2005
$ 50 MILLION
in research programs funded by MJFF
FOUNDATION- FUNDED RESEARCHERS PUBLISH FIRST LARGE-SCALE GENETIC MAP OF PARKINSON ’ S DISEASE
A $ 2.8-million grant from the Foundation ’ s LEAPS ( Linked Efforts to Accelerate Parkinson ’ s Solutions ) program funds researchers at Mayo Clinic and Perlegen Sciences , Inc ., building on outcomes from the Edmond J . Safra Genetics Consortia , to produce the first whole genome map of Parkinson ’ s disease . The results highlight changes in 12 genes that may increase the risk for Parkinson ’ s disease in some people , but no genetic “ smoking gun ” — no strong single genetic determinant of Parkinson ’ s . Both the findings and the technology that produced them are groundbreaking , representing one of the most comprehensive genetic studies of Parkinson ’ s disease of its time , with nearly 200 million genetic tests ( genotypes ) completed by studying the DNA of 775 people with Parkinson ’ s and 775 controls .
SEPT | 2005
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