Photo opportunity, 11.30am, Friday, August 1, at Tesco Riverside, Riverside Drive, Dundee.
The University of Dundee is delighted to announce that leading supermarket chain, Tesco, has agreed to support its fundraising campaign to build a world-class Diabetes Research Centre by allowing collection points to be stationed throughout its Tayside stores for the month of August.
The campaign, launched by actor and Dundonian, Brian Cox, in April this year, aims to raise the final £4m to build the Centre which will be adjacent to world famous Wellcome Trust Biocentre.
Throughout the month of August, shoppers in Tesco stores across Tayside will be encouraged to give generously to the university campaign. Each Tesco till-point in each Tayside store will feature a collection can for the campaign. In addition Wellcome Trust Biocentre students and senior scientists will be stationed outside Tayside Tesco stores at peak periods collecting for the campaign.
Professor Sir Philip Cohen, Director of Research at the Wellcome Trust BioCentre and Professor Dario Alessi at Wellcome Trust Biocentre, will be at Riverside Tesco on Friday 1 August from 5pmcollecting donations from outside the store.
The new Centre, scheduled to be completed by 2005, will house 260 scientists, 70 of whom will be working to understand the causes of diabetes and how to develop improved treatments. Diabetes affects more than 12,000 people in Tayside and nearly 2 million people in the UK. Diabetes is in danger of becoming the major epidemic of the developed world and it is anticipated that by 2020 more than 7% of the UK population will be affected by diabetes.
Sir Philip and his team have already successfully raised £13.5m towards the cost of the new centre and the University is now in the final phase to raise the remaining £4m.
Welcoming Tesco's support, Sir Philip said, "I am delighted that Tesco has decided to help our campaign. It is very important that local businesses support our campaign as health problems such as diabetes will have an adverse effect on the Scottish economy in years to come. Tesco's support has come at a crucial time for us as local support is critical for us to raise the money we need to complete the building. I hope that everyone in Tayside will support our endeavour by shopping in Tesco and giving generously at our collection points."
Pamela Campbell, Scottish Marketing Manager for Tesco said, "Tesco is very pleased to be able to assist Sir Philip and his campaign to build the new Centre. We are confident that our support will enable the University to raise a substantial amount of money for the campaign and Tesco has agreed to pledge an additional 20% to the total amount raised in August".
Notes to Editors:
Media factsheets giving 10 fast facts about the new building, diabetes and world diseases are available from the University of Dundee Press Office via e-mail or fax.
Diabetes is caused by the failure of the pancreas to make insulin (Type 1 diabetes) or much more frequently by the failure of the body to respond to insulin (Type 2 diabetes). Diabetes decreases life expectancy by an average of 10 years. Improved drugs to prevent and/or treat Type 2 diabetes are needed urgently. The incidence of diabetes is expected to double to seven per cent of the UK population by 2020. There are more people with diabetes than cancer, yet diabetes research receives only one per cent of the funding that is spent on cancer research.
By Jane Smernicki, Press Officer 01382 344768 j.m.smernicki@dundee.ac.uk