The Michael J. Fox Foundation Announces Second Quarter Participants in Partnering Program Between Awardees and Industry

NEW YORK, May 21, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF) has announced second-quarter 2012 participants in its Partnering Program. The Partnering Program proactively showcases promising research results from the MJFF portfolio — targeting funders who may wish to invest in their continued development.

"The challenges of translating basic discoveries into new therapies are incredibly complex," said Michael J. Fox.  "To conquer them, we all need to push ourselves further than we ever have before. Creating a win-win for companies and for patients requires rethinking how we deploy resources creatively and strategically in ways that benefit everyone."

The Partnering Program is designed to help speed therapeutic breakthroughs for Parkinson's disease (PD) by connecting industry leaders with projects ripe for investment. Non-confidential overviews of select MJFF-funded projects are shared with industry contacts and more broadly via MJFF's Web site on a quarterly basis. 

MJFF-supported projects featured in Q2 include:

- Pre-clinical work from Biodesy to develop allosteric and conformation-specific drugs targeting alpha-synuclein

- Pre-clinical development of a secreted growth factor-like protein with neuroprotective potential from Neurodyn

- An academic collaboration between Duke University, National Jewish Health and University of Colorado Denver via Aeolus Pharmaceuticals that has developed a platform of broad-spectrum catalytic antioxidant compounds as neuroprotective strategy for PD

- A team at the Virginia College of Osteopathic Medicine studying the neuroprotective potential of Cerium oxide nanoparticles (CeONP) 

Overviews from awardees Addex Pharmaceuticals, Amicus Therapeutics, Ceregene, Allon, Depomed, KineMed, Targacept, and NeuroHealing, were showcased in Q1 2012.

To date, the Foundation has funded over $289 million in research, nearly $75 million of which has been directed to more than 150 unique projects led by industry partners.

Contact [email protected] to learn more.

About The Michael J. Fox Foundation
As the world's largest private funder of Parkinson's research, The Michael J. Fox Foundation is dedicated to accelerating a cure for Parkinson's disease and improved therapies for those living with the condition today. The Foundation pursues its goals through an aggressively funded, highly targeted research program coupled with active global engagement of scientists, Parkinson's patients, business leaders, clinical trial participants, donors and volunteers. In addition to funding more than $289 million in research to date, the Foundation has fundamentally altered the trajectory of progress toward a cure. Operating at the hub of worldwide Parkinson's research, the Foundation forges groundbreaking collaborations with industry leaders, academic scientists and government research funders; increases the flow of participants into Parkinson's disease clinical trials with its online tool, Fox Trial Finder; promotes Parkinson's awareness through high-profile advocacy, events and outreach; and coordinates the grassroots involvement of thousands of Team Fox members around the world. Now through December 31, 2012, all new and increased giving to The Michael J. Fox Foundation, as well as gifts from donors who have not given since 2010 or earlier, will be matched on a dollar-for-dollar basis with the $50-million Brin Wojcicki Challenge, launched by Sergey Brin and Anne Wojcicki. For more information, visit: www.michaeljfox.org; www.facebook.com/michaeljfoxfoundation.

SOURCE The Michael J. Fox Foundation

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