Research overview
Research Departments
Our departments are focused academic units in identified areas of high-performing research and teaching excellence, each with an ambitious strategy and empowered leadership. We draw together outstanding academic, clinical and Professional Services staff around coherent and highly collaborative themes.
The departments are responsible for driving the further development and delivery of priority themes identified in the institutional Life Sciences Strategy and the College Strategic Framework. They are championing interdisciplinary collaboration across the University’s Colleges and in partnership with our regional NHS Trusts. Each department contributes to our translational pipeline, supporting fundamental research excellence through to clinical and applied health programmes.
This strategy ensures that our research delivers real impact in health and wealth generation and that our educational programmes are informed by our research strengths. Co-location and core focal points for each of the Institutes ensure cohesion while at the same time promoting cross-Institute working and collaboration.
This is further enabled through access to key College and/or cross-campus-managed facilities and resources and the provision of high quality professional services support including core academic, technical and specialist administration in support of teaching and research delivery.
Our internationally leading experts help to tackle global societal challenges, from occupational health risks in the UK and Europe to childhood obesity in China.
We make a unique and powerful contribution to understanding how genetic abnormalities within cancer cells lead to disease. We use this information to design and rigorously assess new and proven cancer treatments.
We are world leaders in several areas of cardiovascular work, including research into the behaviour of platelets, white blood cells, atrial fibrillation and angiogenesis.
Birmingham has a very strong history of immunology research going back 50 years, and our large faculty of scientists and doctors are well positioned to make a world-leading contribution to understanding and treating immune- mediated disease.
From basic science to community exercise classes, we cover every aspect of research into and treatment of inflammation-driven illnesses and the role of inflammation in ageing.
For many years we have led the global field in metabolism research, particularly in endocrinology. We are also at the forefront of systems-level studies of the human metabolome – how our bodies function at a more complex level.
Research Centres