NERC Environmental Omics Facility
Lead Research Organisation:
British Geological Survey
Department Name: Executive
Abstract
New omic technologies have transformed biology by allowing scientists to read genomes (genomics) and to measure the amounts of proteins (proteomics) or other chemicals (metabolomics) within living cells and organisms. Tiny amounts of DNA can be collected from the environment (environmental DNA, eDNA) to measure biodiversity and monitor the health of our soils, rivers and seas. This creates a tremendous opportunity to understand the diversity of different individuals and species within the natural environment, their evolution, and the diversity of different characters and forms that allow them to live within their environment. Understanding biodiversity is more pressing than ever, given the rate at which it is being lost from the planet and the central role that it plays in allowing species and ecosystems to respond to, and survive, climate change.
Scientists wanting to use omic technologies in their research face significant hurdles: the equipment required costs millions of pounds and few labs can afford it; the expertise to apply these techniques is rare, particularly to species from the natural environment; and there is a lack of the specialist skills present within the environmental science community to design studies using omic technology and to then analyse the resulting data. To overcome these hurdles and equip scientists with the tools and skills they need to address their research questions using omics, we established the NERC Environmental Omics Facility (NEOF) in 2020. This proposal is for a renewal of NEOF until 2031.
NEOF is a unique capability within the UK that provides end-to-end support to NERC users from initial project design, through data generation and analysis. Other facilities, including commercial providers, typically provide individual methods, with limited support. There is nothing that compares with the package offered to users by NEOF. We have the expertise and equipment to train scientists in omic methods, help them to understand the potential of the technology and design studies to use it, provide the means to test adventurous ideas, and to support larger-scale NERC research projects. NEOF is run by a team of scientists who are world-leading experts and are able to cover a broad range of omics methods, with experience of applying these to questions in environmental sciences. We use this expertise to train early-stage scientists and to upskill scientists at any stage of their career. We empower the community of NERC scientists to engage with new technologies and approaches and to then use them to address questions using omics that were previously impossible to answer in environmental science. We also have extensive equipment and space that we use to support omic analysis for NERC scientists. We will continue to adopt innovative technologies and methods to allow NERC science to remain at the forefront of environmental omics worldwide.
NEOF is excellent value for NERC. We are able to provide >£20m of existing equipment and >£2m of previous refurbishment (from a range of UKRI, charity and institutional funds) so that NERC does not need to buy this for us. This proposal builds on a continuity of provision as a NERC facility; since 2011 with the NERC Biomolecular Analysis Facility (NBAF) and since 2020 in its current form as NEOF. Our team therefore has >10 years' experience of delivering a highly effective facility to NERC, with a host of processes in place to ensure that projects are managed quickly and to budget. We have demonstrated that we can support NERC scientists in accessing cutting-edge genomics capability through our current S&F award, with consistently positive feedback from users. We have been able to generate impact directly ourselves, evidenced through our work detecting SARS-CoV2 in environmental samples, and in enabling users to generate impact within their own research. This track record shows that we can continue to support users and to innovate in the renewal of this award.
Scientists wanting to use omic technologies in their research face significant hurdles: the equipment required costs millions of pounds and few labs can afford it; the expertise to apply these techniques is rare, particularly to species from the natural environment; and there is a lack of the specialist skills present within the environmental science community to design studies using omic technology and to then analyse the resulting data. To overcome these hurdles and equip scientists with the tools and skills they need to address their research questions using omics, we established the NERC Environmental Omics Facility (NEOF) in 2020. This proposal is for a renewal of NEOF until 2031.
NEOF is a unique capability within the UK that provides end-to-end support to NERC users from initial project design, through data generation and analysis. Other facilities, including commercial providers, typically provide individual methods, with limited support. There is nothing that compares with the package offered to users by NEOF. We have the expertise and equipment to train scientists in omic methods, help them to understand the potential of the technology and design studies to use it, provide the means to test adventurous ideas, and to support larger-scale NERC research projects. NEOF is run by a team of scientists who are world-leading experts and are able to cover a broad range of omics methods, with experience of applying these to questions in environmental sciences. We use this expertise to train early-stage scientists and to upskill scientists at any stage of their career. We empower the community of NERC scientists to engage with new technologies and approaches and to then use them to address questions using omics that were previously impossible to answer in environmental science. We also have extensive equipment and space that we use to support omic analysis for NERC scientists. We will continue to adopt innovative technologies and methods to allow NERC science to remain at the forefront of environmental omics worldwide.
NEOF is excellent value for NERC. We are able to provide >£20m of existing equipment and >£2m of previous refurbishment (from a range of UKRI, charity and institutional funds) so that NERC does not need to buy this for us. This proposal builds on a continuity of provision as a NERC facility; since 2011 with the NERC Biomolecular Analysis Facility (NBAF) and since 2020 in its current form as NEOF. Our team therefore has >10 years' experience of delivering a highly effective facility to NERC, with a host of processes in place to ensure that projects are managed quickly and to budget. We have demonstrated that we can support NERC scientists in accessing cutting-edge genomics capability through our current S&F award, with consistently positive feedback from users. We have been able to generate impact directly ourselves, evidenced through our work detecting SARS-CoV2 in environmental samples, and in enabling users to generate impact within their own research. This track record shows that we can continue to support users and to innovate in the renewal of this award.
