Commission staff working document accompanying the Proposal for a Council recommendation on measures to combat neurodegenerative diseases, in particular Alzheimer's, through joint programming of research activities {COM(2009) 379 final}
Date: 2009-07-22
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: EU action, EU programme, disease of the nervous system, health care, health care system, health costs, health policy, medical research

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COMMISSION OF THE EUROPEAN COMMUNITIES 

Brussels, 22.7.2009 
SEC(2009) 1039 final 

COMMISSION STAFF WORKING DOCUMENT 

Accompanying the 

Proposal for a 

COUNCIL RECOMMENDATION 

on measures to combat neurodegenerative diseases, in particular Alzheimer's, through 
joint programming of research activities  

{COM(2009) 379 final}

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RATIONALE 

This  Commission  Staff  Working  Document  has  been  prepared  as  a  background  paper  to  the 
Commission's  proposal  for  a  Council  Recommendation  on  Joint  Programming  in  research  on 
neurodegenerative diseases, in particular Alzheimer’s disease. With the aim of clarifying the context 
of this proposal and to document and justify the added value of a joint European action in this field, it 
provides  a  first  non-exhaustive  picture  of  research  on  neurodegenerative  diseases,  in  particular 
Alzheimer’s disease, which is currently carried out or planned across Europe. 

This first analysis illustrates the significant diversity of the research landscape on neurodegenerative 
diseases in Europe, in many of its aspects such as levels of investments, funding mechanisms, public-
private involvement, priority themes, topics and approaches, etc, but it also highlights the potential for 
complementarity of current actions and initiatives.  

This information – even though not exhaustive – provides a set of elements which outlines the reasons 
why a joint European approach in this area could contribute to increase the effectiveness of research 
on neurodegenerative diseases in Europe, open the path to potential therapies to the benefit of affected 
individuals and their families, and help to establish the rationale for the proposed Recommendation.  

1. Introduction  
In  September  2008,  the  Competitiveness  Council  recognised  the  major  societal  impact  of 
neurodegenerative  diseases  (ND),  and  in  particular  Alzheimer's  disease  (AD),  in  the  context  of  an 
ageing society and adopted conclusions recommending the launching of a common European initiative 
in this field by bringing together Member States, the Commission and other stakeholders. 

Stock  taking  of  existing  initiatives  at  national  and  European  level  in  this  field  is  necessary  for 
streamlining  the  use  of  Europe's  public  R&D  funds  through  enhanced  cooperation  and  coordination 
between national public R&D programmes. 

1.1 Definition 

Neurodegenerative diseases are a heterogeneous set of chronic illnesses characterised by accelerated 
neuronal  loss  that  leads  to  atrophy  of  the  affected  central  or  peripheral  nervous  system  structures1. 
They are major contributors to long-term disability, with Alzheimer's disease (and related dementias), 
and Parkinson's disease (and atypical Parkinsonism's) being the most prevalent. 
Alzheimer’s  disease  is  the  most  common  cause  of  dementia  in  the  EU  (about  70%  of  cases)2. 
Dementia is a decline in mental ability that usually progresses slowly, in which memory, thinking, and 
judgement  are  impaired,  and  personality  may  deteriorate.  It  usually  develops  slowly,  and  affects 
mainly people aged over 60. It is one of the most important causes of disability in the elderly. Other 
common  causes  of  dementia  are  the  successive  strokes  which  lead  to  multi-infarct  dementia  (about 
30%), Pick's disease, Binswanger's disease, and Lewy-Body dementia.  

Parkinson's  disease  is  a  slowly  progressive  neurologic  disease  caused  by  the  degeneration  of 
dopaminergic neurons in the basal ganglia. It is characterized by tremor at rest, slowing of voluntary 
movements, a gait with short accelerating steps, a fixed inexpressive face, peculiar posture and muscle 
weakness. 

Rarer  neurodegenerative  diseases  include  amyotrophic  lateral  sclerosis  and  other  motor  neuron 
diseases,  Huntington's  disease  and  other  degenerative  diseases  with  chorea,  ataxias,  prion  diseases, 
iron and copper disorders, and mitochondrial diseases.  

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Neurodegenerative diseases: neurobiology, pathogenesis, and therapeutics. M. Flint Beal, Anthony E. Lang, Albert 
C. Ludolph. Cambridge University Press, 2005. 
http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_information/reporting/docs/2006_dementiayearbook_en.pdf 

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2. EC-funded actions on neurodegenerative diseases, in particular 
Alzheimer's 
The European Commission is well aware of the importance of the social and health impact associated 
with  ND,  in  particular  Alzheimer's  and  other  dementias.  For  this  reason,  the  social,  medical  and 
research aspects of ND have been tackled via parallel actions in two major Community programmes: 
the  Framework  Programmes  for  Research  and  Technological  Development  and  the  Public  Health 
programmes.  

2.1 Research on neurodegenerative diseases in the 5th, 6th and 7th Framework Programmes for 
Research and Technological Development 
In the 5th Framework Programme (FP5, 1998–2002) a total of approximately € 40 million (13 projects) 
was  devoted  to  research  on  neurodegenerative  disease  supported  under  the  Key  Actions  "The  cell 
factory"  and  "Healthy  ageing"  within  the  "Quality  of  life  and  management  of  living  resources" 
Programme. 
In particular, FP5 supported the EUROPEAN ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE CONSORTIUM (EADC)3, a network 
of 50 European centres of excellence from 14 different countries (DE, UK, NL, IT, CH, SE, BE, ES, 
FI,  FR,  RO,  HE,  DK,  PT)  working  in  the  field  of  Alzheimer's  Disease.  EACD  provides  a  setting  in 
which  to  increase  the  basic  scientific  understanding  of  and  to  develop  ways  to  prevent,  slow,  or 
ameliorate the primary and secondary symptoms of Alzheimer's  disease. This is done by facilitating 
large  Europe-wide  research  studies.  EADC  enjoys  the  privilege  of  complete  independence  and 
autonomy  from  the  pharmaceutical  industry  whilst  maintaining  close  working  links  with  it.  Two 
additional  EU-funded  studies,  ICTUS4  and  DESCRIPA5  stemmed  from  this  project.  In  addition,  the 
programme  focussed  particularly  on  early  diagnosis  and  interventions6,  pathogenetic  markers  of  the 
disease and quality of care. 
Efforts in this area were significantly reinforced within the 6th Framework Programme7 (FP6, 2002–
2006), mostly under the thematic priority "Life Sciences, genomics and biotechnology for health". Out 
of an overall budget of approximately €256 million devoted to the area of brain research, more than 
€136  million  went  into  research  on  ND.  This  represented  a  three-fold  increase  in  this  area  when 
compared to the investment in the previous Framework Programme. 

The  28  collaborative  research  projects  supported  in  this  field  provide  a  comprehensive  translational 
approach to the study of these diseases, spanning from the identification of responsible genes, basic 
molecular and cellular disease mechanisms to the validation of new surrogate markers and therapeutic 
drug targets via clinical trials for specific neurodegenerative diseases.  

Around  €  22  million  were  invested  to  understand  basic  pathological  mechanisms  such  as 
neurodegeneration,  abnormal  protein  aggregation,  synaptic  depression,  and  memory  loss.  An 
additional  €  18  million  were  dedicated  to  the  role  and  mechanisms  of  neuroinflammation  in 
neurodegeneration. 

More  than  €  40  million  were  devoted  to  research  on  Alzheimer's  disease,  through  9  collaborative 
transnational projects. Several of these projects have a strong translational cut and will develop new 
diagnostic and therapeutic tools. For instance, ADIT8 (€ 7.5 million) aims at designing and testing of 
treatment  of  Alzheimer's  disease.  Another  project, 
small  molecule 

therapeutics 

the 

for 

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http://eadc.alzheimer-europe.org/introduction.html 
http://eadc.alzheimer-europe.org/ictus.html 
http://eadc.alzheimereurope.org/descripa.html;  

http://cordis.europa.eu/data/PROJ_FP5/ACTIONeqDndSESSIONeq112482005919ndDOCeq844ndTBLe

qEN_PROJ.htm 
http://ec.europa.eu/research/fp6/index_en.cfm?p=0 
http://www.aditproject.org/ 

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PROMEMORIA9  (€  10  million),  aims  at  validating  cell-adhesion  molecules  as  new  treatments  for 
impaired learning and memory processes, including Alzheimer's disease. 

