Israeli and British medical research teams are to collaborate to find cures for cancer and genetic diseases.

A joint research memorandum has been signed between the Technion Israel Institute of Technology, the University of Manchester and Central Manchester University Hospitals to jointly fund stem-cell and cancer studies.

Students and researchers will also be able to travel between the Manchester and Haifa-based leading research centres under the agreement.

Technion’s Prof Eliezer Shalev described it as an “exciting opportunity”.

Professor Ian Jacobs, dean of Manchester University’s faculty of medical and human science, said: “This agreement will allow some of our brightest students and researchers to travel to Israel and share research ideas.”