£2.1M funding available to UK and European-based innovators through the CRACK IT Challenges competition

Are you a UK or European-based* innovator working with approaches which could be applied to replace animal use for avian toxicity testing or refine the post-operative care of rodents?

Up to £2.1M of funding is available through this year’s CRACK IT Challenges competition to solve two Challenges.

What are CRACK IT Challenges? 

The competition funds multi-disciplinary collaborations to drive the development of 3Rs products and services that are directly targeted to meet end-user needs. Sponsors (end-users) define the Challenges and work collaboratively with the awarded team, providing in-kind contributions and end-user input to support project delivery. Challenges are also supported by Partners who provide additional resources to Challenge winners. This year’s competition provides you with the opportunity to collaborate with seven international Sponsors and Partners from across the chemical, pharmaceutical and non-profit sectors.

How can you apply? 

The NC3Rs are hosting launch webinars for each Challenge in September where you will have the opportunity to find out more about the CRACK IT Challenges programme and how to apply. Further details on registering for these webinars can be found below. The competition will open for applications on Monday 23 September 2024.

*The competition is open to any UK, European Union, European Economic Area and European Free Trade Association body public or private. The competition is run using the Innovate UK Contracts for Innovation process.

Challenge 48: Wings of Change
Advancing avian toxicity assessments with new approach methodologies

Avian toxicity studies assess the potential adverse effects of chemicals in the environment on bird species. These studies are carried out for internal chemical screening and to meet regulatory requirements for the registration of new pesticides. Large numbers of birds are used and there is a significant unmet need to develop alternative approaches.

Sponsored by BASF, Bayer Crop Science, Corteva and Syngenta, and supported by Challenge Partners the American Chemistry Council and the Health and Environmental Sciences Institute, the aim of this Challenge is to develop a suite of new approach methodologies to assess acute and chronic toxicity to replace the use of birds for internal decision making and reduce the number of regulatory in vivo studies.

This Challenge will benefit from expertise across disciplines including in silico and in vitro approaches (e.g. QSARs, exposure and effects modelling, cell lines etc). Applications from those working in other fields that could be applied to avian toxicity are encouraged.

Further information: Wings of Change Challenge Register now: Launch webinar, 17 September, 14.00 - 15.30 (BST) Challenge 49: Rodent Shelter
Improving the post-operative care of rodents

The post-operative care of rodents is critical to aid recovery and minimise any pain and distress. Rodents are often singly housed for a period during their recovery and cage enrichment items are removed to avoid injuries. There are opportunities to refine the care of rodents through enhanced monitoring of parameters such as body temperature and improvements to the housing environment after surgery.

Sponsored by AstraZeneca, the aim of this Challenge is to develop an easy-to-use and affordable shelter that provides warmth and a means to monitor the animals, which can be used in any cage type to improve post-operative recovery and monitoring of rodents.

Further information: Rodent Shelter

Register now: Launch webinar, 18 September, 10.00 - 11.30 (BST)