Parkinson's  disease  research  received  €  13.5  million  in  FP6,  mostly  focussing  on  developing 
biomarkers for early diagnosis of the disease. GENEPARK10 is determining gene expression profiles 
specific  for  genetic  and  idiopathic  Parkinson's  disease  (PD)  patients  to  be  used  as  non-invasive 
diagnostic tests. In a complementary approach, the INDABIP11 project wants to identify biomarkers, 
in particular proteins, mRNA, miRNAs, differentially matured RNAs and methylated DNA, relevant 
for the early diagnostics of Parkinson’s disease. 

Good  support  was  also  provided  to  projects  on  rare  ND,  an  area  where  integrated  research  at  the 
European  level  brings  a  clear  added  value,  in  view  of  the  low  prevalence  and  broad  genetic 
heterogeneity of these disorders and the difficulty of collecting sufficient number of patients to initiate 
large therapeutic studies and characterising the genetic factors underlying these diseases. 5 projects for 
an  overall  value  over  €  20  million  were  supported  in  this  area.  A  representative  example  is 
EUROSCA12,  a  €  10  million  project  aiming  at  developing  a  treatment  for  patients  suffering  from 
spinocerebellar ataxias (SCA), and establishing an international standard on the clinical evaluation of 
these diseases. Other ND addressed included motor neuron diseases (€ 6 million), prion diseases (€ 6 
million) and retinal degeneration (€ 10 million). 

FP6  allowed  also  tackling  research  fragmentation  in  this  area,  through  both  the  Networks  of 
Excellence  (NoE)  and  ERA-NET  funding  schemes.  The  NoE  NeuroNE13  intends  to  overcome 
fragmentation  through  an  integrated  approach  to  functional  genomics  and  proteomics  as  well  as 
clinical  studies  on  Alzheimer's  disease,  Parkinson  disease,  amyotrophic  lateral  sclerosis  and 
Huntington disease, and aims at sharing tools and facilities. BrainNet Europe II14 is a network of 19 
brain tissue banks that collect high-quality human post-mortem brain tissue and foster research in the 
cellular and molecular basis of neurological and psychiatric diseases. 
The ERA-NET, NEURON15, focussed in the area of ND, including Alzheimer disease, with the aim of 
sharing  information,  identifying  needs  and  devising  joint  initiatives.  It  includes  15  funding  bodies 
from 11 Member States (AT, FI, FR, DE, IT, LU, PT, RO, ES, SE, UK) and 1 Associated State (IL). 
In January 2008 NEURON issued its first joint call for a bid of € 18.5 million. A second joint call was 
published in January 2009. 
The  European  Research  Area  in  Ageing  (ERA-AGE)16  ERA-NET,  which  comprises  12  national 
funding agencies, aims at promoting the development of a European strategy for research on ageing 
and, thereby at streamlining efforts in this field.  
Through  the  7th  Framework  Programme17  (FP7,  2007–2013)  the  European  Commission  has  further 
reinforced efforts in the area of ND, with the two-fold objective of ensuring continuity with previous 
initiatives while introducing new ones. Continuity is emphasized in collaborative research where two 
specific activities on "Research on the brain and related diseases" as well as "Human development and 
ageing"  are  proposed.  Within  the  brain  research  activity,  which  includes  the  area  of  ND,  particular 
emphasis  is  placed  on  translational  research,  for  bringing  knowledge  from  bench  to  bedside  and  for 
development of new drug targets, including epidemiological and clinical trials.  

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http://plab.ku.dk/promemoria/ 
http://www.genepark.org/index.php 
http://europabio.euproject.eu/index.php/kb_1/io_609/io.html 
http://www.eurosca.org/ 
http://neurone.nuxit.net/ 
www.brainnet-europe.org 
http://www.neuron-eranet.net/ 
http://era-age.group.shef.ac.uk/ 
http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/home_en.html 

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Overall, 24 transnational collaborative projects for an overall value of € 94 million have been devoted 
to research on ND as a result of the first two calls for proposals in the Health Programme. Of this, € 24 
million tackled specifically the field of Alzheimer's disease. They address, for instance, the biological 
basis of memory loss, the development of new tools for the delivery of large molecules to the brain, 
and look for new diagnostic tools and drug targets.  
The  project  MEMSTICK18  (€  3  million),  for  example,  is  a  spin-off  of  the  FP6  project 
PROMEMORIA, and will continue investigating the role of synaptic cell adhesion molecules (CAMs) 
in  memory  loss,  and  the  therapeutic  value  of  targeting  these  CAMs  to  restore  memory  function  and 
associated neurobiological mechanisms at the synaptic level. The € 3 million MEMOSAD project has 
similar aims but a different approach: it aims at defining the molecular mechanisms of amyloid beta- 
and  tau  protein-induced  synaptotoxicity  and  at  developing  disease-modifying  therapeutics  for  the 
prevention of memory loss in Alzheimer disease. 

Research on Parkinson's disease has been well supported to date in FP7, with more than € 25 million 
awarded to 7 projects. The NEuroStemCell19 consortium received € 11.6 million to foster successful 
clinical trials of stem cell therapy for Parkinson's (PD) and Huntington's (HD) disease. The goal is to 
compare  different  stem  cell  sources  with  respect  to  their  capacity  to  generate  mesencephalic 
dopaminergic and striatal GABAergic neurons suitable for neuronal cell replacement.  
Similarly,  the  MOLPARK20  project  aims  to  define  the  basic  cellular  and  molecular  mechanisms 
underlying  the  generation,  differentiation,  survival  and  connectivity  of  nigrostriatal  dopaminergic 
neurons and translate this knowledge into radically new therapeutic strategies for Parkinson's disease.  
Last,  but  not  least,  the  €  4  million  REPLACES21  project  will  use  cortical  striatal  plasticity  and  its 
alterations  in  experimental  Parkinson’s  disease  to  explore  basic  mechanisms  of  brain  plasticity  and 
repair and to translate the new generated knowledge into novel restorative therapeutic approaches. In 
particular,  REPLACES  address  the  potential  restorative  effects  of  either  novel  pharmacological 
treatments or neuronal transplants on the corticostriatal microcircuitry. 

FP7 provided continued support to projects on rare neurodegenerative disorders. As example, the € 12 
million  OptiStem22  project  is  to  develop  and  implement  efficacy  of  clinical  trials  with  adult  tissue 
stem cells for degenerative diseases of epithelia and skeletal muscle. The consortium will address not 
only  issues  related  to  basic  biology  of  stem  cells,  but  also  transplantation  related  issues,  such  as 
engraftment,  angiogenesis,  tissue  remodelling,  immune  response,  and  regulatory  and  ethical  issues 
related to these novel procedures.  

Furthermore, research on public health, including mental health, is included as a new area for health 
research. The activity entitled “Optimising the delivery of health care to European citizens” provides 
for  European  public  health  research  to  contribute  to  building  the  necessary  basis  both  for  informed 
policy  decisions  on  health  systems  and  for  more  effective  strategies  of  health  promotion,  disease 
prevention, diagnosis and therapy. 

To date, the 2008-2009 calls for proposals have addressed the impact of ageing resulting in projects 
that  will  carry  out  research  on  health  systems  and  long  term  care  of  the  elderly,  organisation  of 
dementia  care,  a  road  map  for  ageing  research,  ageing  cohorts,  and  health  outcome  measures  and 

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http://www.memstick.org/ 
http://www.neurostemcell.org/ 

http://cordis.europa.eu/fetch?CALLER=FP7_PROJ_EN&ACTION=D&DOC=426&CAT=PROJ&QUER

Y=011aa1a07f7c:7356:0502e0e6&RCN=90184 

http://cordis.europa.eu/fetch?CALLER=FP7_PROJ_EN&ACTION=D&DOC=1&CAT=PROJ&QUERY

=011f65da5e55:791f:0a24a957&RCN=88492 

http://cordis.europa.eu/search/index.cfm?fuseaction=proj.document&PJ_LANG=EN&PJ_RCN=1058331

8&pid=55&q=C7E41A2896B930F4ACFB6B666BB7A9C1&type=adv 

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population  ageing  for  an  overall  value  of  €  32  million.  As  an  example,  Courage  in  Europe  will 
enhance  the  scientific  study  of  ageing  by  developing  and  validating  a  tool  to  measure  health  and 
health-related outcomes for an ageing population that offers objective and evidence-based prevalence 
trends and that relates these to both quality of life and well-being outcomes. This will provide better 
measurement  instruments  and  methodologies  for  longitudinal  and  cross-population  comparative 
analyses essential for evidence based policy making.  

