Manchester Institute of Biotechnology Professor Nigel S. Scrutton Sc.D FRSC FRSB Professor of Enzymology and Biophysical Chemistry Director, Manchester Institute of Biotechnology School of Chemistry The University of Manchester 131 Princess Street Manchester M1 7DN United Kingdom Tel: (+44) 161 306 5152 E-mail: [email protected] 19th January 2018 Dear Dick Re: SynbiCITE renewal On behalf of the SBRC Centre for Synthetic Biology for Fine and Speciality Chemicals (SYNBIOCHEM) and the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology (MIB) I wish to convey my full support for the SynbiCITE renewal and to confirm that SYNBIOCHEM/MIB will continue to be active partners in SynbiCITE activities. Manchester has been a key collaborator of SynbiCITE up to date. SynbiCITE is now moving to a stronger partnership with three of the SBRCs, namely Manchester, Bristol and Edinburgh. We are enthusiastic about these developments as this will facilitate a much stronger collaboration in terms of industrial translation, business education and training, and inward investment into the UK synthetic biology community. This aligns scientifically, technically and philosophically with the activities of SYNBIOCHEM as it seeks to translate emerging science and technologies in synthetic biology and to promote industrial translation. Manchester will work with SynbiCITE to promote industrial translation, business education and training, especially in the North West of England. The MIB has a large network of industrial partners and has developed infrastructures for working with these partners, especially in the chemicals manufacturing industries. We are keen to expand these activities through our partnership with SynbiCITE, and to promote new industrial translation opportunities and to deliver business education and training in the North West. Following the major investments made by the UK government in synthetic biology closer integration of invention and translation capabilities should now unlock the potential of commercial synthetic biology processes in the UK. This is already happening through the activities of SynbiCITE since its inception. Moving forward the planned stronger partnerships of SynbiCITE with SBRCs and other synthetic biology centres will now intensify these efforts and accelerate the delivery if meaningful impact in the market. I trust this letter will convey to the reviewers Manchester’s enthusiastic support for your proposal. I wish you every success with your submission. Yours sincerely. Professor Nigel S. Scrutton, Director MIB and SYNBIOCHEM .