The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research. The overall mission of the trust is "to foster and promote research with the aim of improving human and animal health", and in addition to funding biomedical research it supports the public unde...
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The Wellcome Trust was established in 1936 as an independent charity funding research to improve human and animal health. With an endowment of around £13 billion, it is the United Kingdom's largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research. The overall mission of the trust is "to foster and promote research with the aim of improving human and animal health", and in addition to funding biomedical research it supports the public understanding of science.
The trust was established to administer the fortune of the American-born pharmaceutical magnate Sir Henry Wellcome. Its income was derived from what was originally called Burroughs Wellcome, later renamed in the UK as the Wellcome Foundation Ltd. In 1986, the trust sold 25% of Wellcome plc stock to the public, beginning a process of separating itself from the pharmaceutical industry. In 1995, the trust divested itself of any interest in pharmaceuticals by selling all remaining stock to Glaxo plc, the company's historic...
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