Monthly Archives: November 2012

The COEN initiative has released its second call for proposals aiming to further catalyse collaborative research to drive a step change in neurodegeneration research.

The Network of Centres of Excellence in Neurodegeneration (COEN) initiative; aims to build collaborative research activity in neurodegeneration research across borders, focusing on the critical mass and excellence. COEN is aligned with JPND, although it operates as an independent entity.

The second COEN call for proposals will provide funds for “Pathfinder” grants for innovative approaches to better understand disease mechanisms and provide new avenues for therapeutic development, with the potential for “programme” level support to take forward successful Pathfinders.

The remit of the call is broad in scope: projects may include studies to understand neurodegenerative mechanisms, or create technological advances to support novel diagnostic or therapeutic approaches.

The call will be administered as for the previous COEN call, with partners funding research in their own country. Funds of £5m are available across this call.

More information can be found at the COEN website at the link below.

A systematic review has assessed the efficacy of Vitamin E in the treatment of Alzheimer’s and for the prevention of progression of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) to dementia.

The authors found no evidence for Vitamin E being of benefit in the treatment of Alheimer’s Disease or MCI. They recommend that future trials assessing Vitamin E treatments for Azheimer’s Disease should not be restricted to alpha-tocopherol.

A full copy of the cochrane review is available at the link below.

The first European report has been published of the state of deinstitutionalization and community-based care in the mental health field.

A joint initiative of the Open Society Foundations and Mental Health Europe, this report promotes a shift in the balance of care from psychiatric hospitals to a varied provision of services in the community for people with severe mental health problems.

More information at the link below (EPHA)

Johnson & Johnson, Merck and Eli Lilly plan to launch a one-stop database of global clinical trial sites

The clinical investigator database will contain key information such as infrastructure details and good clinical practice (GCP) training records.

For more information, click on the link below (Reuters)

The TREM2 gene, known to play a role in the immune system, triples the risk of developing Alzheimer’s

The findings, which are published in the New England Journal of Medicine on  have the potential to be the most influential gene discovery for Alzheimer’s in the last two decades.

Funders for the study included the Medical Research Council (MRC) Alzheimer’s Research UK and the Wellcome Trust.

More information on the link below (Medical Research Council)

Exposure to pesticides and head injuries together triples the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease, according to a new study.

More information at the link below (International Business Times)

The UK Medical Research Council are collaborating with AstraZeneca to benefit researchers of Alzheimer’s, cancer & rare disease

The Medical Research Council (MRC) has granted £7 million of funding for 15 research projects through its groundbreaking collaboration with AstraZeneca, which gave academic researchers unprecedented access to 22 chemical compounds. Scientists will use the compounds to study a broad range of conditions from common diseases like Alzheimer’s, cancer and lung disease through to rarer conditions such as motor neurone disease and muscular dystrophies.

The fifth plan will be broadened to include all neurodegenerative diseases

President Francois Hollande has announced that the new French Alzheimer Plan will continue to prioritise the dignity of people with dementia and the training of their carers.

The fifth Alzheimer Plan will be pursued after an evaluation of the current plan and will be broadened to include all neurodegenerative diseases.

More information at the link below (Communication from French Government) or at the new French plan website –www.francealzheimer.org

Two teams report success for zinc-finger drugs in cells and mice

More information at the link below (HDBuzz)