The Biochemical Society have given its annual Research Support Award to Dr Morag Martin, of the University of Dundee for outstanding contributions to life sciences research and innovation.

Introduced in 2022, the Research Support Award is presented annually to celebrate the skills and experience of support staff within education, research and industry who have demonstrated an outstanding contribution and impact.

Dr Morag Martin is the Innovation Cluster Manager at the University of Dundee, where she leads initiatives focused on maximizing the economic and social impact of life sciences research and innovation.

She has played a key role in advancing research innovation at the University by securing competitive funding to support life sciences translation and commercialisation, and fostering collaboration across academic, government and industry sectors.

Dr Morag Martin said, "I am truly surprised and deeply honoured to receive this award from the Biochemical Society."

“Winning the Research Support Award is an incredible privilege, and I would like to extend my heartfelt thanks to my colleagues who nominated me."

“The Biochemical Society’s decision to create the Research Support Award underscores the importance of collaboration in advancing research and innovation."

“At its core, scientific research is a team effort, and I am fortunate to work alongside many talented individuals. Together we have always aimed to create and support opportunities to translate life sciences innovation into meaningful social and economic impact."

“I would like to thank all my colleagues and mentors at the University of Dundee, as well as our collaborators and partners beyond, for their ongoing support and collaboration on a wide range of projects."

Joining the University in 2010, Morag contributed to the development and implementation of the School of Life Sciences' research strategy. Alongside Professor Sir Michael Ferguson, she helped raise external capital investment, enabling the expansion of the University’s translational life sciences capabilities.

This included supporting the growth of the Drug Discovery Unit, the Division of Computational Biology, and the development of one of the world’s largest Quantitative Proteomics facilities through the creation of the Discovery Centre for Translational & Interdisciplinary Research at the School of Life Sciences.

In recent years, Morag has helped secure external funding from government, charitable foundations, and enterprise agencies, leading to the establishment of a new Life Sciences Innovation Hub.

Earlier in her career, Morag held postdoctoral positions at Cancer Research UK and the University of Dundee and holds a PhD from the University of Edinburgh.