UK Human Developmental Biology Initiative (360G-Wellcome-215116_Z_18_Z)

The goal of the Human Developmental Biology Initiative (HDBI) is to be an enabling initiative to support wider research in human development. The UK is well positioned to take a lead in this, given its expertise in model organism developmental biology, the successful operation of the Human Developmental Biology Resource (HDBR) and clear regulation of human embryo research. HDBI will develop a set of core experimental and computational methods for studies in embryonic and foetal tissues. It will do so by focusing on generating foundational data on cell lineage in human development. To promote wider access to human developmental biology research techniques, HDBI will work closely with HDBR to develop the required technologies, creating two research hubs in proximity to the HDBR sites in London and Newcastle. Understanding developmental cell lineage provides an essential basis for comparative studies of development between species, as well as a context for understanding the developmental origins of disease. In addition to technology development, HDBI data will complement insights from Wellcome’s Deciphering Developmental Disorders program, the Human Cell Atlas and the MRC Regenerative Medicine Platform, and provide baseline data for validation of in vitro differentiated human tissue models.