Partnerships

Industry partnerships are central to our Knowledge Transfer and Exchange (KTE) strategy. Academic and industry collaboration is a powerful driver of innovation, creating opportunities to translate cutting‑edge research into real world impact. We work with partners across a broad range of sectors including pharma, biotech (start‑ups and SMEs), and consumer goods, reflecting the diverse research expertise within the Unit. These collaborations enable co‑discovery with industry and support the development of safety science innovations that benefit healthcare, society and the wider economy. 

The Unit has a wide range of academic partnerships and is part of a vibrant, interconnected community of scientists. These collaborations strengthen our research, enhance our impact and contribute to progress across the field of safety science. 

Our strong track record in partnering is reflected in the award of a £3.4 million Medical Research Council Prosperity Partnership grant, focused on understanding the safety profile of advanced therapeutics. This collaboration brings together the MRC Toxicology Unit and the Department of Biochemistry at the University of Cambridge, AstraZeneca, the Cancer Research UK Scotland Institute, and the Mary Lyon Centre at MRC Harwell. 

We work closely with the Cambridge Academy of Therapeutic Sciences (CATS), which was established to facilitate the development of new therapeutics and support the education and training of the next generation of world-leading researchers.

The Unit is a founding member of the Cambridge Alliance on Medicines Safety (CAMS) an alliance between the MRC Toxicology Unit, GSK, AstraZeneca, Novartis, and the University of Cambridge fosters collaborative links between academia and industry to advance medicines safety. 

The Unit’s strong track record in academic partnerships is reflected in our involvement in the INTREPID (IN vitro TumouR Explant models for evaluating cancer complexity and Patient Diversity) Programme to develop human tumour explant models, a collaboration between the University of Leicester, Imperial College London, Oxford University, University College London, Medicines Discovery Catapult and the MRC Toxicology Unit.   

PREDICT-Meso is an international network of researchers interested in the study of mesothelioma, an incurable cancer most commonly affecting the lining of the lungs and caused by exposure to asbestos fibres. Together the teams hope to better understand how mesothelioma develops from its early stages and translate this into more effective diagnosis and treatment for patients.

The Unit is a partner in the UK Proteostasis Network launched by the Babraham Institute in 2024. The purpose of the Network is to connect UK-based researchers working on proteostasis-related areas to exchange research news, expertise and knowledge in order to jointly tackle challenges in fundamental biology, accelerate translation of research and support researchers and technical specialists at all levels.

We are committed to ensuring that our scientific expertise informs the development of public policies that best serve society. By regularly discussing our findings with colleagues at UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) we help translate cutting‑edge toxicology research into evidence‑based guidance and standards. Through these collaborations, our insights can be shared with national and international bodies including the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Food Standards Agency (FSA), and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), supporting the creation of robust, science‑driven public policy. We work with the Centre for Science and Policy on relevant topics and welcome visits from representatives from government, the civil service, industry and the third sector to explore ways in which our research can inform policy.

We recognise the value of knowledge exchange with the NHS and so we have MRC Investigators and PhD students who are clinicians providing a direct route for knowledge exchange with the NHS and for the translation of our research into clinical impact to benefit human health.