Scientists adopt fresh approach in quest for new therapies

Scientists are to pool their expertise in human health to pioneer an innovative approach to treating common diseases.

A new institute in Edinburgh brings together research specialists in every area of human biology, from the basic genetics of health through to the issues surrounding end-of-life care.

The Institute of Genetics and Molecular Medicine (IGMM) – opened officially today - has been formed in partnership by the Medical Research Council (MRC), the University of Edinburgh, and Cancer Research UK.

IGMM - spearheaded by Professor Nick Hastie from the MRC's Human Genetics Unit - will combine expertise in illnesses such as schizophrenia, cancer, arthritis and bowel disease, with the aim of learning lessons from each condition that could inform others. The role that genes have in disease development will also be an essential element of the research programme.

One major focus of the institute is to develop non-toxic cancer treatments that could prevent tumours spreading around the body, thus helping people to live with cancer as a chronic condition, like diabetes, rather than die from it.

Professor Hastie, director of the institute, said: “Research into targeted, protracted treatment of cancer is a perfect example of what can happen when scientists join forces.

“This institute heralds a new dawn of discovery science for human health. Here we can study every phase of human biology from genetic determinants of disease to the way lifestyle factors affect our health, and together achieve our goal of offering more effective and personalised medical treatment.”

A research programme, led by Cancer Research UK's Professor Margaret Frame, will study signal transduction pathways – the biochemical mechanisms that allow cancers to spread – and develop ways of halting that process to prolong and improve a patient's quality of life.

Prof Frame, Chair of Cancer Biology at the University of Edinburgh, said: “After years of ground-breaking research, we have become much better at detecting and treating many forms of cancer. But there are still many cancers that are resistant to current therapies, and there is a real need to discover new ways of slowing down the spread of the disease.

“It's time for a new approach. Cancer specialists are experts in studying tumours, but if, for example, we want to stop breast cancers spreading to the spine, we need to learn from experts in bone disease. This new institute will facilitate that process by prompting scientists and doctors in different disciplines to work together and help us to develop entirely new ways of thinking about cancer treatment.”

The institute, expected to bring £150m of research activity over the next five years, will establish a unique working environment for over 500 scientists in Edinburgh and will provide opportunities for:

• Joint recruitment – IGMM will attract internationally-renowned specialists to advance knowledge and understanding of common diseases
• Joint expertise – IGMM projects will span all disciplines of medical research from laboratory scientists to hospital clinicians
• Joint training of postgraduate students and clinical fellows
• Joint funding – IGMM will compete at the highest level for international grants, and has already been successful in securing a £5m grant from Breakthrough Breast Cancer

New research at IGMM will draw strongly on established initiatives, such as Generation Scotland – a nationwide study looking at the inherited risk of health and disease.