The neurodegeneration that ultimately leads to Alzheimers disease - TopicsExpress



          

The neurodegeneration that ultimately leads to Alzheimers disease begins one or more decades before cognitive impairment is evident. As eventual therapies are ultimately achieved, it is therefore equally important to develop methods capable of detecting the molecular events responsible for neuronal death. We are very interested in exploring the potential of a novel compound to allow the early detection of Alzheimers pathology by MRI. Budget Salary Support for Dr. Madhu Budamagunta, PhD, Project Scientist $3,000 Imaging and NMR measurements $2,000 Budget Overview This is a high-risk, high-reward endeavor. In order for us to launch this exciting and innovative project, we need funding to cover two areas: 1) Researcher Effort: We need funds to support a portion of the effort devoted by a Project Scientist who will be preparing the samples and participating in all the imaging and NMR measurements. Professor Voss, the director of this project is not requesting any salary support. 2) Imaging and NMR measurements: We need funding to cover the imaging and NMR expenses associated with our measurements. The University of California Davis offers world-class instrumentation for these services, however fees are charged for both the time and operation of theses instruments. Depending on the instrument used, these costs can exceed $100 per hour. While our minimum target is $5k, we are seeking additional funds ($10k), that will enable us to do a lot more. Specifically, we want to obtain a preliminary MRI image of SLF contrast in a mouse brain. This will be set as a stretch goal once we hit our initial target. Achieving this stretch goal will provide for the purchase of antibodies for probing the presence of Aβ in brain tissue, animal care costs, imaging charges, as well as additional researcher time. Meet the Researcher John C. Voss UC Davis Affiliations Dr. John C. Voss, PhD Professor of Biochemistry & Molecular Medicine, Vice Chair for Research, University of California Davis School of Medicine Post-doc, Howard Hughes Medical & Jules Stein Eye Institues PhD, University of Minnesota BS, University of Arizona Background The Aβ peptide originates from the cutting of a larger protein, but when removed from its normal architectural context, adopts a restless structure. This lack of definition in Aβ corresponds to its ability to disrupt multiple systems, making Alzheimers a very challenging problem for biomedical researchers. My interest and motivation to study the core of the Alzheimers disease process is complemented by my careers focus of investigating protein structure, dynamics and assembly. Our lab contains, or has access to, multiple state-of the-art biophysical tools that we employ to observe the Aβ peptide. Honors and awards to Dr. Voss include: the Charles E. Culpeper Biomedical Initiative, H.E. Williams, March of Dimes Basil O’Connor New Investigator, AHA Scientist Development, Heiser Award for Research in Leprosy & Tuberculosis, and the Crafoord Visiting Professor and Wenner-Gren Foundation Visiting Scholar awards from Sweden. ________________________________________ Press Exploring the potential of the SLF compound to serve in the early diagnosis of Alzheimers represents an entirely new avenue of research for us. We have ongoing studies to determine if SLF can detoxify the Aβ peptide, such that the SLF (or future versions) could serve as a therapy to combat the progression of Alzheimers. A publication of this work can be found here: plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.137... Press on our original SLF applications can be found here: express.co.uk/news/uk/317429/New-hope-o… and here: sciencedaily/releases/2012/04/12043... ________________________________________ Please visit our lab webpage at: https://basicscience.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/voss_Lab/in... Project Backers
Posted on: Fri, 05 Sep 2014 07:18:25 +0000

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