New Director of NIHR Guy's and St Thomas' Biomedical Research Centre

Professor Matthew Brown, an internationally renowned clinician-scientist, has been appointed Director of the National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Guy’s and St Thomas’ Biomedical Research Centre (BRC) and Professor of Medicine within the Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine. The appointment follows an international search.

He will join King’s as Professor of Medicine and lead the BRC, which aims to transform scientific breakthroughs into life-saving treatments for patients. The BRC is funded by the NIHR and is a partnership between Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust and King’s College London. It has an international reputation for pioneering research, and Guy’s and St Thomas’ is one of the top Trusts in the country for clinical research.

Professor Brown will take up the new position from his present role as Director of Genomics and Distinguished Professor, at the Queensland University of Technology.

Professor Brown trained as a clinician-scientist and a rheumatologist, including a period of post-graduate study at the University of Oxford. He has made contributions to the development of gene-mapping approaches in human diseases and genome-wide association study methodology, leading to the discovery of thousands of genetic variants, with a particular interest in ankylosing spondylitis, rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis. In the genetics of rare human diseases, he has identified genes responsible for monogenic forms of arthritis, ectopic bone development, and skeletal dysplasias. He has also led efforts in Australia to translate research sequencing capability into precision medicine programs for cancer patients.

On his appointment, he said:

‘I’m tremendously excited to be appointed to this position to work together with teams who are at the forefront of translating research capabilities into improved health care. I am delighted to have the opportunity to lead the NIHR Guy’s and St Thomas’ BRC, and hope to build on its impressive research successes’.

Professor Brown succeeds Professor Graham Lord who was the Director until the beginning of this year.

Dr Ian Abbs, Chief Medical Officer at Guy’s and St Thomas’, said:

“We are excited to welcome Professor Brown as the new Director of our BRC. He brings with him a wealth of experience, not just of conducting world-leading research, but of turning that research into real benefits for patients. I look forward to working with him and I’m sure he will provide fantastic leadership for our BRC scientists and staff.

Professor Brown’s work spanning genomics, rheumatology and immunogenetics complements many of our Trust’s research strengths. His expertise will greatly add to our work in these areas and enhance our research in general.”

Professor Richard Trembath, Executive Dean, Faculty of Life Sciences & Medicine, said of the appointment:

“We are delighted to have attracted Professor Brown, a clinician-scientist of international renown, to King’s as the Faculty Professor of Medicine. His drive to move through gene discovery to the introduction of therapies based upon known molecular targets and his established translational research leadership experience are essential qualities that he brings to the role of Director of the BRC.”