Bruce and Jolene McCaw earmarked the gift for this purpose through the national Muscular Dystrophy Association. Bruce McCaw was one of the founders of McCaw Cellular Communications. The gift will foster new directions in the study of a group of genetic diseases characterized by progressive degeneration and weakness of the muscles that control movement. In some types of muscular dystrophy, the heart and other organs are affected as well. There is no specific treatment against any form of muscular dystrophy, except for supportive measures, such as physical therapy, assistive technology and corrective surgery.
Some cases are mild and progress slowly, others have rapid deterioration.
If the muscles controlling breathing become too weak, death can occur. Few patients with the Duchenne form of muscular dystrophy live into the third decade of life. Chamberlain has studied the location of the Duchenne muscular dystrophy gene in the chromosome, and the genetic expression of dystrophin, a substance needed to regulate muscles. His transgenic mice studies helped improve the understanding of the disrupted dystrophin production that underlies muscular dystrophy. These studies also showed for the first time that muscular dystrophy could be prevented and reversed by replacing the defective gene.