The UK Motor Neuron Disease Research Institute (UK MND RI) was launched on the 3rd of November. Co-directed by the University of Sheffield and King’s College London, the institute aims to discover new treatments for Motor Neuron Disease (MND) which could make it curable.
MND is a neurodegenerative disease that affects the nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. This causes people living with MND to gradually lose their voluntary movement and require complex care.
Around 1 in 300 people are affected by the disease, with six people being diagnosed each day in the UK. There are currently no treatments capable of curing MND and only one licensed drug for it in the UK, which has minimal effects.
The UK MND RI is co-directed by Professor Christopher McDermott, Professor of Translational Neurology at the University of Sheffield, and Professor Ammar Al-Chalabi, Professor of Neurology and Complex Disease Genetics at King’s College London.
The institute brings together a virtual network of doctors, clinicians, scientists, people with MND, charities and other funders. The team will work together in a more coordinated way than ever before to accelerate drug discovery and development.
Institutes already involved in the UK MND RI are University of Sheffield, King’s College London, University of Edinburgh, University of Liverpool, University College London, and University of Oxford.
Professor Christopher McDermott, co-director of UK MND RI said, “The Institute partnership has had early success in securing government funding to undertake a new experimental medicine study to rapidly screen drugs at a pace and scale never seen before.
“We are looking forward to driving forward our work to discover new treatment strategies and ultimately new drugs that stop MND in its tracks.”
Professor Ammar Al-Chalabi, co-director of UK MN RI said, “MND is devastating, and we desperately need to find meaningful treatments as fast as possible.
“This virtual MND Research Institute means MND researchers across the UK and beyond can work together as a team, joining up lab science with clinical practice to advance research more quickly towards an effective therapy.”
The research programmes taking place in the institute are funded by the MND Association, MND Scotland, My Name’5 Doddie Foundation, LifeArc (a medical research charity), the National Institute of Health and Care Research (NIHR) and the Medical Research Council.
At the heart of the institute are people living with MND. David Setters lives with MND and was part of the #United2EndMND campaign; about the new institute, he said, “Today’s launch is so welcome. An Institute brought together by collaboration to accelerate the arrival of treatments is just what patients want to see.
“So many people have worked hard to make this happen. I am optimistic this will be the springboard to a better future, offering hope to patients and those affected by MND. We hope it will change the conversation between neurologists and patients from the current focus on palliative care to available treatments and, ultimately, a cure.”