Collaboration in Action: Kate Attfield

How has working with industry brought benefit to you and your research?  

Working with industry has provided me with valuable insights on how to successfully develop new treatments for neuroinflammatory diseases, including the tools and steps needed to translate our research so that it directly benefits patients. I have worked with industry partners under different remits for the past four years, including for drug development, clinical trials and basic research; each has empowered me to develop and design my research with an understanding of where the limitations lie when translating these findings and where to seek advice and support to overcome them.  

How did you establish your industry collaborations?  

The industrial collaborations I am part of were established through either specific project application calls or through the network of scientists that were part of those calls, from which new projects have arisen. With the support of Professor Lars Fugger, I have been fortunate to meet a diverse range of industry-based scientists, with which I now have independent and growing research collaborations. 

What is your advice to those considering working with industry?  

I think it is important to acknowledge that working with industry is not a model that suits all academic research portfolios and that a balance between industrial collaborations and academic research should always be maintained to preserve their respective strengths. For me, the most exciting part of working with industry is the ability to move my research even closer to helping patients, especially when performing a clinical trial and generating the data that reveals how and if a drug is working. Publication of this work are goals for both me and my industry partners, so I think these collaborations are also beneficial when building a research portfolio and future career.