Another  project,  AHEAD  III,  has  been  specifically  designed  to  provide  evidence  of  the  effects  of 
degeneration  of  hearing  in  adults  and  particularly  in  the  elderly,  analyse  costs  associated  with  the 
implementation  of  integrated  large  scale  programmes  of  hearing  screening  and  intervention  in  the 
elderly,  provide  quality  standards  and  minimum  requirements  for  screening  methods  and  related 
diagnostic techniques and develop guidelines and recommendations on how to implement successful 
screening programmes to be tuned to the local, social, and economical conditions of a country. 

FP7 also proposes three new funding schemes which may offer additional possibilities for Alzheimer 
disease research: the European Research Council (ERC), the Joint Technology Initiative on Innovative 
Medicines (IMI) and the ERA-NET plus.  
The  first  call  for  proposals  of  IMI  will  support  15  projects23,  including  one  aiming  at  predicting 
cognitive properties of new drug candidates for ND in early clinical development. PHARMA-COG24 
is a € 5 million project bringing together European experts in translational medicine, drug discovery 
and  mathematical  modelling.  PHARMA-COG  wants  to  accelerate  the  validation  process  by 
conducting  parallel  experiments  in  animals  and  human  using  a  comprehensive  and  standardised 
battery  of  behavioural,  neurophysiological,  morphological/functional  imaging,  and  biochemical 
endpoints.  By  the  end  of  its  5-year  duration,  PHARMA-COG  will  have  a)  validated  the  tools 
necessary  to  streamline  Alzheimer's  disease  drug  discovery  and  accelerate  effective  medicine  to 
patients, b) set the standard for European drug discovery providing optimised and validated protocols 
c) provided the infrastructure to sustain world class drug discovery in Europe and d) disseminate the 
obtained results from health professionals to patients. 

2.2 Neurodegenerative diseases in the Public Health Programme 

The Work Plan for 2005 for the implementation of the programme of Community action in the field of 
public health (2003-2008), included for the first time a specific reference to the need of information 
and definition of indicators on the prevalence, treatments, risk factors, risk reduction strategies, cost of 
illness and social support as well as what constitutes a “healthy brain lifestyle” related to Alzheimer's 
disease and other dementias.  

In  October  2007  the  Commission  published  the  White  Paper  "Together  for  Health:  A  Strategic 
Approach  for  the  EU  2008-2013",  where  healthy  ageing  is  supported  by  taking  action  to  promote 
healthy lifestyles, reduce harmful behaviours, and to prevent and treat specific diseases, including ND. 
The development of geriatric medicine needs to be actively promoted, with a focus on individualised 
care, palliative care and better understanding of ND such as Alzheimer's. 
The  launch  of  the  "European  Pact  for  Mental  Health  and  Well-being"  on  13  June  200825  was  an 
opportunity  to  take  into  account  the  mental  health  dimension  of  neurodegenerative  diseases  and  be 
used as a framework for raising awareness activities and the exchange of good practices in addressing 
Alzheimer's challenges. 
The  planned  European  Commission  European  Health  Examination  Survey  (EHES)26  will  be  able  to 
provide, through its cognitive test module, strong predictive data on the validation of new criteria for 
early diagnosis of dementia and other neurodegenerative diseases. Here synergies will be sought with 

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http://imi.europa.eu/docs/imi-1st-call-selected-projects-abstracts_en.pdf 
http://imi.europa.eu/docs/imi-1st-call-selected-projects-abstracts_en.pdf 
http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_determinants/life_style/mental/docs/pact_en.pdf 
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the  7th  Framework  Programme  for  Research  (FP7)27  in  particular  the  Health  Theme  of  the  specific 
Programme "Cooperation".  

The  direct  support  to  Non  Governmental  Organisations  (NGOs)  acting  in  the  field  of  health  care  to 
neurodegenerative disease patients and their families, the organisation and the support to activities at 
home  and  in  residential  care,  as  well  as  the  primary  care  and  the  hospital  care,  are  under  the 
responsibility of the Member States.  

However,  the  Public  Health  Programme  allows  NGOs  to  apply  for  funds  in  several  areas.  Priority 
areas  in  dementia  are  those  related  to  risk  factors,  risk  reduction  strategies,  cost  of  illness,  social 
support  developing  a  healthy  brain  lifestyle,  e-Health  activities  and  supporting  the  exchange  of 
information  and  experiences  on  good  practice.  The  organisations  are  expected  to  reduce  the 
differences  in  quality  standards  through  increased  cooperation  and  by  exchanging  knowledge  and 
experience about the content and organisation of care.  

In  1997  and  1998,  the  European  Commission  approved  a  budgetary  line  for  the  implementation  of 
measures  to  help  persons  suffering  from  dementia  and  Alzheimer's  disease  and  for  those  assisting 
them  on  a  non  professional  basis.  Several  projects28  were  launched  in  areas  such  as:  diagnosis  and 
therapeutic,  drug  treatment  to  minimise  common  co-morbidities  associated  with  dementia  (e.g., 
depression), control distressing symptom, information and support to caregivers, ongoing support and 
counselling,  end  of  life  support  and  counselling  in  relation  to  palliative  care,  intermittent  assistance 
with Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) or Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs), and full 
support to all ADLs and IADLs 

A project on rare forms of dementia was part of the framework of the former EU Action Plan on Rare 
diseases29. The objective of the project was to build up a database of information about rare forms of 
dementia and to make this available to the general public by means of the existing Internet and Intranet 
portals  of  "Alzheimer  Europe".  A  new  classification  system  for  these  forms  of  dementia  has  been 
created.  

Currently, there are several ongoing actions: 

EURODEM: European Community Concerted Action on the Epidemiology and Prevention of Dementia 
group30; EURODEM pools data on the prevalence of moderate to severe dementia in several European 
countries to produce a set of prevalence rates for men and women in nine different age groups. 

EUROCODE:  to  develop  strategies  and  mechanisms  for  preventing,  exchanging  information  on  and 
responding  to  non-communicable  disease  threats,  including  gender  specific  health  threats  and  rare 
diseases. The project covers Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, dementia in Parkinson’s disease, 
dementia  with  Lewy  bodies,  mild  cognitive  impairment,  frontotemporal  dementia  and  treatment  of 
alcohol  related  dementia  at  all  severities.  This  project  will  produce  consensual  prevalence  rates, 
guidelines  on  diagnosis  and  treatment,  guidelines  on  non-pharmacological  interventions,  risk  factors 
and risk reduction and prevention strategies, an estimation of the socio-economic costs of Alzheimer’s 
disease, and an inventory of social support systems.  

The  Commission  services  will  continue  to  work  towards  reliable  prevalence  and  incidence  data 
according  to  age  and  based  on  the  EUROCODE  methodology.  In  particular,  the  Commission  is 
working on actions under the Health Programme on better prevalence data and on studies on cohorts 
of patients or on subjects at risk as part of a longitudinal follow-up necessary for the detection of risk 
factors, intervention projects on the same factors and validation of new criteria for early diagnosis. 

DEMENTIA IN EUROPE YEARBOOK. The 'Dementia in Europe Yearbook' it's an initiative of "Alzheimer 
Europe" with the support of the European Commission. It has been published for the first time in 2006 

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Decision No 1982/2006/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 18 December 2006 (OJ 
L412/1 30.12.2006) & Council decision No 2006/971/EC) of 19 December 2006 (OJ L54/30 22.2.2007) 
http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_projects/alzheimer_project_full_listing_en.htm 
http://ec.europa.eu/health/ph_projects/2002/rare_diseases/raredis_2002_03_en.htm 
http://www.pitt.edu/~super1/lecture/lec9341/021.htm 

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providing  European  overviews  of  the  prevalence  of  dementia,  the  reimbursement  systems  for  anti-
dementia drugs and the provision of home care, as well as a detailed description of these findings for 
31 European countries (27 Member States of the European Union, Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and 
Turkey). The 2007 release reveals the huge discrepancies that exist across Europe when it comes to the 
services that exist and the support provided by governments for people with dementia and their carers. 

THE  'DEMENTIA  CARER'S  SURVEY'.  This  survey,  which  involved  more  than  1,100  carers  from  five 
European countries, was conducted by an alliance of Alzheimer’s associations to investigate the state 
of dementia care, how carers cope with looking after someone with dementia, and the services made 
available to them. Overall, only 17% of carers considered that the level of care for the elderly in their 
country is good.  

COMMISSION  STUDY  ON  MORTALITY  DUE  TO  ALZHEIMER'S  DISEASE  AND  DEMENTIA.  DG  SANCO 
with  the  cooperation  of  Eurostat  is  doing  an  analysis  of  the  mortality  patterns  due  to  Alzheimer's 
disease  and  other  dementias  for  the  period  1996-2007  in  the  27  Member  States.  The  purpose  of  the 
study is to have better data based on a comparable register, the causes of death certification statistics, 
about deaths due to these diseases, but also to verify the level of underestimation of deaths due to AD 
related to practices of codification not underlying AD as the main cause of death. 

