Research
RESEARCH
BRIEFS
Fall/Winter 2017
Foundation-funded Companies
Announce Deals to Advance
Parkinson’s Therapies
This summer, two companies became the latest examples of
how the Foundation’s “de-risking” strategy of funding early-stage
projects attracts larger investors to move Parkinson’s treatments
forward. The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) granted nearly
$2.5 million to Israeli biotech NeuroDerm between 2006 and
2013 for its pump-patch continuous delivery of levodopa/
carbidopa to prevent motor fluctuations, now in Phase III trials. In
July, the company announced acquisition by Mitsubishi Tanabe
Pharma Corporation for $1.1 billion. Another company, Prana
Biotechnology, which received a $200,000 grant from MJFF
in 2011 for pre-clinical work creating a drug targeting alpha-
synuclein, is now partnering with Takeda Pharmaceuticals for a
Phase I trial.
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The Fox Focus