- The University of Sheffield has received a £1.5 million grant from the Wolfson Foundation towards an expansion of the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN)
- The new grant follows a generous £3 million donation from University of Sheffield alumnus, Mark Crosbie, and his wife Sarah. Both commitments will allow Sheffield researchers to continue groundbreaking research into neurological conditions including motor neurone disease (MND), dementia, Parkinson's disease and multiple sclerosis (MS)
- Expanding the world-class institute will provide University research programmes with additional cutting-edge facilities and equipment; expand drug discovery programmes; and build on promising areas such as cell and gene therapy
The University of Sheffield has received a £1.5 million grant towards the expansion of the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN), to accelerate work in developing breakthrough treatments for debilitating neurological conditions.
The new grant, awarded by the Wolfson Foundation, will help to fund a world-class sister facility adjoined to SITraN that will enable researchers to continue groundbreaking research into neurological conditions, including motor neurone disease (MND), dementia, Parkinson's disease (PD) and multiple sclerosis (MS).
The new facility will provide University research programmes with additional cutting-edge facilities and equipment; expand drug discovery programmes; and build on promising areas such as cell and gene therapy. Together, SITraN along with the University's cross-faculty flagship Neuroscience Institute, will continue the development of a globally recognised hub of research excellence dedicated to combating neurological diseases.
Paul Ramsbottom, Chief Executive at the Wolfson Foundation said: "A grant from Wolfson helped to establish SITraN in 2010, and since then it has notched up some remarkable achievements and reached full capacity. Sheffield's application this year articulated not only an urgent need for new space and equipment, but also an ambitious programme of further research into some of the most deadly and debilitating neurological diseases. We are delighted to support this bold vision."
The news follows a generous donation of £3 million from Sheffield alumnus Mark Crosbie and his wife Sarah, whose transformational pledge has also helped to secure world-leading MND and neuroscience work at SITraN for the next decade.
Mark Crosbie, University of Sheffield alumnus said: "Sarah and I know that SITraN is uniquely configured to have the best chance of delivering major breakthroughs to these truly devastating conditions. The passion and commitment of academics and clinicians like Professor Dame Pam Shaw is inspiring and we are both confident that our gift will make the greatest impact at SITraN. We are looking forward to keeping in touch with the progress."
One in six people, and one in four people over the age of 80, will develop a significant neurological disorder in their lifetime, with dementia, Parkinson's Disease, motor neurone disease (MND) and multiple sclerosis (MS) classed as the leading international causes of disability, placing a significant strain on healthcare systems.
Over the last 10 years, world-class researchers at SITraN have made huge progress in understanding the complex biology of these diseases, leading over 250 clinical trials and developing targeted approaches to treat the root causes of neurological conditions, with a particular focus on MND.
SITraN provided early scientific evidence for a gene silencing approach for the first identified genetic cause of MND - an inherited mutation in a particular gene called SOD1 - that causes MND in two per cent of patients.
Sheffield also spearheaded the UK arm of the groundbreaking international trial of tofersen (QALSODY™) for patients with SOD1-MND. For the first time patients showed improvements in lung and muscle function a year into treatment, demonstrating the drug's ability to slow progression of the disease. Tofersen is now approved by the FDA and European Medicines Agency as a new genetic therapy treatment for MND.
SITraN has also spearheaded the development of a PET-MRI imaging facility and the Gene Therapy Innovation and Manufacturing Centre (GTIMC), also supported by The Wolfson Foundation.
As well as finding neuroprotective treatments, researchers at SITraN are developing a robust evidence base for delivering supportive and symptomatic care for patients living with MND. Currently, experts at Sheffield are developing digital technologies to facilitate monitoring patient well-being from home when hospital visits become difficult.
Medicine is rapidly evolving however, with increasing focus on advanced therapies and treatments tailored to people's individual health needs. There is therefore an urgent need to accelerate the progress made in Sheffield, with SITraN on the threshold of several extraordinary breakthroughs.
Professor Dame Pamela Shaw, Professor of Neurology at the University of Sheffield and Director of the Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience (SITraN), said: "The University of Sheffield has already made enormous steps in developing new treatments for patients with neurological diseases via SITraN, but there is so much more we want to achieve.
"Our research teams have grown from 64 people in 2010 to more than 300 but in order to continue momentum and take us a step closer to finding a cure for diseases such as motor neurone disease, we need to expand our neuroscience facilities.
"A state-of-the-art sister facility, made possible by generous donations and grants such as these, will enable us to continue to grow our research programs, supported by cutting-edge scientific facilities and equipment, expand our drug discovery programmes and build on promising areas such as cell and gene therapy.
"This will enable us to continue to develop our globally-recognised hub of research excellence, dedicated to combating MND and related neurodegenerative conditions."
The new SITraN facility will provide growing teams with the modern infrastructure and technology needed to drive forward novel translational research for human benefit, supported by cutting-edge core facilities. These will include an integrated drug-screening facility to discover and develop new treatments and a super-computing satellite workstation, to allow rapid use of machine-learning that will inform future drug discovery projects.
Professor Koen Lamberts, President and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Sheffield, said: "Sheffield is a world-leader in motor neurone disease research, working to understand the causes of MND and other related neurodegenerative conditions.
"This important grant is a tremendous opportunity for the University to progress its work to fight these cruel diseases, for the benefit of patients and their families across the globe."
Other fundraising for MND research at the University includes this year's Big Walk, in which 418 Staff, students, alumni and friends of the University of Sheffield raised £128,000 for Motor Neurone Disease research by participating in a marathon walk across the Peak District.
Collectively they walked over 9,800 miles - further than the distance from the UK to Australia - to raise vital funds for MND research.
