Fall / Winter 2020 | Research 13
Recently we awarded three teams a total of $ 8.5 million to develop an imaging tracer to visualize alphasynuclein in the living brain .
Collaborations Spur Progress
The Ken Griffin Alpha-synuclein Imaging Competition is one of several collaborations MJFF has formed to stimulate more tracer development research .
In 2017 , we launched a partnership with the Rainwater Charitable Foundation and its Tau Consortium to fund research into tau and alpha-synuclein imaging agents . Tau is another protein that can become toxic in our brains and contribute to disease . A number of diseases , not just Parkinson ’ s , involve tau and / or alpha-synuclein . Imaging agents that detect clumps of these proteins could improve care by leading to more accurate and possibly earlier diagnoses . They would also be invaluable for drug development by making it easier to choose the right people for clinical trials and , as noted above , help researchers understand if a therapy is effective . We launched a new funding program with the Rainwater Charitable Foundation this year to continue pressing forward . As Dr . Eberling often says : “ the more teams working on this , the better chance we have at success .”
Toxic proteins aren ’ t the only thing Parkinson ’ s researchers want to visualize in our brains . DaTscans , which are already approved for use in people with Parkinson ’ s , measure brain dopamine activity . This can help predict if Parkinson ’ s symptoms might worsen . Researchers , many using data from MJFF ’ s landmark clinical study , the Parkinson ’ s Progression Markers Initiative , are investigating how to use DaTscans to improve clinical trials and better understand Parkinson ’ s progression .
Today , teams around the world are using a range of approaches to image the brain . MJFF will continue to provide the resources necessary to develop these critical tools as quickly as possible , thanks to the support of our generous partners and donors like you .