2.3 Neurodegenerative diseases in the ICT addressing Societal Challenges Programme 
In addition, the "Action Plan for Ageing Well in the Information Society"31 includes specific measures 
relevant  for  neurodegenerative  diseases.  These  include  the  "Ambient  Assisted  Living  Joint 
Programme"32  using  Art.  169,  aimed  at  developing  Information  and  Communications  (ICT)-based 
solutions  in  support  of  an  ageing  population.  This  initiative  is  endowed  with  €  300  million  for  the 
period  2007-2013  and  involves  20  Member  States  and  3  Associated  States.  Issues  tackled  include 
independent  living,  support  for  informal  carers,  safety  and  security,  cognitive  training  and  training 
interaction.  

In the context of the Competitiveness and Innovation Programme, a specific call for proposals of the 
ICT  Policy  Support  Programme  for  large  projects  has  addressed  ICT  solutions  in  support  of  elderly 
people  with  cognitive  problems  was  launched.  As  an  outcome  the  projects  Long  Lasting  Memories, 
ISISEMD33 and SOCIABLE are being supported. 

funded, 

funding 

international 

initiatives  on 

3.  Non-EC 
Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases 
3.1 The International Consortium for Brain Mapping (ICBM)  
ICBM34  was  constituted  in  1993  thanks  to  the  support  of  the  National  Institute  of  Mental  Health 
(USA).  The  consortium  consists  of  five  core  research  sites,  UCLA,  Montreal  Neurologic  Institute, 
University of Texas at San Antonio, and the Institute of Medicine, Juelich/Heinrich Heine University - 
Germany,  C.  &  O.  Vogt  Institute  of  Brain  Research  –  Duesseldorf  -  Germany.  In  addition,  data 
acquisition  sites  in  Asia  and  Europe  contribute  to  this  international  consortium.  Other  European 
partners are FIL, London, UK; Finnish Twin Registry, Helsinki, Finland; Univ. Caen, Caen, France; 
Univ. Med Centre Utrecht, Amsterdam, Netherlands. 

The  primary  goal  of  the  ICBM  project  is  to  build  and  expand  the  tools  available  to  establish  a 
reference  system  for  structural  and  functional  anatomy  of  the  human  brain  at  both  macroscopic  (in 
vivo)  and  microscopic  (post  mortem)  levels.  The  project  has  created  neuroinformatics  tools  for  data 
sharing that allow laboratories worldwide to contribute data to a constantly evolving brain atlas.  

3.2 INTERDEM – Early detection and timely intervention in dementia 

31 
32 
33 
34 

Communication on "Ageing Well in the Information Society", COM/2007/0332 final (14.06.07) 
http://www.aal-europe.eu/ 
http://www.isisemd.eu/ 
http://www.loni.ucla.edu/ICBM/ 

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The  purpose  of  this  network  is  to  promote,  develop  and  carry  out  research  on  early  detection  and 
psychosocial intervention in dementia, to build capacity and to develop a better understanding of the 
experience of people with dementia and their families, throughout Europe.  
INTERDEM35  is  a  network  of  researchers,  practitioners,  people  with  dementia  and  their  carers  who 
have  a  particular  focus  on  early  and  timely  support,  psychosocial  intervention  and  disability 
prevention  in  dementia,  at  the  primary  /  community  -  specialist  care  interface.  Most  scientists  are 
gerontological  research-practitioners  who  focus  on  psychosocial  (as  opposed  to  neurobiological) 
approaches to the early recognition and intervention in dementia, throughout Europe. The network is 
dedicated to person-centred values and working together with people with dementia and their family 
carers, by placing them at the centre of research and practice and encouraging their active participation 

Partners  include  the  United  Kingdom,  Spain,  The  Netherlands,  Belgium,  France,  Germany,  Ireland, 
Italy,  Portugal,  Switzerland,  Greece,  Poland,  Sweden,  Austria,  Denmark,  Finland,  China  (plus  Hong 
Kong).  Each  country  has  a  named  co-ordinator  with  some  countries  (such  as  the  UK,  Spain,  The 
Netherlands  and  Italy),  having  a  larger  membership  group  than  others.  The  network  has  been 
sponsored at national and international level, including the European Commission. 

3.3  E-ADNI  -  The  European  Alzheimer’s  disease  Neuroimaging  Initiative:  a  pilot  study  of  the 
European Alzheimer’s Disease Consortium  

The  largest  project  on  Alzheimer’s  disease  currently  under  way worldwide  is  the  US-based  ADNI  - 
Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative36, co-sponsored by the NIH ($ 40 Million) and Industry 
($ 20 Million). The Alzheimer’s disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) aims to collect imaging and 
biomarker  data  to  track  the  progression  of  the  disease,  and  to  validate  these  markers  for  use  in  AD 
treatment trials testing the efficacy of disease-modifying drugs.  
In  Europe,  two  related  projects  are  currently  under  way.  The  Pilot  European  ADNI  (E-ADNI37) 
supported by the US-based Alzheimer's Association (€ 230,000) aims at testing the feasibility of the 
ADNI  markers  in  6  European  centres.  The  ENIR  –  Foresight  Study  for  the  Development  of  a 
European NeuroImage Repository38 is supported by the European Commission (€ 150,000) and aims 
to design the infrastructure for centralized image collection.  

The overall goal of the Pilot E-ADNI project is to demonstrate that a multicentre multinational study 
in  Europe,  similar  to  ADNI,  is  feasible.  In  particular  it  should  demonstrate  that  the  core  ADNI 
methodology,  i.e.  standardized  and  centralized  collection  of  MR  imaging,  clinical  data,  blood,  and 
CSF samples can be adopted by European Centres of the European Alzheimer's Disease Consortium 
(EADC). Data will be collected from six investigational sites and 9 subjects will be involved to collect 
data at a single time point. Once collected by the participating centres, data and specimens will be sent 
to central repositories. 

In Europe, 50 clinical and research centres (the European Alzheimer’s Disease Consortium – EADC) 
are  currently  carrying  out  Europe  wide  clinical  trials  (Sanofi’s  Xaliproden  and  Neurochem’s 
Alzhemed) which collect clinical, imaging, and biological information in a standardized fashion while 
harmonization  and  centralized  collection  are  cared  for  by  external  agencies.  Further  evidence  of 
coordinated multisite Alzheimer's disease studies in Europe include the German CompetenzNetwork, 
the  Swedish  network  on  Alzheimer’s  disease  (BrainPower),  and  a  multicentre  FDG  PET  imaging 
study funded by the EC39. 

The  Industry  board  funding  the  US-ADNI  has  expressed  interest  into  a  public-private  partnership 
similar to the US-ADNI to fund an extension of the two ongoing European projects into a full scale 
European ADNI. 

35 
36 
37 
38 
39 

http://interdem.alzheimer-europe.org/ 
http://www.adni-info.org 
http://www.centroalzheimer.it/E-ADNI_project.htm 
http://www.enir.eu 
Herholz et al., Neuroimage 2002;17:302-16 

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This pilot study is aimed to act as a springboard to prepare a more extensive longitudinal study in the 
EU as a companion or to complement the US-ADNI.  

The  centres  –  mostly  from  the  EADC  –  taking  part  in  the  project  have  been  selected  based  on 
scientific expertise, demonstrated activity within the consortium, and geographic representativeness.  

4. Public funding going to fighting Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative diseases 
in individual Member States 

This document is by no means exhaustive but simply aims at providing an overview of data 
publicly available. Since it is recommended that a more detailed stocktaking be undertaken, it 
would  be  an  important  task  for  coordination  and  exchange  of  information  among  Member 
States,  as  they  are  the  ones  to  have  access  to  primary  information  on  funding  priorities, 
actions and infrastructures funded at national level. 

4.1 Overview of public spending on neurodegenerative diseases for the year 2005 

In 2006, the Karolinska Institute and the Stockholm School of Economics, supported by the European 
Commission, performed a review of resources allocation to brain research throughout Europe40. The 
study  results  showed  that  the  total  spending  on  brain  research  in  Europe  in  2005  amounted  to 
approximately  €  4.1  billion,  of  which  €  855  million  came  from  the  public  sector  (21%  of  total 
funding). The European Commission contributed € 94 million to this endeavour. Government funding 
constituted 78% of total public funding, while 22% came from charitable foundations. The European 
pharmaceutical industry spent approximately € 3.3 billion on brain research per year (range: € 2.7–3.9 
billion), corresponding to 79% of the total funding for brain research in Europe. In contrast, in the US, 
about €6.1 billion came from public sources (93.5% government and 6.5% charities) and € 8.4 billion 
from industry funding (58% of the total funding).  

