The investment from the Government will improve the understanding and treatment for multiple neurodegenerative diseases.
A minimum of fifty million pounds will be invested specifically into research to help find a cure for motor neurone disease. Currently the disease affects over five thousand people in the UK and with the new investment experts hope they will be able to gain a better understanding of the condition and develop treatments to improve the care for those with MND.
The funding will go towards a range of neurodegenerative diseases such as Pick’s Disease, Fronto-temporal dementia, Wernicke-worsakoff, Parkinson’s disease dementia, Lewy Body dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.
‘We will continue to harness this expertise and innovation to support pioneering projects to find better treatments
Health and Social Care Secretary, Sajid Javid
The government have already given £7 million to support clinical trails and research into MND. The additional funding will see a new NIHR Research Unit set up, to coordinate research applications and encourage further innovative studies.
Health and Social Care Secretary, Sajid Javid, said: ‘Neurodegenerative conditions like MND can have a devastating impact on people’s lives and I’m committed to ensuring the government does everything we can to fight these diseases and support those affected.
‘We’ve already invested millions in understanding and treating MND and our new funding commitment will back more research into this and other neurodegenerative diseases.
‘The UK is a global leader in medical research. Our world-class research sector was central to the discovery of lifesaving treatments for COVID-19 like dexamethasone and Tocilizumab, as well as the development of the vaccine programme which has saved hundreds of thousands of lives.
‘We will continue to harness this expertise and innovation to support pioneering projects to find better treatments for those living with motor neurone disease, like the excellent work underway at NIHR Sheffield Biomedical Research Centre where scientists are trialling new drugs to treat the condition.’
Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said, ‘the UK is home to some of the most transformative and innovative medical research in the world, and the availability of this research funding, alongside the work of our strong life science and pharmaceuticals sector, will make the most of that research to help those living with motor neurone disease.
‘It is vital that we increase our understanding of this condition in pursuit of new treatments and better care, and I am pleased to see UK institutions at the forefront of that work.’
As well as the funding, a new motor neurone disease partnership will be formed to bring together expertise and resources across the research community to speed up the delivery of new treatments. The collaboration, backed by £4 million, is co-funded by the National Institute for Health Research, UK Research and Innovation, Life Arc, MND Association and My Name’5 Doddie Foundation.
