Partnerships
Research rarely advances in isolation.
Noviota works selectively with researchers, universities, research institutes, biotechnology organisations and technology partners whose expertise or capabilities complement our research.
Our interests span infectious disease, immunology, computational biology and biological representation. Many of the questions we are pursuing cannot be answered through computation alone.
Biological expertise, experimental evidence, appropriate datasets and access to real research systems are essential if computational representations and models are to remain connected to biology.
We are therefore particularly interested in partnerships that bring computation and experimental biology into closer contact. A collaboration does not need to encompass the whole Noviota research programme — a sufficiently interesting shared scientific question is often a better place to begin.
Ways we collaborate
Bringing computation and biology into contact.
Research collaboration
We welcome conversations with researchers and organisations investigating questions that intersect with Noviota’s programme. Potential areas of collaboration include:
- infectious disease;
- host–pathogen interactions;
- innate and adaptive immunology;
- comparative infectious disease;
- computational biology;
- biological knowledge representation;
- mechanistic modelling;
- computational reasoning;
- scientific software and research methods.
A collaboration does not need to encompass the whole Noviota research programme. A sufficiently interesting shared scientific question is often a better place to begin.
Experimental collaboration
Computational models eventually have to encounter biology. Noviota is particularly interested in relationships that allow computational representations, models or hypotheses to be compared with experimental systems and observations.
Relevant collaborations could provide access to specialist expertise, laboratory capability, assays, biological models, samples or research datasets where there is a clear scientific question and an appropriate ethical, legal and governance framework. The purpose is not simply to acquire more data. It is to create a meaningful connection between computational representation and experimental evidence.
Human and animal health
Our research crosses conventional boundaries between human and animal infectious disease. We are interested in relationships with medical, veterinary, agricultural and comparative-biology researchers where studying infection across species can illuminate common mechanisms while preserving important biological differences.
This makes veterinary schools, animal-health organisations and researchers working at the human–animal interface particularly relevant potential collaborators.
Technology and research infrastructure
Some research questions depend upon capabilities outside Noviota’s core biological programme. We are open to partnerships involving scientific software, research infrastructure, instrumentation, biological data systems and technologies concerned with generating, representing or interrogating biological information.
We are particularly interested in infrastructure that improves the connection between biological observation and computational representation.
Supporting longer-term research
Noviota is being developed as a long-term research programme rather than around a succession of short product cycles. We therefore welcome conversations with organisations, research funders and strategic partners interested in supporting work where there is genuine alignment with our scientific direction.
Such relationships might provide funding, specialist expertise, research infrastructure, experimental capability, access to biological systems or environments in which emerging methods can be evaluated. Support should enable good research rather than distort it.
Working together
Selective collaboration on terms that protect the work.
Good partnerships require clarity. We approach collaboration carefully and expect intellectual property, publication, research independence, confidentiality, data governance and the responsibilities of each party to be understood from the outset.
This becomes particularly important when collaborative research produces reusable methods, scientific software, biological representations or intellectual property with applications beyond the original project. Clear terms protect all participants and allow useful work to proceed without unnecessary ambiguity.
Who we work with
Work with Noviota.
We are particularly interested in hearing from:
- universities and research institutes;
- infectious-disease researchers;
- immunology researchers;
- veterinary and animal-health researchers;
- biotechnology organisations;
- computational biology groups;
- laboratories with relevant experimental capabilities;
- scientific software and research-infrastructure organisations;
- organisations supporting longer-term biotechnology research.
If your research, technology or capabilities intersect with ours, we are happy to begin with a conversation. You can also read more about Noviota or explore our Insights.
See a potential collaboration?
Discuss a partnership →Common questions
Partnerships FAQ.
Does Noviota collaborate with universities?
Yes. Academic collaboration is particularly relevant where university researchers have biological, experimental or computational expertise that complements Noviota's research programme. We are interested in focused research questions rather than partnerships created simply for their own sake.
What kinds of research partners is Noviota looking for?
We are particularly interested in infectious-disease researchers, immunologists, veterinary and animal-health researchers, computational biologists and groups with relevant experimental capabilities. We are also interested in scientific software and research-infrastructure organisations where their technology can enable new forms of biological research.
Does Noviota collaborate with veterinary researchers?
Yes. Animal infectious disease and comparative biology are important parts of Noviota's research perspective. We are particularly interested in collaborations that can improve understanding of infection and immunology across species.
Is Noviota interested in laboratory collaborations?
Yes. Experimental collaboration is particularly valuable because it provides a means of evaluating computational representations, models and hypotheses against physical biological systems. Any such work would require appropriate scientific, ethical, biosafety, legal and data-governance arrangements.
Can biotechnology companies partner with Noviota?
Yes, where there is genuine scientific alignment. A biotechnology partnership might involve a defined research question, access to relevant biological systems or data, computational method development, research software or longer-term collaborative research.
Does Noviota accept research funding or sponsored research?
Noviota is open to discussing research funding and longer-term support where the proposed work aligns with its scientific direction and appropriate arrangements can be reached concerning research independence, intellectual property and publication.
Does Noviota collaborate internationally?
Yes. Computational research is inherently amenable to international collaboration, while experimental partnerships can be structured around the capabilities and governance requirements of participating institutions.
How does Noviota handle intellectual property in collaborations?
Intellectual-property arrangements depend upon the nature of the collaboration and should be agreed before substantive work begins. Noviota's general principle is that background intellectual property, newly generated intellectual property, publication rights, confidentiality and rights to reuse methods or software should be clearly understood by all parties.
How is a partnership different from using Noviota's services?
A service engagement normally begins with a defined problem and a defined piece of work that Noviota undertakes. A partnership is more collaborative and may involve shared research questions, complementary capabilities, experimental work, jointly developed methods or a longer-term research relationship. Where an enquiry falls between the two, we can determine the most appropriate structure during an initial discussion.
How do I propose a collaboration?
Use the Noviota contact form and select Research partnership / collaboration. Please briefly describe your organisation or research group, the area of potential collaboration, the capabilities or research question involved and why you think it intersects with Noviota's work.