The  EU-15  countries  accounted  for  91%  of  total  spending.  Public  funding  for  brain  research  varied 
between European countries, ranging from € 60 000 in Malta to € 312 million in the UK. Ireland had 
the highest level of public spending per inhabitant (€ 6.73), followed by the UK (€ 5.2) and Hungary 
(€  2.7).  The  lowest  level  was  found  in  Latvia  (€  0.14  per  inhabitant).  Hungary,  the  Netherlands, 
Norway,  Sweden  and  France  also  had  per  capita  spending  above  the  European  average,  which  was 
estimated at € 1.2.  

The funding body which most contributed among government agencies, is the group of UK Research 
Councils (Medical Research Council, 62%; Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, 
26%;  Engineering  and  Physical  Sciences  Research Council,  9.5%;  Economic  and  Social  Research 
Council, 2.5 %.), which accounted for € 191 million (41.4% of the total reported government funding). 
Other substantial contributions were provided by the German Forschungsgemeinschaft (€ 39 million), 
the Bundesministerium für Bildung und Forschung (€ 25 million), the Hungarian National Office for 
Research and Technology (€ 28 million) and the Italian Ministry of Health (€ 25 million). The average 
reported  spending  by  government agencies  was  €  5.7  million  (excluding  UK  Research  Councils), 
and 40% of the government agencies reported a research spending below € 1 million. 

Basic research not related to specific disorders accounted for 47% of total spending, or € 598 million. 
53% of the total research spending could be attributed to specific brain disorders. In particular, € 57 
million  went  to  for  dementia  and  Alzheimer's  disease,  €  31  million  to  Parkinson's  disease  and  €  17 
million to multiple sclerosis.  

In spite of substantial efforts at national and European level, the picture of support to ND research in 
Europe  appears  complex.  This  preliminary  analysis  shows  the  large  variety  of  current  financing 
systems, the diversity of research policies and organizational structures across Member States and the 
wide  variation  in  the  respective  spending  on  neurodegenerative  diseases  research  by  different 
organisations and countries.  

40 

P. Sobocki et al (2006); Resource allocation to brain research in Europe – a full report; Eur. J. Neurosci 24(10): 1-
24  

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Coordination of national research efforts in this field at European level is far from being achieved. Key 
elements accountable for this situation include: 

- 
The  barriers  between  disciplines  and  fields  of  research,  and  the  compartmentalisation  of 
research  activities.  The  knowledge  needed  to  advance  our  understanding  of  the  problem  and  its 
potential solutions, spans not only across broad and diverse range of disciplines and stakeholders, but 
across the different European countries. 

- 
A  major  weakness  is  the  missing  linkages  between  basic,  clinical  and  public  health  -  social 
research, which leads to a limited integration of the existing or acquired basic knowledge into current 
clinical practice and care organisation and delivery. 

- 
The implementation of these activities, mainly in a national context, reinforcing fragmentation 
and limiting the sharing of current best practices throughout the EU as regards to diagnosis, treatment 
and prevention.  

Thus, despite the fact that a high volume of financial resources is used, and a substantial portfolio of 
initiatives  is  carried  out  by  individual  Member  States,  current  efforts  are  not  benefiting  from  the 
advantages that a coherent and coordinated approach would bring about. 

Approaches at a macro level are the way to bridge the gaps in our understanding and actions. A few 
examples include the identification of best practice in early diagnosis of AD and related disorders as 
well as the use of existing interventions, which could be best achieved by the sharing of knowledge 
and  efforts.  Coordinated databases  with  relevant  genomic  information,  banks of  samples  and  tissues 
will be of course essential to this aim. 

The  development  and  validation  of  new  therapies  as  well  as  the  assessment  of  the  effectiveness  of 
current ones will require conducting large-scale clinical studies whose natural environment would be 
trans-country  collaboration,  in  view  of  the  very  large  number  of  patients  of  (more  or  less)  different 
genetic background needed to be involved if meaningful results are to be expected. 

Similarly,  the  launching  and  integration  of  large-scale  population  cohorts,  databases  and  registries 
would  be  necessary  in  order  to  fully  understand  the  role  and  contribution  of  genetics,  nutrition, 
behaviour  and  other  risk  factors  in  the  development  of  these  diseases,  and  the  place  for  prevention 
strategies. Fully understanding and exploiting the European diversity related to these risk factors could 
provide a competitive advantage with respect to a better understanding of the disease. 

Standardization  of  diagnostic  criteria  and  assessment  tools  throughout  Member  States  would  be 
essential if best practices and optimal clinical care are to be delivered across Europe. 

By  allowing  the  pooling  of  a  critical  mass  of  skills,  knowledge  and  financial  resources  and  by 
facilitating interdisciplinarity, a joint action would accelerate the provision of solutions to the medical 
and social challenges posed by these diseases. 

A  dedicated  Joint  Programming  action  in this  politically  and  socially highly challenging  area  would 
capitalize on the existing structures and programmes, while avoiding unnecessary duplication of work, 
efforts  and  eventually  resources,  for  the  benefit  of  all  European  citizens.  It  would  also  help  EU  to 
develop  a  coherent  approach  in  international  cooperation  on  this  topic  with  third  countries  of 
comparable  demographic  profile  and  facing  the  same  issues,  building  on  initiatives  such  as  the 
European Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative41 (pilot-ADNI) supported by the US National 
Institutes of Health.  

41 

http://www.adni-info.org/index.php?option=com_frontpage&Itemid=1 

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ANNEX I 

NATIONAL FUNDING INITIATIVES  

AUSTRIA 
The  Federal  Ministry  for  Science  and  Research42  (BMWF)  look  at  the  main  research  aim  at  a 
sustainable  increase  of  the  R&D-level  in  Austria.  Strengthening  basic  research  will  on  the  long  run 
foster  economic  growth  and  prosperity.  Moreover,  research  generally  contributes  to  the  cultural 
development of Austria's society, and the progress of science is considered an essential value. 
The  BMWF  shares  responsibility  for  the  Austrian  Science  Fund43  (FWF)  with  the  Ministry  of 
Transport,  Innovation  and  Technology,  and  it  funds  a  number  of  thematic  and  structural  R&D 
programmes as well as measures developing human resources; it provides institutional funding for the 
Austrian Academy of Sciences and some non-university research institutions. The largest share of its 
budget are allocated to Austrian public universities via the General University Fund (GUF)  

The  largest  share  of  BMWF's  budget  goes  to  the  public  universities,  polytechnical  colleges,  to  the 
Austrian  Academy  of  Sciences  and  some  other  smaller  institutions  as  well  as  to  international 
organizations  (e.g.  CERN,  ESO)  as  institutional  block-funding.  Moreover,  competitive  funding  is 
allocated through a number of thematic research programmes, some of which are managed by external 
agencies,  e.g.  the  Austrian  Science  Fund  (FWF)  and  the  Austrian  Research  Promotion  Agency 
(FFG).Total annual budget in national currency €3,515.4m  

FWF Austrian Science Fund 

The  Austrian  Science  Fund  (FWF)  is  Austria's  central  funding  organization  for  basic  research.  The 
purpose of the FWF is to support the ongoing development of Austrian science and basic research at a 
high international level. Overall, in 2008, the FWF granted € 164.4 million through different granting 
schemes. Of  those, € 102.2 million were for the natural sciences (incl. Biology, 62.2 %) and € 18.5 
million for medicine (11.3 %).  

Funding  schemes  include  support  for:  Stand-alone  Projects  –mostly  basic  research  –  for  an  overall 
value of € 89.9 million in 2008 (357 projects); Special Research Programs (SFB) designed to promote 
the creation of research networks in specific areas of research or at an individual university. In 2008, 
the  FWF  approved  grants  for  two  Special  Research  Programs  with  a  total  of  23  sub-projects.  The 
overall volume of funding approved came to approximately € 11 million €. 

The FWF also supports National Research Networks (NFN) aimed at developing nationwide research 
networks for collaborative multidisciplinary work on larger research projects in the medium term. In 
2008,  the  FWF  approved  grants  for  two  NFN  and  renewed  three  other  ones.  The  overall  volume  of 
funding came to approximately 12 million €. 

