MDA AWARDS $313K TO UW RESEARCHER FOR MITOCHONDRIAL MYOPOTHIES

TUCSON, Ariz., Aug. 18, 2010 – Leo Pallanck, Ph.D., has just been awarded $312,699 by the Muscular Dystrophy Association for a three-year study into the critical biological roles that mitochondria play in muscle and nerve cells.

Leo Pallanck, Ph.D.

His work will focus on the mitochondrial DNA mutations that cause a number of mitochondrial myopathies/encephalomyopathies – progressive disorders that cause muscle weakness and wasting, exercise intolerance, seizures and stroke-like episodes.

“I’m excited to have the opportunity to do the work we proposed to do,’’ Pallanck said. “I think our hypothesis is likely to be correct, and if so, our work will create a new way (and perhaps the best opportunity) to ultimately treat people with mitochondrial encephalomyopathy. I feel that the work we are doing, including the work that MDA has now funded, will ultimately be the most important contributions to my scientific life. So, I’m definitely excited and happy to be able to do this work.’’

Pallanck, from the University of Washington, got into this line of study after first looking into genes that caused inherited Parkinson’s disease.

“In the process of studying these (Parkinson) genes it became apparent that their role was to eliminate defective mitochondria,’’ he said. “No one had any idea that Parkinson played a role in mitochondrial biology when the gene was identified, but our work on Parkinson demonstrated that it directly impacts mitochondrial health. … My thinking was that these genes might also be important in trying to get rid of mitochondria that are defective in other diseases, including mitochondria myopathy.’’

So the investigation was started.

Nearly two decades later, Dr. Pallanck is now one of 38 research leaders now receiving multiyear awards from MDA. His three-year study is part of the $14.1 million in new research funding approved during the Association’s July Board of Directors meeting.  This is Pallanck’s first MDA grant.

Pallanck said “I am so humbled by and extremely grateful to the many altruistic people who contribute to MDA out of the goodness of their own hearts.’’

Research grant applications are peer-reviewed twice yearly by MDA’s Medical and Scientific Advisory Committees, comprising world-renowned experts in neuromuscular disease research.  The most promising of some 500 applications received each year are recommended for funding to the MDA Board of Directors.

 “MDA is blessed to have the world’s top experts on neuromuscular disease research voluntarily serving on its Medical and Scientific Advisory Committees,’’ said Valerie Cwik, M.D., MDA executive vice president - research and medical director.

“They are uniquely qualified to determine when research on Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative diseases could help speed the development of treatments for neuromuscular diseases,” she added, explaining that, “Dr. Pallanck’s efforts to identify molecular factors that act to reduce the frequency of deleterious mitochondrial DNA mutations in somatic tissues is a good example of scientific crossover benefit for the families MDA serves.”

According to R. Rodney Howell, M.D., chairman of the MDA Board of Directors, “Generous Americans responding to the annual Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon, and to thousands of other special events benefiting the families served by MDA, deserve much of the credit for the rapid progress being made toward treatments for neuromuscular diseases.  It’s their strong belief in MDA’s capable stewardship of public funds that’s enabling so much to be accomplished – even in a sluggish economy.”

Often credited for its leadership in building the field of neuromuscular disease research, MDA also has enhanced clinical care for individuals affected by muscle disorders achieving important quality of life and longevity gains. The Association, which has invested almost $39 million in 2010 in research worldwide, is the first nonprofit to earn a Lifetime Achievement Award from the American Medical Association (“for significant and lasting contributions to the health and welfare of humanity”).

MDA-funded scientists have uncovered the genetic defects that cause several forms of muscular dystrophy; Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT); a form of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease); childhood spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and other neuromuscular conditions. Now entering a period of increasing numbers of clinical trials of potential therapeutics, the Association’s network of approximately 200 hospital-affiliated clinics is instrumental in identifying appropriate candidates for clinical trials, and in helping to refine outcome measures for those clinical trials.

More than 1 million people in America are affected by neuromuscular diseases.
Residents of the Seattle area affected by any one of the more than 40 neuromuscular diseases in MDA’s programs can receive excellent medical care at the MDA Clinics at Seattle Children’s Hospital and University of Washington Medical Center.  Individuals living with ALS are encouraged to visit the MDA/ALS Center at University of Washington Medical Center.

MDA is the nonprofit health agency dedicated to curing muscular dystrophy, ALS and related diseases by funding worldwide research (view B-roll of MDA research at
http://www.mda.org/research/gaag/2010/b-roll.html). The Association also provides comprehensive health care and support services, advocacy and education.  For more information visit  www.mda.org/.  

For more information about these new grants, visit MDA's "Grants at a Glance", an online slideshow that showcases each grant with photos and detailed information.