MRC Centre for Medical Mycology

The major contribution of fungi to the global burden of disease is not widely appreciated, despite the fact that fungi infect billions of people annually. While most infections are non-life threatening superficial infections, such as athlete's foot, millions of people contract invasive fungal diseases resulting in global mortality figures that rival those of tuberculosis or malaria. Despite their huge burden and high rates of death, fungal infections remain understudied compared with other infectious diseases and there is a pressing need for more research in this field. Experts in the field, including Aberdeen scientists, have identified three priorities that require urgent attention: (i) to improve our ability to detect fungal infections, (ii) to generate better antifungal drugs, and (iii) to enhance the understanding of fungal immunity and its exploitation to fight these diseases. The limited progress in tackling these challenges is due, in large part, to a lack of basic and clinical scientists working in this field in the UK and worldwide.

The UK has a small but highly active community of scientists working on fungal diseases (medical mycologists), with the largest group based at The University of Aberdeen (the Aberdeen Fungal Group, AFG). The AFG, which consists of 11 independent research teams, totalling around eighty individuals, is internationally recognised as a leading group in this field. We aim to achieve maximal synergistic potential within the diverse expertise of the AFG by establishing a world-leading MRC Centre of excellence for research and training in Medical Mycology (MCMM). The MCMM will focus on performing cutting-edge interdisciplinary research and on training the next generation of scientists to increase research capacity in this neglected field in the UK.

Establishing the MCMM will facilitate full integration of the complementary areas of expertise into six exciting research themes that address the key priorities of this field. Moreover, creation of the MCMM will lead to the recruitment of two academics whose expertise will add significant complementary value to the current group, and enable expansion of our research capacity into important new areas. One post will be in Bioinformatics, which will study and help process our massive biological datasets. This post will empower new technologies that will allow us to gain important insights into the mechanisms of fungal disease. The second post will be in immunology which, in addition to delivering cutting-edge science, will help promote the translation of our scientific discoveries into new diagnostic, preventative and therapeutic applications. The MCMM will also be used as a platform to raise awareness and influence policy regarding the management of fungal diseases within the broader academic community and the general public.

A major objective of the MCMM is to increase capacity in medical mycology in the UK by delivering a cohort of 21 basic and clinical researchers through a range of world leading training programmes. This will include a bespoke four-year MRes-PhD programme for 13 students that will provide a broad interdisciplinary training that is not available anywhere else; 3 Early Career Fellowships to promote an early independent research career in medical mycology for outstanding individuals; 5 Fellowships for excellent clinical trainees to provide one year of focussed academic training and research and to establish a foundation for subsequent PhD fellowship applications; and 10 eight-week summer scholarships for fourth-year medical students to stimulate their interest in medical mycology, and to promote links between the MCMM and other centres in this field. The MCMM Fellows, PhD students and clinical trainees will underpin the integration of the AFG, through appointment to jointly-supervised projects within our new research themes, and will significantly advance our understanding of fungal disease.