Foundation for Mitochondrial Medicine Awards Grant to Netherlands Research
ATLANTA, Ga., February 7, 2012 – The Foundation for Mitochondrial Medicine, a US-based non-profit dedicated to funding research for the treatment of mitochondrial disease, has awarded a $50,000 grant to Professor Jan Smeitink of the Netherlands for his research involving the development of new small molecule compounds to treat mitochondrial dysfunction.
The aim of Smeitink’s three-year research project is to develop a novel therapy for the treatment of mitochondrial diseases, specifically targeting Leigh’s disease, MELAS, LHON and Friedrich ataxia. Research shows that mitochondrial dysfunction is a central element in Autism, Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, muscular dystrophy and Lou Gehrig’s disease among others.
The funding by the Foundation for Mitochondrial Medicine will enable Smeitink and his research partners to use their specific and complementary expertise in developing new effective compounds to treat mitochondrial diseases. Recently, Khondrion, an offshoot company of the Radboud University Nijmegen Medical Centre (RUNMC) in The Netherlands, has identified several unique drug targets using its cell-based mitochondrial disease model developed in the past few years.
In preliminary experiments, Smeitink and his research team provided proof that intervention aimed at these targets can restore or prevent the negative consequences of mitochondrial dysfunction at a cellular level. In this current research project, Smeitink hopes to generate new compounds directed at these novel drug targets with high efficacy, bioavailability and stability, and few side-effects. He will also test new compounds for efficacy in unique cell-based and in vivo models for mitochondrial disease available at Khondrion and RUMCN. The best-performing new compounds will be characterized for exact mode of action. At the end of this project, Smeitink’s research team plan to have new compounds available, for clinical testing. The research project will allow for further development of these compounds with a prospective pharmaceutical company. The Foundation’s grant will enable Smeitink to synthesize and test about 5 to 10 additional compound modifications and thereby increases the number of potential new medications.
Smeitink’s research has also been awarded a Eurostars grant. The Eurostars Program is a multi-country program dedicated to research and development. It is co-funded by European communities and 33 EUREKA countries. EUREKA is an intergovernmental network launched in 1985 to support market-oriented research and development and innovations projects.
Khondrion’s (www.khondrion.com) mission is to make a substantial contribution to the development of a cure for mitochondrial disease. Next to its research and development, Khondrion offers second stage mitochondrial screening to facilitate small molecule and drug testing, including off-target effects.
The Foundation for Mitochondrial Medicine’s mission is to support the development of the most promising research and treatments of the many forms of mitochondrial disease. In addition to the current grant, the Foundation funded an FDA-approved drug trial in 2010 and will fund participants in a functional MRI study at the Georgia State/Georgia Tech Center for Advanced Brain Imaging this year. For more information on the Foundation and information about funding of specific research projects, please visit www.foundmm.org or info@foundmm.org
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Media contacts:
Foundation for Mitochondrial Medicine -- Jennifer Grizzle, 770-409-1152, jennifer@theprstudio.com
Khondrion – Dr. Jan Smeitink, j.smeitink@cukz.umcn.nl
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