The FWF is also supporting International Programmes. In 2008, the FWF approved funding for a total 
of  27  projects,  12  of  them  in  six  ERA-Net  calls,  including  NEURON.  In  2008,  the  FWF  also 
substantially  expanded  its  activities  in  the  field  of  bilateral  research  cooperation  with  Germany, 
Switzerland, Russia and China. The latter was focused in the areas of biology and medicine. 

Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG)  

This is the national funding institution for applied industrial research in Austria. It funds research and 
innovation  via  General  Programmes,  EU  Preparatory  Funding  Programmes,  Structural  Programmes, 
and Thematic Programmes.  

Vienna Biocenter Campus  

42 
43 

http://www.bmwf.gv.at/submenue/english/ 
http://www.fwf.ac.at/en/index.asp 

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The  Research  Institute  of  Molecular  Pathology  (IMP)44  in  Vienna  is  a  basic  biomedical  centre 
sponsored largely by the pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim, and located in the Campus 
Vienna  Biocenter  (VBC).  Their  research  spans  a  broad  range  of  topics,  including  neurobiology, 
computational  and  structural  biology,  cell  and  developmental  biology,  epigenetics,  immunology  and 
disease mechanisms.  
The Institute of Molecular Biotechnology (IMBA)45 of the Austrian Academy of Sciences, sitting also 
in  the  Campus,  is  a  basic  research  institute within  the  fields  of  molecular  biology  and  biomedicine. 
IMBA’s  vision  is  to  understand  the  fundamental  molecular  processes  and  their  contribution  to 
disease. Targeted areas of application include major disease areas such as neurodegenerative diseases 
and cancer.  

The Gregor Mendel Institute, as well the spin-off Intercell or AFFiRiS, founded in 2003 and currently 
in the process of bringing a vaccine against Alzheimer’s to market, sit also in the campus. 

BELGIUM 

Flanders Interuniversity Institute of Biotechnology 
The  Flanders  Institute  for  Biotechnology46  (VIB)  is  a  research  institute  whose  main  objective  is 
gathering innovative basic knowledge on the normal and abnormal or pathological processes occurring 
in  a  cell,  an  organ  and  an  organism  (humans,  plants,  micro  organisms),  using  gene  technological 
research. One of the key areas covered is neurobiology and Alzheimer's disease. 

The  VIB  researchers  work  in  research  departments  of  four  Flemish  universities: Ghent  University, 
K.U.Leuven, the University of Antwerp and the Vrije Universiteit Brussel.  

The  Department  of  Molecular  and  Developments  Genetics  concentrate  on  genetic  diseases  that 
manifest themselves as neuronal disease and cancer. This includes the areas of neuronal cell biology 
and cell transfer; neurogenetics; molecular neurobiology and neuronal communication.  
The  Department  of  Molecular  Genetics47  at  the  University  of  Antwerp  focuses  is  specialized  in  the 
genetic  analysis  of  complex  neurological  and  neuropsychiatric  diseases.  Areas  covered  include  in 
particular  the  genetics,  genomics  and  neuropathology  of  the  Alzheimer’s  and  Parkinson’s  disease, 
attempting to find molecular mechanisms of protein aggregation in dementia. 

Institute Borne-Bunge 
The  Institute  Born-Bunge48  is  a  research  group  affiliated  with  the  University  of  Antwerp  -  UA 
(Belgium). The institute is devoted to the study of Alzheimer's disease and related conditions such as 
Parkinson's disease, as well as other brain disorders. 

The IBB focuses at a better integration and correlation of fundamental, clinical and neuropathological 
data  concerning  neurological  conditions  employing  molecular  genetics,  biochemistry,  experimental 
analyses of behavioral alterations and computational neurosciences. 

The IBB Biobank is a mutual initiative of the research units of the IBB department Neurology that is 
based upon the original brain bank. 

Belgian Foundation for Alzheimer Research 
The  Belgian  Foundation  for  Alzheimer  research49,  a  non  profit  organization,  is  devoted  to  support 
research in this field in Belgium. In the last 10 years it has supported 38 projects for an overall value 
of € 2,5 million. Awards range from € 40.000 to € 80.000 for a 2 years period.  

44 
45 
46 
47

48 

EN 

http://www.imp.ac.at/about-the-imp/ 
http://www.imba.oeaw.ac.at/ 
http://www.vib.be/VIB/EN/VIB+at+a+glance/ 

http://www.vib.be/Research/EN/Research+Departments/Department+of+Molecular+Genetics/Christine+

Van+Broeckhoven/ 
http://www.bornbunge.be/ 

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Free University of Brussels 
The  laboratory  of  general  histology,  neuroanatomy  and  neuropathology50  at  the  Free  University  of 
Brussels (ULB) is devoted to research on Alzheimer's disease and LSA, in particular as regards their 
pathogenetic mechanisms using cellular and animal models.  

Catholic University of Leuven 
The  laboratory  of  Experimental  Pharmacology51  at  UCL  devotes  efforts  to  the  study  of  the 
mechanisms underlying the formation and deposition of amyloid fibers in Alzheimer's disease as well 
as to investigate the catabolism of amyloid precursors.  

University of Liege 
The CNCM52, Centre for Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology, gathers 8 research units devoted to the 
study of the development and function of the central and peripheral nervous system in physiological 
and  pathological  conditions.  The  research  areas  addressed  amongst  others  the  neurobiology  of 
development, cellular and tissue biology and brain repair. 

In  addition,  as  part  of  its  2007  call  for  proposals,  the  Department  for  Research  and  Scientific 
Cooperation of the Wallon Region has awarded € 5 million (48 months) to the project NEUROCOM. 
This public-private collaboration between the Centre for Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience of the 
University of Liege and UCB PHARMA is aimed at developing new therapies for neurodegenerative 
disorders and epilepsy.  

Programme of Excellence Marshall 

A joint collaboration between the Catholic University of Leuven (UCL) and the Wallon Region, the 
Plan Marsall has recently launched the DIANE programme, focused on inflammatory mechanisms in 
neurological  diseases,  particularly  tackling  Alzheimer's  disease  and  related  disorders.  The  overall 
funding of this initiative is of € 25 million over 5 years, cost to be equally shared by both funders.  

Main partners of this initiative include the UCL-FARL Laboratory of Experimental Pharmacology, the 
Unit of Neurochemistry53 of UCL and the Laboratory of Physiological Chemistry54 at UCL – BCHM. 

BULGARIA 

University of Sofia 
The  Department  of  Neurology55  at  Sofia  University  performs  research 
the  field  of 
neurodegenerative  disorders.  Main  interests  include  Alzheimer's  disease  genotyping  and  therapeutic 
strategies and functional imaging of neurodegenerative disorders. 

in 

Foundation Compassion Bulgaria 
The Foundation56 is aimed at improving the quality of life for people suffering from Alzheimer and 
dementia  in  Bulgaria,  by  changing  the  current  attitude  and  practices  towards  them  and  providing 
access to treatments and social help 

CZECK REPUBLIC 

Czech Science Foundation – GACR (Grantová agentura České republiky)  

49 
50 
51 
52 
53 
54 
55 
56 

http://www.tousconcernes.be/fr/fondation.cfm 
http://www.ulb.ac.be/rech/inventaire/unites/ULB598.html 
http://www.farl.ucl.ac.be/introfr.html 
http://www.cncm.ulg.ac.be/en/home 
http://www.md.uclouvain.be/ 
http://www.md.uclouvain.be/ 
http://www.kn.medfac-sofia.eu/ep_traykov_eng.htm 
http://www.alzheimerbulgaria.org/ 

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The  Czech  Science  Foundation  (GACR)57,  established  in  1993,  promotes  progress  over  the  whole 
range of basic research in the Czech Republic. In the period of 2003-2005 two projects were supported 
for a total amount of € 1 199 793. 
The  Czech  Alzheimer  Society58,  established  in  1996,  provides  consultancy  help  and  works  in 
cooperation with clinical centres to ameliorate the life of affected patients  

The Institute of Experimental Medicine (ASCR)  
ENI-PRAGUE59 is located at the Institute of Experimental Medicine (IEM), Academy of Sciences of 
the  Czech  Republic  (ASCR)  and  belongs  to  the  network  of  European  neurosciences  Institutes. The 
groups have developed particular expertise in magnetic resonance imaging, the use of stem cells and 
biopolymer  hydro  gels  in  the  treatment  of  nervous  tissue  injury  and  degeneration,  the  real-time 
iontophoretic method of diffusion analysis, pre- and postsynaptic patch-clamp recordings of receptor 
activity, antibody development, and yeast two-hybrid systems.  

