University of Oxford’s Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery signs Memorandum of Understanding with Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation

University of Oxford’s Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery signs Memorandum of Understanding with Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation

The Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery at the University of Oxford has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the Shenzhen Medical Academy of Research and Translation (SMART), strengthening research links between the two institutions.

 

Four people pose at a signing table in front of Kavli Institute for Nanoscience Discovery and University of Oxford banners. Two are seated and signing documents, with small SMART flags and booklets on the table.

From left to right: Dr Yue Liu (standing), Professor Nieng Yan (seated), Professor Dame Carol Robinson (seated), Professor Simon Newstead (standing). Photo: Kavli INsD

 

A shared commitment to interdisciplinary science and human health

The most important questions in science increasingly call for expertise from different disciplines. Addressing them requires insight from the life sciences, medicine, chemistry, physics, engineering and artificial intelligence. It is through this kind of interdisciplinary work that new ideas emerge, barriers are overcome and the next stage of scientific discovery takes shape.

Signed in July 2026 by Professor Dame Carol Robinson, Founding Director of Kavli Oxford, and Professor Nieng Yan, Founding President of SMART, the memorandum reflects a shared commitment to interdisciplinary science and to tackling major challenges in human health.

The understanding will support collaboration in areas including antimicrobial resistance and microbial mechanisms, cell signalling, infectious diseases, membrane biology, novel nanoscience tools, next-generation biomaterials, brain health and malaria. It will also explore opportunities for joint research funding and reciprocal exchanges for researchers and early-career scientists.

 

Building on complementary strengths to drive discovery

The understanding brings together complementary strengths across disciplines and institutions. By creating a framework for collaboration, it allows researchers to share expertise and work across scientific boundaries on problems that are too complex to be addressed in isolation.

For early-career scientists in particular, the collaboration is expected to provide valuable opportunities to experience different research environments and build international connections. More broadly, it reflects the increasing importance of open, cross-disciplinary and globally connected research in driving discovery and advancing understanding of some of the most pressing questions in science and medicine.

The Memorandum of Understanding marks an important step in building a relationship grounded in openness, collaboration and the shared pursuit of discovery across disciplines.