balfour, Ordinary Member, Department of Psychiatry, University of Dundee;
- Professor Maria Belvisi, Ordinary Member, Airway Disease Section, NHLI, Imperial College London;
- Professor Paul Bolam, Ordinary Member, MRC Anatomical Neuropharmacology Unit, University of Oxford;
- Professor Nigel Brunskill, Ordinary Member, Department of Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Leicester;
- Professor James Fawcett, Ordinary Member, Centre for Brain Repair, University of Cambridge;
- Professor Marc Feldman, Ordinary Member, Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology Trust, Imperial College London;
- Professor Guy Goodwin, Ordinary Member, Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford;
- Professor Ian Hall, Ordinary Member, Therapeutics and Molecular Medicine, Queen’s Medical Centre, Nottingham;
- Professor Paul Hellewell, Ordinary Member, Clinical Sciences Centre, University of Sheffield;
- Professor David Katz, Ordinary Member, Immunology and Molecular Pathology, UCL;
- Professor Paul Kaye, Ordinary Member, Department of Biology, University of York;
- Professor Jonathan Lamb, Ordinary Member, Department of Preclinical Veterinary Sciences, University of Edinburgh;
- Professor Xin Lu, Ordinary Member, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, UCL;
- Professor I Mhairi Macrae, Ordinary Member, Division of Clinical Neuroscience, University of Glasgow;
- Professor Yash Mahida, Ordinary Member, Institute of Infection and Immunity, University of Nottingham;
- Professor Jane McKeating, Ordinary Member, Institute for Biomedical Research, University of Birmingham;
- Professor Raymond Playford, Ordinary Member, Department of Medicine, Imperial College London;
- Professor Lucilla Poston, Ordinary Member, Department of Midwifery & Womens Health, KCL;
- Professor Bert Rima, Ordinary Member, School of Biomedical Science, Queen’s University, Belfast;
- Professor Dai Stephens, Ordinary Member, School of Life Sciences, University of Sussex;
- Professor Alan Stitt, Ordinary Member, Centre of Vision Science, Queen’s University, Belfast;
- Dr Victor Tybulewicz, Ordinary Member, Division of Cellular Immunology, NIMR, London;
- Dr Antonio Vidal-Puig, Ordinary Member, Department of Clinical Biochemistry, University of Cambridge;
- Professor David Wynford-Thomas, Ordinary Member, Department of Medicine, Cardiff University.