Partnerships
The MRC CMM represents the most significant and strategic concentration of medical mycology expertise worldwide.
Medical mycology is an area of urgent medical need. Over 2 million deaths worldwide each year are caused by fungalinfections, and incidence of antifungal resistance is increasing rapidly.
We urgently need better diagnostic tests, more antifungal drugs and effective vaccines to diagnose, treatments and preventfungal infections. There is a market opportunity to tackle the lack of resource in diagnostics, vaccines and therapeutics.
Working with industry partners
The MRC CMM brings together world leading expertise, and offers industry partners the opportunity to deliver solutions to the challenge of fungal disease.
Our research is helping further the understanding of fungal pathogenesis and how it impacts human hosts.
We deliver results contributing to new diagnostics, drugs and vaccine development.
Our partners
We partner with academic institutions, NGOs, government and industry to apply our discoveries. Our collaborations are strengthened by key translational infrastructure at the University of Exeter. Recent initiatives include:
- FAILSAFE project: A £3.4 million fund led by the University of Exeter to combat antifungal resistance, particularly benefiting low and middle-income countries.
- The Fungal One Health and Antimicrobial Resistance (F1AMR) Network: An Imperial-led project developing multidisciplinary solutions to combat fungal diseases across One Health.
- International collaboration between the University of Exeter and Fiocruz, boosting funding for fungal AMR research.
- Working together makes a difference to all our lives by accelerating research, increasing awareness and strengthening global efforts to address fungal antimicrobial resistance.
Partnership opportunities
Consulting and expertise
Leverage our research and knowledge to solve complex challenges and drive innovation.
Research and Development
Partner with us on R&D projects, through direct commissioning or co-funding, to advance your products and technologies.
Sponsorship - PhD Studentships/Fellowship
Sponsor PhD candidates or fellows to support research aligned with your business goals.
Training and Education
Access specialised training programs designed to enhance the skills of your team in medical mycology.
Technology & Imaging Services
Utilise our state-of-the-art imaging technologies and services to enhance your research, diagnostics and product development.
Experimental Design
Expertise with in vitro, ex vivo, in vivo, and in silico experimental models
Case studies
Combating Antifungal Resistance: New Treatments for Fungal Diseases
Research themes I, II, III, IV and V
A new consortium called Fungi-CARE (Combinations Against Resistance Emergence), led by Professor Elaine Bignell at the MRC Centre for Medical Mycology, unites scientists, clinicians and pharmacologists from St. George’s University Hospital London and the University of Liverpool to combat antifungal resistance.
With a focus on Candida species, which can cause fatal infections in immunocompromised patients, the programme seeks innovative strategies to optimize antifungal use. As Candida species increasingly resist limited antifungal drugs, the initiative addresses this urgent public health threat flagged by the WHO, particularly invasive candidiasis, which affects thousands annually in the UK, with patients in intensive care units particularly susceptible.
Read the full press release at £3.2 million boost from Medical Research Council to preserve antifungal drugs - News
Unlocking Early Detection of Mucormycosis: A Breakthrough in Fungal Diagnostics
Research themes I, II and V
As the WHO identifies Mucorales as high-priority fungal pathogens, the MRC CMM has made significant advances in diagnosing mucormycosis, a life-threatening infection in immunocompromised patients, including those with diabetes, blood cancers, or those on immunosuppressive medications. Early diagnosis is crucial for improving survival rates but until now detection methods have been limited. Researchers worked with ISCA Diagnostics to translate research findings into practical diagnostic tools to improve patient outcomes. They developed a test targeting a specific antigen present during active fungal growth allowing differentiation between invasive infection and colonising fungi. This innovation enables early, accurate detection of invasive infections, offering new hope for timely treatment and reduced mortality rates.
Further reading: Hudson et al. 2024, J. Infectious Dis.
Discovering susceptibility to Chromoblastomycosis
Optimal antifungal immunity relies onrecognition through multiple pattern recognition receptors. We discovered that the lack of cooperative signallingbetween C-type lectin and Tolllikereceptors (TLR) underlies the susceptibility to chromoblastomycosis.
Excitingly, we could show that restoring this co-operative signalling, through thetopical administration of a TLR agonist,Imiquimod, enabled clearance of the infection.
This treatment has been tested clinically, and reproduced in other studies.
Antifungal drug delivery in a 3D infection microenvironment
We are working to improve candida recovery rates. Through 3D imaging, we can identify which concentrations and combinations of antifungal medicine are better for specific organs.
Zinc prevents vaginal candidiasis by inhibiting expression of an inflammatory fungal protein
Research themes II, IV and V
Candida infections cause over half a billion vaginal infections annually, resulting in significant economic losses, including an estimated £700 million in the UK alone. The symptoms of vaginal candidiasis (VVC) are driven by a hyper-inflammatory response to Candida. Researchers Drs. Elena Roselletti and Duncan Wilson have identified that this response is linked to zinc limitation in the vagina. Candida albicans releases a zinc-binding protein called Pra1, which triggers inflammation. Crucially, zinc supplementation can prevent Pra1 production, leading to a clinical trial aimed at evaluating its effectiveness in preventing recurrent VVC in affected women.
Further reading: Roselletti et al., 2023, Sci Transl Med.
Contact us
Email: mrccmm@exeter.ac.uk
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