# LifeArc offers £10 million research fund to speed up finding treatments for COVID-19

- Link: https://fundraising.co.uk/2020/03/20/lifearc-offers-10m-research-fund-to-speed-up-finding-treatments-for-covid-19/
- Published: 2020-03-20T10:44:40+00:00
- Author: Howard Lake

**UK-based medical research charity LifeArc has created a £10 million fund to support
research to accelerate the development and testing of therapeutics that can be rapidly
deployed to treat the symptoms of COVID-19. **

 

Applications are open now to academics or companies that have molecules that could
be repurposed or repositioned for use in COVID-19 patients.

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Melanie Lee, CEO, [LifeArc](http://www.lifearc.org), explained why they had established
the fund. She said: “The development and manufacture of a vaccine is at least a 
year away. There is a clear, urgent need now for treatments that can reduce the 
mortality and morbidity rate. We have launched this research call to try to speed
up the process of investigating potential treatments and so improve outcomes for
patients.”

 

LifeArc’s assumption is that the development of _novel_ molecules is not realistic
in the timeframe. The focus for applications will therefore be from those looking
to repurpose _already available medicines_ licensed in other indications or for 
therapeutics in the late stages of development.

 

The aim is to increase the chance of getting an effective treatment available across
the world during this pandemic.

 

LifeArc has more than 25 years’ experience progressing translational medical research.

 

 

 

## Scientific rationale but no funding

 

Andrew Farquharson, Executive Director, Technology Transfer, LifeArc, said: “We 
are aware of a number of potential drugs where there is a scientific rationale for
testing but no funding to do that. With this funding we aim to progress those therapeutics
and we are looking for proposals that offer the best chance of quickly making a 
difference.”

 

This funding will form part of a national and international response from across
the life sciences sector. Grants will be awarded rapidly and LifeArc is not looking
for any financial return on these grants.

 

## Grant process

 

Research applications will be considered by an expert scientific panel using criteria
which include:

 

 * the scientific rationale
 * deliverability of the project in the time scale of 6-12 months
 * and clarity on how to manufacture and reach patients with the drug.

 

 

 

The [call for applications](https://www.lifearc.org/funding/covid-19/covid-19-funding/)
opened on 20 March and will **close on 6 April 2020**.  Funding decisions will be
made by the week commencing 27th April.

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