UCL scientists receive £78 million funding boost to develop treatment for motor neurone disease
· News-MedicalA funding boost of more than £78 million will help UCL scientists working to develop a potential treatment for motor neurone disease, for which there is currently no cure and which affects 5,000 people each year in the UK.
Trace Neuroscience, a UCL spinout biopharmaceutical company, is working on developing a way to restore the production of a protein that is essential for communication in the brain and spinal cord.
Trace Neuroscience co-founder Professor Pietro Fratta (UCL Queen Square Motor Neuron Disease Centre, UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology) found that by restoring UNC13A protein levels, healthy communication between nerves cells impacted by neurodegenerative disease could be re-established, thereby potentially slowing the progression of the disease.
Professor Fratta said: "UNC13A is critical for neurons to communicate amongst each other and with muscles and is lost in nearly all ALS cases. Being able to re-establish this is groundbreaking.
"This large funding round is pivotal for us to rapidly translate this science into a life-changing medicine and advance our lead programme towards the clinic."
We have now brought together academic leaders, experienced drug developers and a leading syndicate of investors committed to urgently turning this discovery into a medicine." Eric Green, co-founder and CEO of Trace NeuroscienceTrace Neuroscience was founded on the breakthrough discovery that loss of UNC13A is a driver of disease in nearly all people with ALS.
UCL Business (UCLB) - the commercialisation company for UCL - supported the academic team working closely to protect the intellectual property and with the Third Rock and Trace teams facilitating the collaboration with Professor Fratta and his team at UCL.
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