PN 04-04-86 CF

20 April 2004

Lottery funding to help find cure for Alzheimer’s disease

A fresh hope of a cure for Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia, is being raised through a £227,461 award of lottery money from the Community Fund’s Research Programme.

The Alzheimer’s Society received the funding to conduct a new research project into the disease that could offer the 500,000 people in the UK who currently suffer from Alzheimer’s disease a real sense of hope in finding a cure as opposed to merely treating the disease.

Current treatments for Alzheimer’s act to alleviate the symptoms of the disease in the short-term, but no treatment is available to cure or prevent the cell death. Memory loss seen early in the disease arises because cells, or neurons, in significant areas of the brain responsible for memory, die and cannot be replaced.

The project consortium made up of the Alzheimer’s Society and the Alzheimer’s Research Trust will fund research that will involve injecting stem cells into mice modified to develop Alzheimer’s disease. These mice stem cells will contain Nerve Growth Factor that aims to prevent cell death and stimulate growth of the new cells.

This experiment will enable the researchers to determine whether or the not the injection of these stem cells prevents memory loss. The project will then investigate if this approach might be worthwhile for treating Alzheimer’s disease in human patients in the future.

Diana Brittan, Chair of the Community Fund said: “This is exciting research that has the possibility of going a long way towards contributing to a cure for the increasing amount of people who are affected by this disease. The Community Fund has so far awarded nearly £13 million to benefit people with Alzheimer’s disease through its various grant programmes and this latest grant highlights the importance of research needed in this area.”

Ted Clayton-Turner was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease nine years ago. He lives at home with his wife Angela who is a member of the Alzheimer's Society Quality Research in Dementia network.

Angela explains: “Alzheimer's disease is very cruel disease, which over time gradually robs you of the person you know and love. Early diagnosis along with new drug treatments are now providing a better quality of life for people in the early stages of the disease, but that quality time doesn't last forever. It is my belief that stem cell research offers the best hope for the future if we're to find a cure for this dreadful disease. This grant will help scientists build on the major advances that have been made in Alzheimer's research in the past decade and help them succeed in finding the cure that we long for.”

In a statement Susanne Sorensen, Head of Research, Alzheimer's Society and Rebecca Wood, Chief Executive of the Alzheimer's Research Trust said: "The Alzheimer's Society and the Alzheimer's Research Trust are delighted to work together on the development of this project and eventual dissemination of the outcome.

"There is currently no therapy available that provides anything other than temporary relief of the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and many other dementias. Research on stem cells provides real hope for people with dementia and carers that one day there will be treatments available that will halt or reverse the development of the diseases causing dementia. Researchers will be supported by both charities. Members of the Alzheimer's Society will be part of the steering group monitoring the progress of the project which will benefit from the Alzheimer's Research Trust UK Network."

Notes to Editors:

1. Community Fund gives out money raised by the National Lottery to charities, voluntary and community groups. Out of every £1 spent on the National Lottery the Community Fund gets 4.7 pence.

2. The Alzheimer’s Society has pioneered new ways to involve beneficiaries in their research agenda. Its “Quality Research in Dementia” network actively involves people with dementia and their carers in setting the research agenda, awarding grants and advising on progress of projects. For this inclusive and innovative approach, the Society was awarded the Charity Award for management excellence in 2001 and the network remains an exemplar project in lay involvement in research grant making in the UK.

3. Since 1995 Community Fund has awarded over 60,000 grants worth more than £2.7 billion to UK charities and voluntary groups.

4. The legal name of the Community Fund remains the National Lottery Charities Board. The National Lottery Charities Board was set up in 1994 and changed its operation name to Community Fund – Lottery money making a difference in April 2001.

5. A new organisation is currently being formed from the New Opportunities Fund and the Community Fund and will soon be distributing a major share of the good causes money raised through the National Lottery. This is an exciting opportunity for us to build on what both Funds have achieved so far and create an even more responsive and accessible organisation. The new distributor, The Big Lottery Fund, will be launched in June 2004. Current programmes, beneficiaries or applications will not be affected.

6. The New Opportunities Fund distributes National Lottery money to health, education and environment projects across the UK. We intend to support sustainable projects that will improve the quality of life of people throughout the UK, address the needs of those who are most disadvantaged in society, encourage community participation and complement relevant local and national strategies and programmes. (Funding for programmes is divided between England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales on the basis of population weighted to reflect levels of deprivation).

Media Enquiries:
Community Fund Press Office on 020 7211 3710 Alzheimer's Society Press Office on 020 7306 0813

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