Innovation and Collaboration Pilot Projects Go Live
- Published 24 February 2026
The UK Human Functional Genomics Initiative is pleased to announce the initial cohort of pilot projects funded through the Innovation and Collaboration Fund is now underway.
The funding, launched at the Initiative’s Scientific Symposium last year, supports short, high-impact studies designed to stimulate new partnerships, test emerging ideas, and accelerate progress across the Initiative.
The funded projects will commence between 1 January 2026 and 1 April 2026 and will run for up to 12 months.
Open to academics at universities and research institutes across the UK, the funding call attracted strong interest from the functional genomics community, with more than 100 applications submitted representing approximately £5 million in requested funding. Individual awards range from £15,000 to £100,000.
“This funding call was designed to spark new collaborations and enable researchers to pursue innovative ideas that align with the Initiative’s goals,” said Professor Jonathan Mill, Director, UK Human Functional Genomics Initiative. “We are delighted to see these projects now going live following the enthusiasm generated at last year’s symposium.”
Catalysing Innovation and Collaboration
The Innovation and Collaboration Fund aims to expand participation in the UK Human Functional Genomics Initiative, while strengthening links between existing research clusters, and engagement with new partners. Projects are expected to generate feasibility data, pilot results, or early insights that can support future large-scale collaborative grant applications.
Funded Pilot Projects:
Lead Institution |
Principal Investigator |
Project Title |
Imperial College London |
Akashaditya Das |
Expanding CRISPR Oligo Recombineering for classification of non-coding DNA variants |
University of Exeter |
Akshay Bhinge |
Developing a novel optical genetic screening platform |
Imperial College London |
Alessia David |
Sequence-structure characterization of novel brain transcripts and their variants in the developing human brain |
Milner Therapeutics Institute |
Anke Husmann |
Pilot Project for the Fabrication of 3D Microstructures to Enable High-Throughput Genetic Screening |
University of Surrey |
Ayse Demirkan |
Predicting Tissue-Specific PPTMs in Drug Targets with AI: From Genetic Variation to Common Human Traits |
EMBL-EBI |
Christine Ernst |
FGx Data Standards and Archiving: A Collaborative Framework with EMBLEBI’s Functional Genomics Team |
Milner Therapeutics Institute |
Chun Hao Wong |
Developing highly multiplexed in situ sequencing approaches for optical pooled CRISPR screening |
University of Oxford |
Dominic Furniss |
Validation of spatial gene expression patterns across primary human samples, ex-vivo models, and disease specific perturbations in musculoskeletal disease |
Milner Therapeutics Institute |
Erica Bello |
Development of CRISPR-based epigenome editing in hiPSC-derived microglia |
University of Exeter |
Georgia Bonfield |
Modelling Novel RNU4ATAC and RNU6ATAC variants via Antisense-Mediated Knockdown |
University of Oxford |
Matthew Baxter |
Development of Single-Cell Micro-Capture-C for Functional Resolution of GWAS Signals |
Cardiff University |
Nicholas Bray |
Characterisation of full-length mRNA isoforms expressed in individual cell populations of the developing human brain |
University of Exeter |
Nicholas Clifton |
Isoform-resolved transcriptomics of synaptic plasticity |
Imperial College London |
Sarah Hassan |
Proteome-Wide Discovery of Cell Signal Rewiring in Rare Disease |
Wellcome Sanger Institute |
Sunay Usluer |
Interaction between germline and somatic variants in steatotic liver disease |
Kings College London |
Xinyi DuHarper & AstraZeneca |
Optimising Biopsy Sampling for Spatial Transcriptomics of Acne Vulgaris to Unravel Disease Pathogenesis |
Open Science and Community Engagement
All awardees will adhere to the data-sharing standards established by the Data Coordination Centre (DCC), including the sharing of protocols, experimental metadata, raw data, and code. Project teams will also present their results at a future Scientific Symposium, and you can read more about the projects on the UK Human Functional Genomics Initiative website here.
Looking Ahead: Industry Partnership Funding
Building on the success of this call, the Initiative will launch a new round of Innovation and Collaboration Funding focused specifically on partnerships with industry in late March 2026. This upcoming opportunity aims to foster academia–industry collaboration and accelerate the translation of functional genomics discoveries into real-world applications.
Researchers and organisations interested in applying are encouraged to sign up to the mailing list to receive further details, eligibility information, and application timelines as soon as they are announced.