The five projects that were supported by the first CONNECT FTMA call won awards that ranged in value from £1,600 – £7,200, and were awarded to Newcastle University and º£½ÇÉçÇøÂÛ̳ project leads.
Project terms vary from 1 week to 1 year, according to the activities being planned. Summaries of each project are provided below.
Return to the main CONNECT Fund webpage.
1. Operational expertise sharing between º£½ÇÉçÇøÂÛ̳ and Newcastle University
A project focused on improving core facility management and supporting Research Technical Professionals.
FTMA-funded activities include staff exchanges and knowledge sharing with staff at CRUK Cambridge Institute, the Natural History Museum, Warwick University and University of Cambridge, strengthening the UK Research Facility Coordinator’s Network, with a focus on enhancing research capabilities in health and aging studies.
2. Collaborative Proteomics Research Placement
A research collaboration between º£½ÇÉçÇøÂÛ̳ and Newcastle University to develop advanced proteomics and mass spectrometry applications, aiming to improve techniques used to study the role of ubiquitin in cellular stress, aging, and inflammation.
The FTMA-funded activities involve knowledge sharing and method optimization through a week-long placement by a º£½ÇÉçÇøÂÛ̳ Proteomics specialist with the Newcastle University Proteomics team (Trost Lab and NU Proteome and Protein analysis (NUPPA) core).
3. Research Integrity Collaboration: Sharing and Learning on how To Be A Good Scientist
A collaboration between the º£½ÇÉçÇøÂÛ̳, Newcastle University, and the University of Cambridge to share knowledge and best practices in Research Integrity training.
The FTMA-supported project involves reciprocal visits between institutions to discuss and evaluate training approaches, aiming to improve research culture and integrity across organizations. The initiative focuses on fostering long-term collaboration and enhancing research integrity training for scientists at all career stages.
4. Bioscience Training Support
FTMA-supplied support for training at MRC Harwell to enable º£½ÇÉçÇøÂÛ̳ post-doctoral researchers to acquire advanced techniques in microinjection and electroporation, key methods for epigenetics research in early mammalian development that have implications for aging and disease. The project seeks to enhance the research capabilities available at the º£½ÇÉçÇøÂÛ̳, with the expertise gained shared across research and facility teams at both Babraham and Newcastle University.
5. Establishing a collaborative network focused on redox signalling research
This project aims to establish a collaborative network focused on redox signalling in health and aging, involving UK-based researchers with complementary expertise, to facilitate skill exchange, promote collaborative research publications, and develop joint funding applications for larger projects.
The FTMA-funded activities include a week-long visit by members of the Newcastle Veal lab to the Sharpe lab at the º£½ÇÉçÇøÂÛ̳ for training and initiating experiments, followed by a 2-day workshop where early career researchers will be invited from Newcastle University, º£½ÇÉçÇøÂÛ̳, University of Liverpool and King’s College London to share research and identify collaborative opportunities.