In January, AFTD announced it will leverage support from our generous donors to invest $2.5 million in the Diagnostisk accelerator program, an initiative of the Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF).

AFTDs investering vil blive modsvaret af yderligere $2.5MM fra Diagnostisk accelerator initiativ, som modtog indledende finansiering fra Bill Gates, ADDF-medstifter Leonard A. Lauder og andre filantroper. Resultatet vil være $5 millioner dedikeret til udviklingen af FTD-biomarkører.

In addition to Gates, supporters of the Diagnostisk accelerator include Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos and MacKenzie Bezos. Overall, the Diagnostisk accelerator program will provide nearly $50 million toward more effectively diagnosing all forms of dementia.

A biomarker – such as blood pressure for cardiovascular disease or bloodsugar level for diabetes – provides measurable evidence of underlying disease. Biomarkers are an essential tool for the early diagnosis and effective treatment of many conditions.

“Today there are no biomarkers for FTD,” said ADDF’s Founding Executive Director and Chief Scientific Officer Howard Fillit, M.D. “The $5 million in new FTD research will include awards to fund exploration for new biomarkers that can help accurately diagnose and track the progression of FTD. It will also enable us to add an FTD arm to large validation studies funded by the Diagnostisk accelerator."

AFTD has enjoyed a longstanding research partnership with the ADDF, forged through a shared belief that advances in the scientific knowledge base regarding one form of dementia may lead to breakthroughs in other related conditions. AFTD’s most recent investment represents an expansion of the scope of AFTD’s FTD Biomarkers Initiative, launched in 2016.

"Vi ved i dag, at håndtering af neurodegenerativ sygdom i enhver form kræver en samarbejdsindsats," sagde AFTD CEO Susan LJ Dickinson, MS, CGC. "AFTD har en lang historie med forskningssamarbejde med ADDF, og vi er taknemmelige for at gå sammen igen i samarbejde med Bill Gates og andre generøse finansierere.

"ADDF og AFTDs partnerskab kan udvides baseret på nye muligheder, mens vi fortsætter med at forfølge vores organisatoriske missioner," tilføjede hun.

I en blogindlæg published on April 2, Gates announced a request for proposals for the development of a digital biomarker for Alzheimer’s and related dementias. Digital biomarkers, according to the ADDF hjemmeside, are “objective, quantifiable physiological and behavioral data that are collected, measured and analyzed by means of digital devices such as portables, wearables, or ambient sensors.”

Interested researchers are asked to submit letters of intent by June 7, with invited full proposals due on August 16. Klik her for mere information.