Medicines Discovery Catapult (MDC) was named winner of the Best Industry Support Partner of the Year Award at the 2023 OBN Awards.
MDC was recognised for the pivotal role it plays in supporting R&D companies in the life science sector.
By reshaping drug discovery for patient benefit, MDC helps to transform great UK science into better treatments through partnership.
MDC has worked with over 230 UK companies, helping them to raise almost £600m in private funding and supporting partners in generating £67m in grant funding.
MDC received the accolade in recognition of its sector-wide impact to catalyse activity in areas of unmet patient need and by introducing new approaches that make drug discovery more predictive and effective.
It connects the life sciences ecosystem, driving a global focus on barriers to innovation.
MDC has created and run three national charity-enabled, industry-guided R&D coalitions and delivered the largest laboratory diagnostics project in UK history – the UK Lighthouse Laboratory Network, which tested over 150m PCR samples during the Covid-19 pandemic.
In October 2023, it launched two major new national programmes in PET imaging and antimicrobial resistance alongside industry partners:
- The National PET Imaging Platform (NPIP) is the UK’s first-of-its-kind national total-body PET imaging platform. It will provide a complete picture of the nation’s clinical PET imaging research, transforming how we research, predict and treat diseases forever
- PACE (Pathways to Antimicrobial Clinical Efficacy) brings together the best minds in AMR research and connects them to the right funding, resources, and partnerships. It exists so that researchers at the early stages of drug and diagnostic development can make progress quickly and confidently, accelerating the delivery of new innovations to tackle AMR
The impact of MDC’s work has far-reaching effects on the progress of the scientific, medical, and academic communities and for patients across the UK.
Professor Chris Molloy, CEO of Medicines Discovery Catapult, said:
“MDC exists to help our sector community not only succeed but thrive. We are delighted to have received this award in recognition of the support we provide to our industry partners. MDC makes world-class expertise, facilities, complex technologies and advanced analytics accessible, and our talented team delivers this to our partners daily. Our recent national programme launches are a great example of Catapults in action. They provide further evidence of the positive impact we can make through collaboration, and we will improve patient outcomes through these cross-sector initiatives.
“MDC remains committed to delivering what the community asks of us. We are proud to be part of an ecosystem of innovators and will continue to serve the sector with the support it needs to deliver new medicines to patients faster.”
OBN is a membership organisation bringing together over 380 of the UK’s emerging life science companies, corporate partners and investors.
Professor Chris Molloy received the Special Recognition Award at the 2022 OBN Awards for his advocacy of life science innovators, supporting the needs of early-stage R&D companies across the life sciences industry for over 30 years.
The OBN Awards, now in their 15th year, are a highly regarded and sought-after awards programme for the life sciences, designed to celebrate innovation and outstanding achievement across all corners of the industry.
