MRC invests £1.4M in global lipid research database

The Medical Research Council has invested £1.4 million in LIPID MAPS , a resource that supports underpinning mechanistic studies on a wide range of biomedical research areas - from tissues, model systems, microbes, through to human epidemiology. The funding will allow Cardiff University's School of Medicine, in collaboration with the Babraham Institute, the University of California San Diego, University of Edinburgh and Swansea University, to develop new tools and resources focused on systems biology of lipids. Lead Investigator, Professor Valerie O'Donnell, Cardiff University School of Medicine, said: "We are delighted with this funding for our new partnership. Lipids, commonly known as fats, are essential for life but are also centrally involved in the development of diseases such as heart disease and dementia." The new funding will allow the partners to develop new big data resources focused on systems biology of lipids, enabling mechanistic studies on a wide range of biomedical research areas - from tissues, model systems, microbes, through to human epidemiology. "There is a huge amount we still don't know relating to how many unique lipids our cells contain and how these change during development and disease. To further our understanding, it's essential that we have collaborative open access resources such as those hosted on LIPID MAPS." added co-investigator Ed Dennis, University of California San Diego. The project will bring together a new consortium hosted under the LIPID MAPS umbrella, with a focus on curating molecular and biochemistry information, as well as generating new informatics tools, to facilitate lipid researchers worldwide.