£4.5m EU boost to establish centre of excellence for brain research

The new CUBRIC (Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre) building will enable researchers to rapidly test new ideas and theories to gain a faster understanding of the causes of a range of health conditions, including dementia, schizophrenia and multiple sclerosis.The EU funds through the Welsh Government will support the construction works of the new £44m state-of-the-art facility based at Maindy Park.

Finance Minister Jane Hutt announced the funding during a site visit as part of her 2015 Budget Tour of Wales.

The Minister said:

“I am delighted to announce EU funds to help construct a centre of excellence in Wales with the capability for world-class, highly specialised collaborative, research in the field of neuroscience.

”This is another excellent example of how EU funds are supporting growth in the Welsh economy, helping our academic institutions to attract further competitive and private research investments and position Wales as a global leader in ground-breaking research and innovation.”

The expansion of CUBRIC is expected to generate up to £22m in additional research investments over the coming years, enabling further collaboration with world-leading expertise to combat diseases that affect the brain.

Housing a number of laboratories and cutting-edge equipment, the centre will be four times bigger than the University’s existing facilities. The expansion is also expected to generate new, highly-skilled research posts at the site.

Professor Derek Jones, Director of CUBRIC, said:

“We are delighted to welcome this EU funding which cements CUBRIC’s position as a European leader in brain imaging and brain stimulation, and underpins our new £44m state-of-the-art home in Cardiff.

“CUBRIC pairing of world-leading technology with an extremely talented set of researchers, will help to understand differences in normal brain function and the causes of conditions such as dementia, schizophrenia, and multiple sclerosis. Ultimately, this information will lead to the development of better treatments.”

Professor Julie Williams, Chief Scientific Adviser for Wales, said:

“This is a world class facility which will attract new research to Wales, building on our current strengths.  It is good news for Welsh research.”

The Welsh Government has also invested over £9m in the development of CUBRIC, including funding towards an ultra-high field Tesla MRI scanner. The centre is due to open next year.