The Institute also coordinates the Marie Curie Training Network "Axonal regeneration, plasticity and 
stem cells" (AXREGEN), aimed at understanding central brain damage and its potential mechanisms 
of repair, a key issue for neurodegenerative disorders. 

CYPRUS 

The Cyprus Institute of Neurology and Genetics 
The  Cyprus  Institute  of  Neurology  and  Genetics60  is  a  non-profit  making  institution.  It  provides 
specialized  services  and  research  in  neurology,  genetics,  DNA  forensics,  molecular  biology, 
histopathology  and  virology.  Services  and  research  aim  towards  early  detection  and  prevention  of 
disease, the provision of high quality medical services and improvement of the quality of life of the 
community. The Institute also provides for research and educational programmes on neurological and 
genetic conditions and all other aspects of molecular biology and genetics.  

Areas  addressed  include  neurological  and  genetic  conditions  such  as  muscular  dystrophy,  multiple 
sclerosis, epilepsy, chromosomal abnormalities and all other aspects of molecular biology and genetics 
such  as  thalasaemia,  molecular  virology,  mental  retardation,  cardiovascular  disease,  stroke,  cystic 
fibrosis and neurogenetics.  

The neuroscience laboratory has been established in 2003 with the mission to develop internationally 
competitive basic and translational research focusing on disease models for neurological disorders in 
order to identify new therapeutic possibilities.  

DENMARK 

NeuroCampus Aarhus 
NeuroCampus  Aarhus61  (NCA)  is  a  crosscutting  research  cluster  within  neuroscience  and 
cognition  at  the  University  of  Aarhus  (AU),  supported  by  the  Lundbeck  Foundation,  The 
Danish  National  Research  Foundation,  Aarhus  University  Hospitals,  the  Danish  Ministry  of 
Science, Technology and Innovation, and numerous industrial partners.  

NeuroCampus  Aarhus  strives  to  understand  normal  brain  function  and  its  changes  in 
neurological  and  psychiatric  diseases.  NCA  comprise  basic  sciences  ranging  from 
neurogenetics,  molecular  and  cellular  neurobiology  to  clinical  neuroscience,  rehabilitation 
research  and  cognitive  neuroscience.  NeuroCampus  research  has  strong  translational 
traditions, being partly embedded in the Aarhus University Hospital neurological hospital. 

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The CND Disease Modelling Group62 focuses its efforts in the neurodegenerative process in 
synucleinopathies with a special focus in Parkinson’s disease. The Neurodegenerative Disease 
Laboratory63 (NDL) is interested in the processes that cause brain proteins to aggregate and 
thus  partake  in  the  development  of  late  onset  neurodegenerative  diseases  like  Alzheimer’s 
disease and Parkinson’s disease. NDL is part of the Danish Innovation Consortium CureND, 
the  Nordic  Centre  of  Excellence  in  Molecular  Neurodegeneration  and  the  EU  Network  for 
Initial  Training  NEURASYNC  and  well  as  collaborating  internationally  on  more  Michael  J 
Fox funded projects. 

NeuroCampus includes the Centre of Functionally Integrative Neuroscience (CFIN), founded 
in 2001 as a Danish National Research Foundation Centre of Excellence within neuroscience. 
CFIN  applies  state  of  art  imaging  technologies  to  the  study  of  neurodegenerative  and 
psychiatric diseases. 

Cure Neurodegeneration Denmark 
Established in 2006, CureND64 is a new public-private sector research consortium comprising Aalborg 
University  and  Wyeth  Research,  a  division  of  USA's  Wyeth  Pharmaceuticals,  whose  objectives  are 
finding cures for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's disease. The project has a budget of 
USD  7.5  million,  of  which  USD  2.3  million  comes  from  public  sector  grants  and  USD  5.3  million 
from Wyeth.  

CureND  research  and  company  partners  are  the  Department  of  Biotechnology,  Chemistry  and 
Environmental Engineering at Aalborg University, the Department of Health Science and Technology 
at  Aalborg  University,  the  Institute  of  Medical  Biochemistry  at  the  University  of  Aarhus,  the 
Department  of  Molecular  Biology  at  the  University  of  Aarhus,  the  Parkinson's  Disease  Clinic  at 
Aarhus University Hospital, Wyeth Research, Bioneer A/S and NemoMed A/S.  

Main areas of research include proteomics-based identification of key features of early and late stage 
Parkinson’s  disease,  development  and  characterization  of  suitable  cell-based  models  of  Parkinson’s 
disease  and  brain-image  analysis  of  Parkinson’s  disease  patients  to  complement  proteomics 
approaches.  

University of Copenhagen and Copenhagen Brain Research Centre 
The  Copenhagen  Brain  Research  Centre65  is  established  as  a  platform  for  interdisciplinary 
collaboration  in  brain  research  with  a  high  international  impact.  Its  main  objective  is  to  perform 
research  related  to  brain  function  in  diseased,  injured  and  normal  states  and  to  serve  as  a  national 
centre for interdisciplinary brain research. 

Partners include the Department of Medical Chemistry at the University of Pharmaceutical Sciences; 
H. Lundbeck A/S; the Danish Research Centre for Magnetic Resonance; the Hvidovre Hospital; The 
PET  and  Cyclotron  Unit  at  Rigshospitalet,  Copenhagen  University  Hospital;  the  Informatics  and 
Mathematical  Modelling  Department  at  the  Technical  University  of  Denmark;  the  Neurobiology 
Research  Unit  of  Rigshospitalet  and  the  Department  of  Psychology,  Faculty  of  Humanities  at 
University of Copenhagen.  
The Department of Neurosciences and Pharmacology66 at the University of Copenhagen, focuses on 
research spanning from molecular pharmacology and cellular studies of nervous tissues to studies of 
the advanced functions and diseases of the nervous system.  

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http://www.neurocampus.au.dk/menu50-en 
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It  also  includes  the  Neuroscience  Centre  at  Rigshospitalet.  This  is  composed  of  the  Departments  of 
Neuroanesthesiology, Neurology, Neurosurgery, Neurophysiology and Clinic for Spinal Cord Injuries. 
One of the main areas of focus of the Department of the Department of Neurology is dementias and 
cognitive disorders including patient databases. The Neurobiology Research Unit at Rigshospitalet,67 
addresses research areas such as the neuroimaging of brain disorders and the role of neurotransmission 
in the development of Alzheimer's and depression.  

National Centre for Dementia Research and Education 
The  National  Centre  for  Dementia  an  Education68  was  established  in  2007,  co-financed  by  the 
Ministry  of  Health  and  the  "Helsefonden".  It  will  run  from  2007  to  2011  with  an  overall  financial 
support  of  €  2,3  million.  It  includes  the  Memory  Disorders  Clinic,  the  Research  and  Development 
programme and the education and training programme.  

Objective of the centre is to coordinate and strengthen dementia research in health care and treatment. 
Activities  of  the  centre  include  amongst  other  taking  part  in  the  Danish  Alzheimer  Intervention 
Study69 (DAISY) is a research program, which has the overall aim to improve the early social support 
to  patients  with  dementia  and  their  caregivers.  Collaborators  included  the  Institute  for  Health  Care 
Research, the University of Southern Denmark, Odense, the Institute for Public Health, University of 
Copenhagen and the Alzheimer Association. 

Lundbeck International Neuroscience Foundation  
The  Lundbeck  International  Neuroscience  Foundation70  and  the  Lundbeck  Institute  were  established 
by Lundbeck A/S in 1997. The aim of this institution is to contribute through educational activities to 
improve  the  quality  of  life  for  patients  suffering  from  neurological  and  psychiatric  diseases.  The 
Lundbeck Foundation made donations of DKK 281 million in 2007. 

ESTONIA 

Estonian Science Foundation Grants 

The  Estonian  Science  Foundation  (ETF),  established  by  the  Estonian  Government,  is  aimed  at 
supporting the most promising research initiatives in all fields of basic and applied research. The ETF 
uses  state  budget  appropriations  to  award  peer-reviewed  research  grants  to  individuals  and  research 
groups  on  a  competitive  basis.  Several  projects  are  been  supported  in  the  area  of  neurodegenerative 
diseases,  whose  details  can  be  found  at  the  Estonian  Research  Portal71.  The  areas  tackled  include 
Alzheimer's  amyloid  beta  peptides,  in  vitro  tests  fore  screening,  neurotoxic  mechanisms  in 
neurodegeneration. 

Centre of Molecular and Clinical Medicine 
The Centre of Molecular and Clinical Medicine at Tartu University72 was established in 2001 to raise 
the strengths of Estonian medical research and to concentrate the skills and funds in a selected cutting-
edge areas of medical research, neuroscience in particular. The Centre brings together ten of the best 
preclinical and clinical research groups from the University of Tartu and is considered as a centre of 
excellence within the FP7 REGPOT project: "Advancing scientific performance and regional potential 
of Estonian biomedical research, 2008–2011". 

