Material Transfer Agreements (MTAs)

A material transfer agreement (MTA) is a contract between senders and recipients of unique research materials that are not otherwise commercially available.  MTA are commonly used for the exchange of biological, chemical, genetically modified organisms or materials of human origin and document both party’s rights in terms of intellectual property, publication and sharing of results.

Access to third party materials is often a necessary step in gathering data for a future grant application, or to carry out an award you have received.  It is important to understand the nuances in a material provider’s terms as early as possible to avoid unnecessary delays or conflicts with your research plans.  MTA’s move freely between US universities but can sometimes be delayed when UC Irvine is trying to secure materials from international partners.  Foreign institutions may follow different practices, such as co-ownership of results and intellectual property realized while using their provided material.  This conflicts with UC policy and most research sponsor obligations, including the NIH.  When possible, materials should always be sourced from a US university collaborator to avoid processing delays.

Occasionally MTA’s with industry are sought, such as testing a company’s drug in a mouse model for a new disease indication.  In such scenarios, the industry provider of the material will expect contractual terms analogous to a full sponsor.  The first right to license new inventions realized while testing the company’s material or compound are customary and therefore incompatible with any other industry sponsorship where the same intellectual property rights are given.  Whenever possible, materials from industry should be purchased from the project budget vs. acquired by MTA, as this will preserve your options to see your work developed for broadest public benefit.

MTA’s only document the terms upon which materials are exchanged.  The UCI lab remains responsible for:

1. All applicable compliance reviews and approvals (IACUC, IRB, hSCRO, IBC, etc.) before the work can begin.
2. All shipping and receiving coordination, including customs clearance and export licenses.
3. All EH&S requirements for the receipt and handling of hazardous or infectious agents.
4. Payment due or payment owed in regard to the material.

MTA’s are typically no-cost with the exception of shipping reimbursement.  If the sender requires a fee beyond just shipping, it should represent the sender’s cost of preparing or maintaining the available materials and payment should be coordinated through your departmental procurement personnel once the MTA is finalized.

MTA’s are never used to establish human subjects research.  All such research should be initiated through your department’s pre-award research administration.

MTA’s should not be used to acquire commercially available items.  Commercially available items should be budgeted into the research and purchased directly through procurement.

MTA’s should be limited to the sharing of research materials already in-hand.  For the development or collection of new materials, a contract is required, and you should coordinate with your department’s pre-award research administration on the preparation of the scope of work and budget.

MTA’s are not required when working with a Core facility.  The Core facility has been approved to provide a set list of services at set prices and the delivery of the resulting material is covered by the Core service agreement terms.

MTA’s should not be used in conjunction with other research contracts.  If a sponsor is supporting UCI research with funding, the provision of the needed materials should be included in the same contract.   Splitting these requirements into separate agreements will delay your project start.

To initiate the transfer of UCI developed materials to another non-profit research organization, please observe the following process for timely support.  UCI handles approximately 400 outgoing transfers per year, so using this process will aid in getting your materials transferred in a timely manner.

1. Have the requesting organization complete this in-take questionnaire.

This questionnaire collects the necessary information for preparation of the MTA and is intended to minimize UCI lab review time.  The completed questionnaire will be directed to UC Irvine’s Beall Applied Innovation (BAI) for follow-up.

2. BAI will review the third-party materials request and once completed, will confirm with the UCI lab that the materials are available and can be shared with the requesting third party. BAI’s review will include the following:
   1. Availability of requested materials
   2. Any applicable costs to be recovered from the third party, excluding shipping
   3. Any third-party rights which may apply to UCI’s material, such as a prior MTA or purchase order
      1. If yes, BAI will need copies of those prior agreements to confirm UCI’s ability to further transfer your modifications to others
   4. Any funding source that was used to create UCI’s material
   5. Any additional / special terms the UCI PI would like included in the MTA
3. Once BAI has received confirmation of all necessary information, a MTA will be prepared and sent to the requesting third-party for signature.
4. Once the MTA is fully signed, the UCI lab may ship the materials.

Please complete the following in-coming MTA request form to initiate receipt of materials from another non-profit research organization:  Incoming material:  https://ucirvine-my.sharepoint.com/:w:/g/personal/maharr_ad_uci_edu/ETMztLpc2lpNty13HiSat44Bp_UOYVNo_91EmznkxVfSEw?e=lseCtT

By using the above link, your request will automatically route to BAI for handling.

Please contact your department’s assigned Industry Contract Officer for assistance in setting up material transfers from Industry.  Industry providers of materials will typically require sponsor-like contract terms which should be evaluated by one of BAI’s contracting officers.  Items to be considered include existing industry sponsorship obligations.  If you do not know your Industry Contracting Officer, you can look them up by campus department here:  https://research.uci.edu/about-or/contact/staff-by-dept-assignment/.

In order to send materials for use by Industry (for-profit entities), please coordinate with UCI’s Research Translation Group to ascertain the appropriate intellectual property strategy and contract vehicle.  Bailment licenses are customary when transferring materials to Industry for end use; whereas, option agreements are appropriate if the Industry party is considering licensing the intellectual property that underpin the work.