DASA: Future-Proofing Biosecurity

Key Features

This Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) competition is seeking proposals that can address challenges within the field of Microbial Forensics.

Programme:     DASA

Award:     Share of up to £1 million

Opens: 9th Jan 2025

Closes: 18th Feb 2025

! This scheme is opening soon

Overview

This Defence and Security Accelerator (DASA) competition is seeking proposals that can address challenges within the field of Microbial Forensics. Microbial Forensics aims to determine whether an incident involving a biological hazard is natural or nefarious in origin, providing more information than the identification of a biological organism (e.g. provenance of the material).

As part of the 2023 UK Biological Security Strategy, the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (Dstl) is leading the creation of the United Kingdom Microbial Forensics Consortium (UKMFC), a One Health initiative comprising frontline biosurveillance laboratories which will strengthen the UK’s Microbial Forensic capabilities. This competition seeks novel technology options or technical approaches that can directly support this initiative.

As well as addressing a diverse set of technical requirements, one of the goals of the competition is to engage with a non-traditional supplier base as well as traditional suppliers (i.e. suppliers who have not worked in Defence and Security before as well as those who have), in order to yield innovative solutions.

The following research areas are of particular interest for this competition:

  1. Computational tools that improve the opportunity to detect anomalies in genome sequencing data, including evidence of biological engineering.
  2. Technologies that allow the identification and / or computational analysis of other omic signatures for novel Microbial Forensic capabilities.

Full competition details can be found here

Competition Scope

The 2023 UK Biological Security Strategy aims to implement a UK-wide approach to biosecurity which strengthens deterrence and resilience, projects global leadership, and exploits opportunities for UK prosperity and S&T advantage. The UK envisions that by 2030 it will be more resilient to a spectrum of biological threats and a world-leader in responsible innovation, making a positive impact on global security, economic and health outcomes.

In support of these overarching aims, as part of the Detect Pillar of the Biological Security Strategy, the United Kingdom Microbial Forensics Consortium (UKMFC) is being developed. The UKMFC is One Health in doctrine and, when fully operational, will comprise a network of biosurveillance laboratories from all four nations of the UK with additional support from other institutes, academia, and industry.

The UKMFC, which was initiated in July 2023 and is being led by Dstl, is underpinned by extensive cross-sector cooperation and delivery. Overall, the three main strategic goals of the UKMFC are:

  • creation of the UKMFC laboratory network as a world leading One Health approach to investigating outbreaks, improved UK preparedness in this area is seen as a benchmark
  • development of an agreed set of cross-sector working practises enabling the development of a cadre of suitably qualified and experienced personnel in microbial forensics
  • early detection and attribution by the UKMFC will serve as a deterrent to the misuse of biological materials

This competition represents an opportunity for the wider research base (academia / small-medium enterprises / industry) to contribute to the aims and objectives of the UKMFC.

Competition Challenges

This competition has two challenge areas which are detailed below. Suppliers may address one or both of these challenges. We would also welcome joint bids from two or more suppliers that could provide an enhanced response to one or both of these challenges

Challenge 1: Novel computational analysis tools for genomic data

Challenge 2: Approaches for the identification and / or computational analysis of other omic signatures

Eligibility

Eligibility

This competition is open to all innovators; submissions are welcome from the private sector, academia, public sector research establishments or any innovator. There are no nationality restrictions.

Laboratory network members of the UKMFC are eligible to apply to the competition. In this instance, the submitting organisation will not assess any proposals submitted to the competition.

The UKMFC has an Advisory Board, comprising senior scientists and sector leaders from across the UK, which has approved the competition themes. Advisory Board members must therefore not have been involved in any discussions regarding the drafting of a proposal and are excluded from submitting a proposal. Bidders shall be asked to confirm that proposals have been written without input from any Advisory Board member; your proposal shall be sifted out if this condition has not been met.

DASA are interested in

DASA are looking for ideas that would benefit end-users working in UK biosurveillance laboratories undertaking Microbial Forensic analyses. DASA are interested in proposals that:

  • offer innovation or novel approaches to existing methods that would represent a step change in Microbial Forensics capability
  • clearly demonstrate how the proposed work can function in the context of One Health[footnote 1] and Microbial Forensics
  • provide evidence that your innovation has the potential of being translated into a practical demonstration in the future, whether it be method / technical advancement or proof of concept research
  • propose to utilise innovations from a different industry / discipline that might address this problem (i.e. application of existing techniques in the context of a Microbial Forensic investigation)
  • address at least one of the specified challenges (proposals do not need to address both challenges)
  • include evidence of a robust supply chain for all of the key elements of the proposal to ensure there is an enduring availability
  • include evidence of the approach being robust enough that the developed technology can feasibly be transferred to a network of analytical laboratories.
  • have the potential to be fully validated and accredited to an appropriate quality standard (i.e. ISO/IEC IS017025:2017)

Exclusions

DASA are not interested in proposals that:

  • offer technologies that only develop new ways of sequencing nucleic acids
  • offer technologies that only derive information that would facilitate the identification of a pathogen
  • offer technologies that could only offer a mobile Microbial Forensic capability
  • require the completion and attainment of ethical favourable opinion from the Ministry of Defence Research Ethics Committee (MODREC)
  • are consultancy, paper-based studies or literature reviews which just summarise the existing literature without any view of future innovation
  • are unsolicited resubmissions of a previous DASA bid
  • offer demonstrations of off-the-shelf products requiring no experimental development (unless applied in a novel way to the challenge)
  • offer no real long-term prospect of integration into UK biosurveillance laboratories undertaking a Microbial Forensics analysis
  • offer no real prospect of out-competing existing technological solutions

Funding Costs

The total funding available for this competition is £1 million (excluding VAT).

How many proposals will DASA fund

DASA are looking to fund a minimum of 4 and up to 10 projects, each up to a maximum value of £250,000.

Interested in applying for this competition?

Book an appointment to speak to one of our advisors to discuss your eligibility to apply for this Grant Funding opportunity.