Page 11 - Abacoa Community News - June '21

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FAU FeAtURes

ASBMB Fellow created to advance health through pioneering research
and practical applications.
Herbert Weissbach, “We are excited to receive these important grants
Ph.D., professor emeritus in from the Ed and Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease
Florida Atlantic University’s Research Program,” said Janet Robishaw, Ph.D., senior
Center for Molecular Biology associate dean for research and chair of the Department of
and Biotechnology (CMBB), Biomedical Science in the Schmidt College of Medicine.
Department of Chemistry “Using collaborative and multidisciplinary approaches,
and Biochemistry within the our researchers are striving to understand basic biological
Charles E. Schmidt College mechanisms and cultivate new strategies to combat
of Science at FAU’s John Alzheimer’s disease in South Florida and beyond through
D. MacArthur Campus in patient-centered research and discovery.”
Jupiter was selected as a Fellow of the American Society for The Ed and Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease Research
Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (ASBMB). Fellows create medical stories, as well as with directors and actors Program was established to fund research aimed at
are recognized for their meritorious efforts to advance to produce realistic and captivating stories for television. preventing or finding a cure for Alzheimer’s disease (AD).
the molecular life sciences through sustained outstanding In 2017, he was selected as a medical communications Objectives include improving the health of Floridians by
accomplishments in areas such as scientific research, fellow for ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy. Metzner has worked researching better prevention, diagnoses, treatments and
education, mentorship, commitment to diversity and service on projects with ABC, HBO, CBS, FOX, and Netflix with cures for AD, expanding the foundation of knowledge
to the society and scientific community. some of the greatest storytellers in the industry. relating to prevention, diagnoses, treatment and cures, and
Metzner graduated in 2012 from the Wilkes Honors
Wilkes Honors College College at FAU as a Flagler scholar with a double stimulating economic activity in Florida in areas related
to AD research.
“About 580,000 people aged 65 and older are living
Distinguished Alumni Selected concentration in biological chemistry and visual arts with with Alzheimer’s disease in Florida and that number is
a passion to unite the arts and sciences. He completed the
Into FAU Hall Of Fame M.D. program at the University of Central Florida and expected to soar to 720,000 by 2025. Alzheimer’s disease
continued his post-graduate training as a general surgery is the sixth leading cause of death in Florida and more
The Florida Atlantic University Alumni Association resident at UT Health San Antonio, one of the leading than 527,000 family caregivers bear the burden of the
(FAUAA) hosted its annual Hall of Fame and Distinguished trauma centers in the country. disease in our state,” said Randy Blakely, Ph.D., executive
Alumni ceremony and reception recently. The event brought Four researchers from Florida Atlantic University’s director, FAU I-BRAIN. “These grants from the Ed and
together alumni to celebrate the accomplishments of their Schmidt College of Medicine and Charles E. Schmidt Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program will
most outstanding peers. Alumni from seven of FAU’s College of Science have received grants totaling help to propel our researchers’ pioneering work.”
colleges were honored for their career accomplishments, $641,818 from the Florida Department of Health’s Ed
and Dr. Michael Metzner, B.A. ’12, a graduate of the and Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program. FAU Researchers Receive
Harriet L. Wilkes Honors College, was introduced as a Award recipients also represent the FAU Brain Institute Grants To Combat
2021 inductee into the FAUAA Hall of Fame. (I-BRAIN), which advances neuroscience research,
Dr. Metzner is a medical advisor and associate producer technology and education, and the FAU Institute for Alzheimer’s Disease
for ABC studios. He currently works with writers to help Human Health and Disease Intervention (I-HEALTH),
More than five million
Americans are living with
Alzheimer’s Disease (AD)
and as many as 16 million
will have the disease in
2050. The cost of caring
for those with AD and
other dementias totaled
about $277 billion in 2018,
increasing to $1.1 trillion
(in today’s dollars) by mid-century. Nearly one in every three
seniors who dies each year has AD or another dementia.
“Our researchers have received these grants from the Ed
and Ethel Moore Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program
to advance scientific research and clinical care for one of
the most complex diseases that impacts our aging patient
population in Florida and elsewhere,” said Gregg Fields,
Ph.D., executive director, FAU I-HEALTH. “As Alzheimer’s
disease and other related dementias continue to rapidly rise,
research is imperative to help us understand what causes the
disease, help us develop effective treatments, improve patient
care, and ultimately one day find a cure.”
The FAU projects supported by the Ed and Ethel Moore
Alzheimer’s Disease Research Program are:
“A Novel Therapeutic Strategy for Alzheimer’s Disease”
(Qi Zhang, Ph.D., research assistant professor of biomedical
NoN-Toxic cancer immunotherapy science, FAU’s Schmidt College of Medicine): To date,
clinical trials for drugs for AD based on the amyloid
hypothesis have been lackluster, leading to a renewed search
Available NoW for alternative theories and different pathogenic factors.
Extensive genome-wide association studies of sporadic AD
have consistently identified genetic risk factors associated
Safe and Effective! with cholesterol (Chol) metabolism and cell membrane
trafficking. More and more evidence has shown that neuronal
Chol deficiency, rather than surfeit, is a causative factor for
This is the Original Immunotherapy that aging-associated brain disorders, including AD. For this
project, Zhang will focus on rebalancing brain cholesterol,
balances and optimizes your immune system to especially at nerve terminals, to reduce and even reverse
fight almost any type of cancer. neurodegeneration. By combining the power of induced
human pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) and novel mouse
models, this preclinical project will provide new pathological
Hundreds of successes over the years. insights as well as novel therapeutic strategies for AD.
“Role of Hypoxia in Triggering Alzheimer’s Disease
Continuously available since 1977 Pathogenesis: Sulindac as a Potential Therapeutic
Intervention” (Howard Prentice, Ph.D., a professor of
in Freeport, Grand Bahama Island biomedical science, FAU’s Schmidt College of Medicine):
Oxidative damage and mitochondrial dysfunction are key
factors in neuronal hypoxic injury and in development
See our website for more info: of AD; however, there is no effective therapy that targets

www.Quantumimmunotherapy.net these mechanisms. Prentice previously demonstrated that
the non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) sulindac
protects the myocardium against hypoxia/ischemia through
or call for more information: Toll-free number (561) 766-0878 the mechanisms of ischemic preconditioning, independent
of its NSAID activity. For this project, Prentice and his team
Email: Quantimmuno@gmail.com
FAU Researchers Receive Grants on page 14