The Muscular Dystrophy Association today announced funding, totaling $13.7 million, for 40 new research initiatives targeting nearly two dozen progressive neuromuscular diseases. Among these are 13 new initiatives targeting Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), nine new projects focused on ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig's disease), as well as efforts on spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD), and the link between diabetes and Friedreich's ataxia (FA).
These new projects are in addition to hundreds of other MDA-funded scientific investigations being advanced worldwide to find effective treatments for neuromuscular diseases.
"Truly rapid progress is being made in the fight against muscular dystrophy, ALS and related diseases," said R. Rodney Howell, M.D., Chairman of the MDA Board of Directors. "And MDA will not stop until these diseases are conquered."
This latest round of peer-reviewed grants recommended by the Association's Medical and Scientific Advisory Committees comprising the world's top medical and scientific authorities was approved for funding by the MDA Board of Directors. The promising new initiatives are underway in 17 U.S. cities, the District of Columbia, as well as in Australia, Canada, Costa Rica, Italy, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom:
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