2016-17 Funded Research Research & Impact What We Fund 2016-17 Funded ResearchResearch We Funded in 2016-17George C. Cotzias FellowshipNamed in honor of the scientist who had a critical role in developing Levodopa as a treatment for Parkinson’s, and awarded with the purpose of encouraging young Neurologists to follow in his footsteps. This fellowship is a $240,000 grant awarded over a three year period.Vivek K. Unni, MD, PhDOregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR Molecular mechanisms of Lewy body pathology-associated cell death in Parkinson’s diseasePost-Doctoral FellowshipsAwarded to support post-doctoral scientists whose research holds promise to provide new insights into the pathophysiology, etiology and treatment of Parkinson’s disease. This is a fellowship of $35,000 per year for one year.Hazem Abdelkarim, PhDUniversity of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL Structural and biophysical characterization of glycosphingolipids as direct cellular modulators of alpha-synuclein aggregation in Parkinson’s diseaseVinita Ganesh Chittoor, PhDOregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR Effects of dietary amino acids and TOR signaling on Parkinson’s disease pathologyMahsa Malekmohammadi, PhDUniversity of California, Los Angeles, CA Cortical-subcortical motor network hypersynchrony in Parkinson’s diseaseResearch GrantsAwarded to investigators affiliated with and performing Parkinson’s disease research at major academic institutions across the United States. This is a grant of $50,000 per year for one year, renewable.Shankar Chinta, PhDBuck Institute for Research on Aging, Novato, CA Pharmacological activation of TFEB using a small molecule promotes autophagic clearance of aggregated alpha-synuclein: Implications for Parkinson’s disease.Fabio Demontis, PhDSt. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Memphis, TN Investigating the common proteomic changes induced by aging and by LRRK2 mutations and their role in Parkinson’s disease.Hannes Devos, PhDKansas University Medical Center, Kansas City, KS Pupillary Response to Cognitive Workload in Parkinson’s diseaseBeom-Chan Lee, PhDUniversity of Houston, Houston, TX Validation of smartphone-based sensory augmentation technology for home-based balance training of people with Parkinson’s disease.Ian Martin, PhDOregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR Identifying pathogenic targets of G2019S LRRK2 in dopamine neuronsCoro Paisan-Ruiz, PhDIcahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY Elucidating novel genetic mechanisms underlying autosomal recessive Parkinson’s diseaseMatthew LaVoie, PhDThe Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, MA The role of astrocytes in GCase-mediated alpha-synuclein metabolismSummer Student FellowshipsOffer undergraduate and medical students $4,000 each in funding for Parkinson’s research projects to be conducted over a ten-week period over the summer. The 2016 funding is a collaboration between The American Parkinson Disease Association and the Parkinson’s Disease Foundation® (PDF®) to support research that will help solve, treat and end Parkinson’s disease.Preston GeMentor: Ted Dawson, MD, PhD Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD Identifying Elements of the Transcriptional Regulatory Network of PARIS (ZNF746) Involved in Alpha-synuclein-Induced NeurodegenerationDima HageMentor: David Park, PhD University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada The Interaction of Parkinson’s Disease Gene FBXO7 with Bag2Kiana KhosravianMentor: Malú Tansey, PhD Emory University, Atlanta, GA DBH-ASYN Mouse Model, Effect of Inflammation in Gastrointestinal SystemSydney LeeMentor: Edward Fon, MD McGill University, Montreal, Canada The Role of the ESCRT Complex in a Vesicular Trafficking Pathway from Mitochondria to LysosomesStuart McCarterMentor: Erik St. Louis, MD Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN REM Sleep Without Atonia Signatures Help Distinguish Between Synucleinopathy DisordersRachel MikofskyMentor: David Sulzer, PhD Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY In Vivo Optical Measurement of Direct and Indirect Path Projection Neuron Activity in a Parkinson’s Disease Rodent Model with Treatment of L-DOPA and Cannabinoid AntagonistsEmily OngMentor: Shubhik DebBurman, PhD Lake Forest College, Lake Forest, IL Relevance of Amino Acid Charge/Polarity in New Familial Mutants of Alpha-synucleinHenry ResnikoffMentor: Marina Emborg. MD, PhD University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI Impact of Inflammation on Alpha-synuclein Expression in the Colonic Enteric Nervous SystemMaya SilverMentor: Brad Racette, MD Washington University, St. Louis, MO Association Between Water Source and Incidental Parkinson’s DiseaseSamuel StanleyMentor: Kim Caldwell, PhD University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL Investigation of Dopamine Neuron Degeneration as a Consequence of Microbiome-Derived BacteriaAdina WiseMentor: Roy Alcalay, MD, MS Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY Parkinson’s Disease Penetrance in Obligate Carriers of SMPD1 MutationsKali XuMentor: Kathleen Poston, MD, MS Stanford University School of Medicine, Stanford, CT High Angular Resolution Diffusion Imaging Correlates of Cognitive Impairment in Parkinson’sIn the NewsAPDA Awards $1.6 Million in Research Grants. Prestigious Cotzias Fellowship Awarded. Click here to read the Press Release
