Wellcome Trust is one of the world’s largest foundations. Most of its grants fund biomedical research at universities in the United Kingdom. The trust offers major funding to support research in areas such as epidemiology (the study of how diseases spread), cancer, heart disease, medical history, and veterinary medicine. The trust’s Medicine, Society, and History program provides opportunities for public debate on medical ethics.
The trust has been a leading source of funding for the Human Genome Project, an international effort to analyze the complete chemical instructions that control heredity in human beings. The Wellcome Trust also supports medical research in developing nations. This research deals mainly with controlling disease and improving the delivery of local health care. The trust also provides resources for educators and students.
Sir Henry Wellcome, an American-born British pharmaceutical company owner, founded the Wellcome Trust in his will in 1936. The trust’s headquarters are in London.
