Better Methods, Better Research guidance portal
You can get information and resources to support best methodological practice. This collection of resources are endorsed by both MRC and National Institute for Health Research.
Find out more about the Better Methods, Better Research guidance portal.
Clinical trials data sharing: ReShare
You can share research data from clinical trials through ReShare at the UK Data Service (UKDS). ReShare offers:
- a searchable catalogue of datasets
- a permanent data repository
- a unique digital object identifier (DOI) to identify the dataset
- end user licences for researchers accessing data
- guidance on preparing data.
Health Data Research Innovation Gateway
You can search and request access to hundreds of health datasets, tools and other resources for your research. If you are a data custodian, you can:
- register your datasets to make them more easily discoverable for research
- manage data access requests with automated workflows.
Find out more about the Health Data Research Innovation Gateway.
Cohort Directory
You can find UK population studies through the Cohort Directory, a searchable tool of UK population cohorts.
Find out more about the Cohort Directory.
Dementias Platform UK
You can get data from more than 50 population studies into dementia covering more than 3.5 million participants on Dementias Platform UK. The platform holds a library of resources on dementia research.
Find out more about Dementias Platform UK.
Genomics England
You can use data, tools and facilities from the Genomes Project set up by Genomics England. Genomics England is sequencing 1 million genomes from NHS patients with rare diseases and their families and from patients with common cancers.
Find out more about Genomics England.
Instruct – European infrastructure for structural biology (ERIC)
You can access high-end technologies and methods in structural biology through the pan-European Instruct-ERIC research infrastructure.
Find out more about Instruct-ERIC.
Diamond Light Source
You can apply for beamtime at the Diamond Light Source, the UK’s synchrotron in Harwell, Oxfordshire. The facility offers a range of techniques including macromolecular crystallography, non-crystalline diffraction, circular dichroism and infrared microspectroscopy.
Find out more about the Diamond Light Source.
Electron Bio-imaging Centre (eBIC)
You can apply for access to eBic at Diamond Light Source, which offers state-of-the-art experimental equipment and expertise in the field of cryo-electron microscopy, for both single particle analysis and cryo-tomography.
MRC Biomedical Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) Centre
You can apply for access to the MRC Biomedical NMR Centre, which offers excellent and well-supported facilities for liquid- and solid-state NMR studies of biological molecules.
Find out more about the MRC Biomedical NMR Centre.
Central Laser facility
You can access state-of-the-art laser technology at the Central Laser Facility at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire. Applications include experiments in physics, chemistry and biology, accelerating subatomic particles to high energies, probing chemical reactions on the shortest timescales and studying biochemical and biophysical process critical to life itself.
Find out more about the Central Laser Facility.
ISIS Neutron and Muon Source
You can study materials at the atomic level using neutron and muon instruments at the ISIS centre for research at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory. Instruments are free to use for academic and industry researchers, as long as you publish your results
European Synchrotron Radiation Facility (ESRF)
You can apply for beamtime at ESRF based in Grenoble, France. ESRF is the most powerful synchrotron radiation source in Europe and its facilities complement those at the Diamond Light Source.
Find out more about the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility.
Institut Laue-Langevin
You can use state-of-the-art neutron instruments at the Institut Laue-Langevin (ILL) in Grenoble, France. ILL provides scientists with a very high flux of neutrons.
Find out more about Institut Laue-Langevin.
LifeArc
If you’re an MRC researcher, you can get help with protecting and commercialising your work from LifeArc. They provide a range of services to help you translate your findings into treatments and technologies as quickly as possible, and to generate income for further research. These include filing and managing patent applications, establishing spin-out companies, and negotiating licensing agreements with industrial partners.
Mary Lyon Centre
The Mary Lyon Centre at MRC Harwell is the UK’s national facility for mouse genetics and the use of mouse models for the study of human disease. Their specialised services include the generation and phenotyping of genetically altered mice, and the National Mouse Archive, which allows scientists to deposit mouse strains free of charge for archiving and distribution purposes.
The Mary Lyon Centre is also the central hub of the MRC National Mouse Genetics Network.
Find out more about the Mary Lyon Centre and the MRC National Mouse Genetics Network.
MRC Centre for Macaques
The MRC Centre for Macaques supports the national capability to carry out academic primate research within the UK. It works to secure the supply of rhesus macaques, provide a centre of excellence in primate welfare and care, and a resource centre for the academic community.
Although the primary function of the centre is to supply non-human primates to UK academia, it also has a significant role in scientific and welfare research and distributes tissue for ex vivo use studies.
Find out more about the MRC Centre for Macaques.
MRC scales
The following MRC scales are available for re-use under licence:
- MRC Dyspnoea Scale
- MRC Muscle Scale
- Neurological Scale.
Find out more about using the MRC scales, including contact details:
MRC-Wellcome Trust Human Developmental Biology Resource (HDBR)
You can access human embryonic and foetal tissue, donated through elective terminations, through HDBR. The centre also carries out gene expression studies on human embryonic and foetal material for a charge per project.
Find out more about the Human Developmental Biology Resource.
Regulatory Support Centre
You can get support and guidance from the MRC Regulatory Support Centre on the legal and ethical requirements for research involving human participants, their tissues or data.
Find out more about the Regulatory Support Centre.
Research Complex at Harwell
You can use short, medium and long-term laboratory facilities for life and physical sciences through the Research Complex at Harwell – a facility jointly provided by MRC, the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC), Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC), Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) and Diamond Light Source.
Find out more about the Research Complex at Harwell.
UK Biobank
You can access a large biomedical database and research built from the in-depth genetic and health information of 500,000 people who have contributed to the UK Biobank.
Find out more about UK Biobank.
UK Stem Cell Bank
You can use and share quality-controlled stem cell lines for research and clinical development of stem cell therapies through the UK Stem Cell Bank. MRC-funded research involving human embryonic stem cells must be approved by the UK Stem Cell Bank.
Find out more about the UK Stem Cell Bank.
UK Clinical Research Collaboration (UKCRC) Tissue Directory
You can search more than 400 human sample collections across 200 sample resources (for example, biobanks and cohorts) in the UKCRC Tissue Directory. Sample collections funded by MRC are encouraged to register their collections in the directory.
Find out more about the UKCRC Tissue Directory.
Biobanking and Biomolecular Resources Research Infrastructure (BBMRI)
Researchers in the UK can access biobanking support and find samples and data through BBMRI ERIC (European Research Infrastructure Consortium). This includes quality management services, support with ethical, legal and societal issues, online tools and software solutions.