Prof Tara Spires-Jones and Dr Szu-Han Wang receive funding to study Alzheimer's

Prof Tara Spires-Jones (Centre for Discovery Brain Sciences) and Dr Szu-Han Wang (Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences)  have recently received a funding boost from Alzheimer’s Research UK, the UK’s leading dementia research charity, to study Alzheimer's disease. 

Prof Tara Spires-Jones has received £50,000 to investigate the microscopic connection between nerve cells in the brain, which are essential for thinking, learning, and memory. These nerve cells become damaged in the course of Alzheimer's disease and this is what causes the symptoms of dementia. Her team discovered that levels of a protein involved in the function of these connection points increase in the brains of people with Alzheimer's, and will investigate whether targeting this protein with potential drugs could aid in limiting the damage to cells. 

Dr Szu-Han Wang has received a further £108k of research funding from Alzheimer’s Research UK and will look at ways to improve memory retrieval. 

The announcement comes during Dementia Awareness Week, a national initiative to raise the awareness of dementia and encourage people to join efforts to help those affected by the condition.