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Our Research Programmes

Developing and testing the latest tools and approaches needed to decode living systems and make predictions about biology.

The Earlham Institute is a collaborative and multidisciplinary hub of life science research, innovation, and training. We work to understand life through genomics and data science, bringing together biologists, computational scientists, mathematicians, and engineers. 

Our vision is to build a future where the biology of any organism can be understood by analysing its genome.

Guided by the Institute’s strategy, our science is pioneering the development of technologies, methodologies, and innovations to global challenges across agri-tech, health, and biotechnology - answering fundamental and important biological questions. 

We are one of eight UK institutes that receive strategic funding from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), part of UKRI, as well as support from other research funders.
 


 

Decoding Living Systems

Our strategic research programmes are supported by expert scientists, technicians, and support staff who all share a commitment to our core values and culture of team science.

The Earlham Institute focuses on three strategic programmes of research:

  • Decoding Biodiversity - addressing the need for tools, expertise and capacity to translate genomes and long-read technologies into discoveries. 
  • Cellular Genomics - investigating the impact of genomic and transcriptomic heterogeneity in the cells of healthy plants and animals. 
  • Designing Sustainable Wheat  - a cross-institute initiative to address critical challenges in wheat health, yield, and production, to safeguard global food security.

Supporting UK bioscience

Crucial to the delivery of these research programmes are our data infrastructure and advanced training capabilities, alongside two BBBSRC-funded National Bioscience Research Infrastructure platforms - Transformative Genomics and the Earlham Biofoundry

These provide the UK bioscience community with access to the cutting-edge tools, expertise, training and skills needed to answer key biological questions and deliver impact.

Lastly, we receive core capability funding from BBSRC to ensure we have the facilities, resources, and support needed to deliver world-class science.

Working with us

We are passionate about collaborating with academia and industry, as well as engaging with policy makers and the public to realise the impact of our science.

If you’re interested in finding out more about our research programmes or NBRIs, please contact our Business Development and Impact Team using the Contact Us form. 

Discover more

The Earlham Institute’s mission is to decode the scale and complexity of living systems so we can understand, benefit from, and protect life on Earth.

To achieve our mission, we have set out strategic research themes to accelerate life science research, deliver global societal impact, and put the Earlham Institute at the forefront of advancing knowledge in the era of data-intensive biological research.

Our success relies on each individual experiencing an environment where they feel able to meaningfully contribute and connect to their work, colleagues, and the wider mission of the Institute.

We work with organisations and partners to translate our knowledge and expertise, provide access to our facilities and platforms, and realise the impact of public investment in the Earlham Institute.