In October 2004, The Thomas Hartman Foundation for Parkinson’s Research pledged $4.4 million over five years to create the new Thomas Hartman Parkinson’s Research Laboratory at Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory to focus on three core areas of Parkinson’s research: genes, cells and circuits. Dr. Jonathan Sebat and Dr. Nick Tonks will focus on identifying novel genes involved in Parkinson’s disease while Dr. Grigori Enikolopov’s group has created tools for visualizing neural progenitors, the brain’s store of reserve cells capable of becoming new neurons. They will adapt these tools in order to visualize dopamine cells specifically, thereby allowing them to screen for drugs that turn on brain repair mechanisms.
The Thomas Hartman Foundation seeks to provide grants for the newest and most innovative scientific projects which offer the best hope for the advancement and development of a cure. Scientists believe that, with proper research funding, a cure for Parkinson’s can be found within ten years—a time frame affirmed by top officials of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) in testimony before Congress. Advances in Parkinson’s will contribute to the understanding of other devastating neurological diseases such as Alzheimer’s, ALS and multiple sclerosis. The Thomas Hartman Foundation is dedicated to the single purpose of finding a cure for Parkinson’s disease and will solicit donors and fund scientists with bonafide ideas and research institutions that need funding. For additional information, visit www.hartmanfoundation.org.
Written by: Communications Department | publicaffairs@cshl.edu | 516-367-8455