FightMND grant for detection of waste build-up in the brain

A/Prof David Wright using Monash's preclinical MRI scanner
at the Alfred site

Congratulations to Associate Professor David Wright on his FightMND grant, "The Glymphatic System: A novel biomarker of disease severity in MND". The project will receive $249,502 over a two year period.

Motor Neurone Disease (MND) affects around 1 in 300 people. It has a rapid progression: one third of people with MND die within a year of diagnosis, and over half die within two years.

A/Prof Wright said, "One of the hallmarks of neurodegenerative disease is the accumulation of aggregated waste proteins in the brain. These waste products are normally removed from the brain by the glymphatic system while we sleep. 

"However, recent evidence suggests that impairment of the glymphatic system may cause these toxic proteins to build up, increasing the risk and severity of MND. Employing a unique transgenic mouse model, this proposal will demonstrate the potential for next-generation brain imaging to non-invasively assess glymphatic function and MND disease severity. Once validated, we will then use these methods to assess a novel therapy designed to improve glymphatic function."

A/Prof Wright said that successful realisation of their two aims would lead to safe, clinically translatable methods for assessing disease progression, and the efficacy of new drugs, over time. Importantly, as the accumulation of waste protein is thought to occur many years before the onset of symptoms, these methods will bring forward patient diagnosis to fast-track therapeutic intervention.

The project will also be more broadly applicable to other neurological disorders, as impaired glymphatic function and waste protein accumulation isn’t limited to MND. A/Prof Wright said, "The biomarkers developed here will also be relevant to other diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease, dementia and Parkinson’s disease." 

A/Prof Wright will be working together with Dr Akram Zamani (Monash) and also Dr Adam Walker from the Queensland Brain Institute.

See the full story on the FightMND site.