Photo opportunity 11 am, Wednesday, 12 November , Wellcome Trust Biocentre, University of Dundee.
The pedal power of fourteen cyclists has raised £3,159 for the new Centre for Interdisciplinary Research currently under construction at the University of Dundee.
On 13 August the team of cyclists from the School of Life Sciences were led by David Marr, janitor at the Wellcome Trust Biocentre, on the two-day 185 miles trip to Inverness, via Braemar.
David and his cycling colleagues will present the proceeds from the race to Sir Philip Cohen on Wednesday, 12 November at 11 am in the Wellcome Trust Biocentre. Sir Philip is a world authority on diabetes research and is the head of the fundraising campaign for the new building.
The new research centre will house research teams exploring the causes of diabetes and global parasitic diseases such as malaria, and how to develop improved treatments. The new building will be adjacent to the world famous Wellcome Trust Biocentre.
Sir Philip said: "It is really tremendous that our support staff have gone to so much trouble to help raise money that is badly needed for our new research building. It is a sign of the collegiality and team spirit that we have built up in the Wellcome Trust Biocentre that they should have gone to so much trouble to raise this sum."
The cyclists expressed their thanks to the individuals and supply companies who sponsored them: Affiniti, Ambion, Chemicon, Immunodiagnotic Systems, Kendro, Oxoid, PAA Laboratories, Raytek, Thermo Electron , Thistle Scientific and Thomson Scientific, and in particular to Arnold Clark for providing a support van free of charge.
Notes to Editors
The CIR fundraising campaign was launched in April 2003 by Brian Cox, Hollywood actor and honorary graduate of the University - most recently seen as the arch-villain in X Men-2 - and aims to raise the final £4 million of the £17 million needed to complete the project.
For further details about the new Centre for Interdisciplinary Research can be found at the website : www.dundee.ac.uk/lifesciences/cir
By Jenny Marra, Head of Press 01382 344910 j.m.marra@dundee.ac.uk