Guernsey charity donates £30,000 to Oxford University motor neurone disease research
• Guernsey Motor Neurone has donated £30,000 to support a three-year biomedical research project at Oxford University
• The research investigates mitochondria's role in nerve cell communication breakdown in Motor Neurone Disease and Frontotemporal Dementia
• The project is led by Dr Ruxandra Dafinca and Professor Kevin Talbot in collaboration with the Motor Neurone Disease Association
• The study aims to identify drug targets and support treatment development to slow or halt disease progression
• GMN Treasurer Vito Priore presented the donation to Dr Brian Dickie MBE at the MNDA headquarters in Northampton
A Guernsey charity has donated £30,000 to support groundbreaking research into Motor Neurone Disease at Oxford University.
Guernsey Motor Neurone made the donation to fund a three-year biomedical research project examining the cellular mechanisms behind nerve damage in Motor Neurone Disease and Frontotemporal Dementia.
The research project represents a collaboration between the UK's Motor Neurone Disease Association and the University of Oxford. It is led by Dr Ruxandra Dafinca, Senior Research Fellow at Oxford, and Professor Kevin Talbot, Head of Clinical Neurosciences.
The study focuses on mitochondria, the energy-producing structures within cells, and their role in the breakdown of communication between nerve cells. This disruption occurs at the synapse, identified as one of the earliest sites of damage in MND.
Researchers will use advanced laboratory techniques to investigate these cellular processes, with the ultimate aim of improving the identification of potential drug targets. The findings are expected to support the development of treatments that could slow or halt disease progression.
Vito Priore, GMN Treasurer and Director, presented the donation to Dr Brian Dickie MBE, Chief Scientist of the MNDA, at the charity's headquarters in Northampton.
Priore described the donation as reflecting GMN's established relationship with the MNDA and the charity's commitment to funding disease research. "We are deeply indebted to the islanders and businesses whose generosity makes it possible for GMN to make this kind of donation," he said.
Dr Dickie acknowledged the importance of charitable contributions to advancing research efforts. "Charitable funding plays a vital role in enabling the MNDA and its research partners to accelerate research, support scientists and advance the development of new therapies for people living with MND," he said. "We are very grateful to the Guernsey charity for their continued financial support."
The donation represents GMN's ongoing commitment to supporting research into Motor Neurone Disease, a progressive neurological condition that affects the nerve cells controlling voluntary muscle movement.
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