ALS Association and Packard Center Announce the First Scientific Grant Award from the Winokur Family Research Initiative
Baltimore, Md., (March 10, 2014)
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Diane Winokur, founder of the Winokur Family Research Initiative, at the ALS Treatment and Research Center at UCSF, a Certified Center of Excellence that her family also helped to establish. |
With the opening of the 14th Annual Robert Packard Center for ALS
Research Symposium, the Packard Center and The ALS Association are
pleased to announce the first scientific grant award from the Winokur
Family Research Initiative. The inaugural grant will help to fund a
project under the direction on Phil Wong, Ph.D., a Professor of
Pathology at Johns Hopkins University and Liam Chen, M.D., Ph.D.,
Assistant Professor of Pathology at Johns Hopkins University. The study
will focus on the use of animal models of TDP-43-linked ALS-FTD
(frontotemporal dementia) to validate and characterize newly identified
therapeutic targets for ALS.
ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis),
otherwise known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a progressive
neurodegenerative disease that affects neurons (nerve cells) in the
brain and the spinal cord. Eventually, people with ALS lose the ability
to initiate and control muscle movement, which often leads to total
paralysis and death within two to five years of diagnosis. There is no
cure and no life-prolonging treatments for the disease.
This study is important because it will
help identify the valid targets needed for developing effective
therapies for ALS. The targets identified by Drs. Wong and Chen will
yield a clear understanding of how TDP-43 kills neurons that will
identify and develop mechanism-based therapeutics. Previous studies have
shown that TPD-43 proteinopathy, which involves malformed proteins, is
common in both sporadic and familial ALS and FTD.
“The Packard Center is pleased to have the
opportunity to, once again, partner with The ALS Association to work on
this important project. We thank our friend Diane Winokur for her
support of the work we do to combat ALS and are pleased to honor her and
this initiative at the onset of our Annual Scientific Symposium,” said
Piera Pasinelli, Ph.D., the Packard Center’s Science Director.
The Winokur Family Research Initiative was
conceived and initiated specifically to fund promising early-stage
research by The ALS Association Golden West Chapter. Through a unique
collaboration between the Packard Center and The ALS Association,
groundbreaking, targeted studies are supported by a peer-reviewed
process that is results-oriented and highly accountable. The goal is to
fund promising early-stage ALS research and move it forward more
quickly. Besides providing needed funding for the organizations’ ongoing
commitment to ALS research, the Winokur Family Research Initiative will
also encourage scientists to work together toward the ultimate goal of
one day finding a treatment or cure for ALS.
Diane Winokur, founder of the Winokur
Family Research Initiative, is a highly-respected leader in the fight
against ALS. She, and her late husband, Bob, had first-hand knowledge of
how devastating ALS is, having lost two sons, Douglas and Hugh, to the
disease. Winokur serves on the boards of the Golden West Chapter and
The Robert Packard Center for ALS Research and was recently appointed as
the ALS and MS representative on the Independent Citizen’s Oversight
Committee, the governing body of the California Institute for
Regenerative Medicine (CIRM).
“The ALS Association is delighted to honor
Diane Winokur and partner with The Packard Center for ALS Research on
this exciting project,” said Lucie Bruijn, Ph.D. MBA, Chief Scientist of
The ALS Association.
The Packard Center’s Research Symposium is
an annual meeting, held in Baltimore, Md., that brings together 145
clinicians and bench researchers, postdoctoral students, and advisory
board members – all leaders in the field of ALS. This invitation-only
event requires Packard-funded researchers to present their research
findings that are subject to peer-reviews by the Center’s Board of
Scientific Advisors. The Symposium is a review of all research projects
funded by the Packard Center, plus a series of updates from clinical
partners at the Northeast ALS Consortium (NEALS). Attendees come from
institutions in 21 states across the U.S., as well as from Canada,
Belgium, Germany, France, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom.
About the Robert Packard Center for ALS Research The
Robert Packard Center for ALS Research at Johns Hopkins is the only
international scientific operation dedicated solely to curing the
disease. We are unique in our approach to fighting ALS, a motor neuron
disease also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease, in that we combine and
facilitate scientific collaboration and ALS research with fundraising
for the development of new treatments and to finding a cure. For more
information about the Center, visit http://www.alscenter.org/.
About The ALS Association Golden West Chapter The
ALS Association is the only national non-profit organization fighting
Lou Gehrig’s Disease on every front. By leading the way in global
research, providing assistance for people with ALS through a nationwide
network of chapters, coordinating multidisciplinary care through
certified clinical care centers, and fostering government partnerships,
The Association builds hope and enhances quality of life while
aggressively searching for new treatments and a cure. The Golden West Chapter serves people with ALS and their families in 31 counties throughout California and the state of Hawaii. For more
information, please visiti www.alsagoldenwest.org
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