Lord Patrick Vallance, UK Government Minister for Science, has officially opened the Francis Crick Institute and MSD Skylab located on the roof space of the Crick building in Kings Cross London, UK. The 1098 square metre life science laboratory will allow the Crick to further expand partnership opportunities and strengthen its life sciences capabilities. At the same time the new space will allow MSD to expand is discovery team, with capacity for an additional 50 people.
MSD has signed a three-year agreement to occupy the Skylab ahead of the opening of its new UK Discovery Centre and Headquarters, also in Kings Cross, London, which is scheduled for completion during 2027. MSD said that upcoming space will enable it to grow expertise that spans chemistry, pharmacology and neuroscience, as well as starting immunology research in the UK for the first time.
Opening the Skylab, Lord Vallance said: “The Skylab represents a fantastic opportunity to advanced UK science and is a vote of confidence in the UK as an investment destination.”
London’s Kings Cross area is becoming a hub for the UK’s life sciences sector, with Baseimmune, a discovery stage biotech set to occupy some 311 square meters of office and laboratory space in what is known as the King’s Cross Knowledge Quarter.
Baseimmune is focused on antigen discovery and vaccine development. Its technology is based on a computational platform deciphering pathogen evolution to design cross-protective vaccines. Earlier this year Baseimmune, which was founded in 2019 by three scientists from the University of Oxford, closed £9 million in Series A funding which was led by new investors: MSD Global Health Innovation Fund, and IQ Capital. Existing investors also participated.
Commenting on that investment Baseimmune CEO and Co-Founder Joshua Blight said: “We’re thrilled to have the support of a top-tier investor syndicate led by MSD Global Health Innovation Fund and IQ Capital. This funding will enable us the accelerate the development of our technology, scale our programmes and expedite the delivery of impactful vaccines against future viruses.
Baseimmune has three vaccine candidates in pre-clinical development for African swine fever, coronavirus and malaria.
Further reading:
Visit Blog