Reading Time: 5 minutes My current work focuses on looking at the cell types that are affected in MND and how they impact each other. Motor neurons, the main cell type affected in MND, connect our brains and muscles. This connection is what allows us to move. In MND, these cells start to die, which is what leads to progressive paralysis. But motor neurons aren’t the only cell types affected by MND. They are surrounded by many more cells called glia, which have roles in keeping our motor neurons healthy.
Year: 2023
Reading Time: 5 minutes I’m Hannah, an MND Association-funded first year PhD student at the University of Nottingham. During my undergraduate degree in Biochemistry, also at Nottingham, I had the opportunity to do a project researching MND in the lab, where my interest in MND began. During this project I also met someone who was living with MND, who had come to hear about the research happening in our lab. Hearing his insights into the devastating effects of MND really stuck with me, and I decided I wanted to begin a career in MND research. This led me to my PhD project, in which I am aiming to make a natural type of cell called astrocytes more protective of motor neurones. We hope that this work will inform us of a possible new way to treat MND.
Reading Time: 6 minutes On the 8 September 2023, members of the Research Development team at the MND Association attended the 4th UCL Queen Square Motor Neuron Disease Centre
Reading Time: 3 minutes Jade and Liam are researchers at Sheffield Institute for Translational Neuroscience, University of Sheffield. Liam’s work aims to improve healthcare services through technology by involving
Causes and disease mechanisms Genetic Research Markers of Disease Progression MND Research Models of MND Research we fund Treatments Unproven treatments
A stepping stone to becoming future leaders in MND research
Reading Time: 6 minutes MND is a very complex disease and collaboration within the research community is key to building on our current understanding of the disease biology and
Reading Time: 6 minutes QurAlis, a biotechnology company focused on developing precision medicines for MND and other neurodegenerative diseases, has announced the opening of a clinical trial in the
Reading Time: 3 minutes In June we hosted the second MND EnCouRage UK event for early career researchers (ECRs) which aims to support them to continue working in the
Reading Time: 3 minutes My name is Charlotte and I am a specialist physiotherapist who has worked within the field of MND and neuromuscular disease for many years. Prior to starting my PhD, I worked as the lead physiotherapist on the Neuromuscular Complex Care Centre (NMCCC) at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery, part of UCL centre for neuromuscular diseases in London.
Reading Time: 3 minutes My name is Sara Tacconelli and I grew up in a small town in Abruzzo, Italy, and I was raised in a nurturing environment, surrounded by love and affection from my family and friends. I always had a passion for science and as I grew older, a strong desire to dedicate my life to a meaningful cause emerged within me- a desire to somehow make a difference in the lives of others.
Reading Time: 12 minutes Despite decades of research, we still do not fully understand why some people get MND, but studies in cell and animal models of the disease