Main  research  areas  of  investment  include:  the  genetic,  biochemical,  and  physiological  factors 
contributing  to  mental  and  behavioural  disorders  (role  of  neuropeptides  in  behavioural  and  mental 
disorders, eating disorders, genomics of behaviour and mental disorders); the mechanisms responsible 
for  neurodegeneration  (brain  bioenergetics,  oxidative  stress,  neuroimmunology  and  inflammation); 

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https://www.etis.ee/index.aspx 
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Interaction between genes and the environment in neurological diseases and the development of new 
therapies for neurological diseases (neuroprotectants, neuronal stem cells, probiotics). 

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FINLAND 

Academy of Finland 

The  Academy  of  Finland  supports  substantial  research  efforts  in  this  field  as  part  of  its  national 
research strategy on centres of excellence in research and strategic centres for science, technology and 
innovation, as well as trough international collaboration schemes.  
This includes the Centre of Excellence in Molecular and Integrative Neuroscience Research73 (2008-
2013). Research at this CoE focuses on the molecular and systems- level neurobiological mechanisms 
based on the effects of trophic factors in brain development, plasticity (learning and memory) and in 
the pathogenesis and treatment of diseases. 

Scientists  at  the  CoE  are  particularly  interested  on  trophic  factors,  intracellular  messenger  cascades 
and ion transport proteins that regulate electrical and chemical signalling in brain cells and in neuronal 
networks and play a decisive role in diseases, such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s as well as in the 
actions of medical substances used in the treatment of these diseases. The CoE aims to put its research 
results  into  practical  use,  especially  in  the  prevention  and  treatment  of  neurodegenerative  disorders. 
The CoE is made up of 7 research teams, with 3 participating institutes: the Institute of Biotechnology, 
the  Neuroscience  Centre  and  the  Department  of  Biological  and  Environmental  Sciences  at  the 
University of Helsinki. The CoE has a staff of 72. 
The  CoE  in  Research  on  Mitochondrial  Disease  and  Ageing74  (FINMIT,  2002-2007,  2008-2013)  is 
made up of 4 research teams from IMT and the Research Programme of Molecular Neurology at the 
University of Helsinki The research involves 50 scientists from almost 20 different countries, and the 
leaders of the research teams represent four different nationalities. The CoE also has active research 
collaborations with cognate research teams in the UK, France, and the US, Canada, Japan and other 
countries. The network has been renewed for the period 2008-2013.  
The Helsinki Brain Research Centre75 (HBRC, 2002-2007) applies the latest methods of brain research 
to investigate the principles of cognitive brain function. HBRC serves as an umbrella for six research 
teams  from  two  of  the  biggest  universities  and  leading  hospitals  in  the  country.  The  purpose  of  the 
centre's  research  is  to  explore  the  foundations  of  learning,  memory,  attentiveness,  emotions  and 
language in the brain. 
The  Centre  of  Excellence  in  Systems  Neuroscience  and  Neuroimaging  Research76  (2006-2011)  is 
developing new brain imaging methods with the goal to provide more in-depth understanding of the 
functions of the human brain at the systems level. Researchers at the CoE study brain functions and 
their  disorders  in  both  adults  and  children.  Coordination  is  ensured  by  the  Helsinki  University  of 
Technology and the University of Helsinki. 

Strategic Centres for Science, Technology and Innovation 

The Academy of Finland contributes to the operation of the Strategic Centres for Science, Technology 
and  Innovation77  (CSTIs)  by  funding  the  high-level  research  within  them  that  is  carried  out  at 
universities  and  research  institutes.  The  Strategic  Centre  for  Health  and  Well-being  launched  its 
operations on 6 April 2009. The goal of the Strategic Centre is to improve the health and well-being of 
the  individual.  One  of  the  areas  selected  focus  are  neurodegenerative  and  psychiatric  diseases.  The 
first three programmes of the SHOK will start at the beginning of 2010. The programmes will focus on 

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http://www.aka.fi/en-gb/A/Science-in-society/Centres-of-Excellence-/Centres-of-Excellence-in-Research-in-2008-
2013/CoE-in-Research-on-Mitochondrial-Disease-and-Ageing/ 
http://www.hbrc.helsinki.fi/ 
http://www.aka.fi/en-gb/A/Science-in-society/Centres-of-Excellence-/Centres-of-Excellence-in-Research-in-2006-
2011/CoE-in-Systems-Neuroscience-and-Neuroimaging-Research/ 
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brain  health  and  functional  capacity,  smart  monitoring  of  individual  health  and  well-being,  and  on 
obesity and related health challenges 

International research programmes in neurosciences 
The  Research  Programme  on  Neuroscience78  (NEURO)  is  a  four-year  programme  between  Finland, 
Canada  and  China  providing  funding  for  cutting-edge  neuroscience  research  in  the  participating 
countries.  The  programme  involves  16  Finnish,  four  Finnish-Chinese  and  three  Finnish-Canadian 
research  projects.  It  provides  simultaneous,  coordinated  funding  for  the  projects  during  2006–2009. 
One of the main areas addressed is the diseases of the nervous systems as well as the mechanisms of 
dysfunction and repair. 

The programme is also aimed at strengthening collaboration with neuroscience research programmes 
and  doctoral  programmes  in  other  countries.  NEURO  is  funded  by  the  Academy  of  Finland,  the 
National  Natural  Science  Foundation  of  China  (NSFC)  and  the  Institute  of  Neurosciences,  Mental 
Health and Addiction (INMHA) of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research 

Kuopio University 

The Kuopio University campus in Finland hosts about 20 neuroscience groups and 5 graduate schools. 
The  2  major  basic  science  facilities,  the  Sciences  and  the  Neurobiology  are  located  near  the 
Department of Neurology in Kuopio University Hospital. The major research interests include studies 
on 3 neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, epilepsy and stroke.  

Kuopio  University  is  also  coordinating  the  Marie  Curie  Early  Stage  Researcher  (EST)  programme 
BIND79 where over 20 senior investigators join their expertise to capitalize the benefits of synergy in 
methodology, infrastructure, data sharing, and research training. 

The  BIND  (Biology  of  Neurodegenerative  diseases)  programme  aims  at  1)  identifying  novel 
molecular pathways mediating neurodegeneration and repair, 2) developing novel in vitro and in vivo 
models  of  human  neurodegenerative  disease,  3)  identifying  surrogate  markers  that  predict  the 
neurodegenerative  process  and  its  outcome,  4)  searching  for  novel  gene  mutations  linked  to  human 
neurodegenerative diseases and their function in the neurodegenerative process 
The  Department  of  Neurobiology80  at  the  A.I  Virtanen  Institute  for  Molecular  Science  focuses 
especially on the neurobiology of diseases affecting the central nervous system (CNS), development of 
disease  models  and  cellular  signal  transduction.  The  areas  addressed  include  biomedical  Nuclear 
Magnetic Resonance, cell biology, molecular brain research, molecular signalling and neurobiology of 
memory. 
The  Department  of  Neurology81  at  Kuopio  University  is  a  research  centre  for  basic  and  clinical 
neurosciences. Researchers and staff are totalling 60.  

Research  focuses  on  the  basic  mechanisms,  prevention,  drug  and  clinical  research  of  degenerative 
brain diseases, particularly Alzheimer's disease, stroke and epilepsy.  
Most population-based surveys and drug trials are run at the Brain Research Unit82. This Unit has 20 
years  experience  in  the  field  of  diagnosis,  treatment  and  prevention  of  neurodegenerative  and 
cerebrovascular disorders, particularly as regards studying the mechanisms of drugs in various model 
systems  as  well  as  in  the  preclinical  phase,  in  studying  the  genetics  and  risk  factors  of  complex 
diseases  in  large  population-based  cohorts,  in  developing  biomarkers  for  neurodegenerative  diseases 
and in conducting large-scale clinical trials. GCP level services for clinical pharmaceutical trials (I-IV 
phases) are also available. 

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Currently, a major focus in drug research in Alzheimer's disease is directed at agents with the potential 
effect of decreasing ß-amyloid accumulation and/or promoting its clearance. There are also facilities 
for  genetics  and  biomarker  analysis  for searching  new  risk  genes  using  single  nucleotide 
polymorphism analysis and functional studies.  

It  also  participates  to  the  FP7  EU  Project  LipiDiDiet  “Therapeutic  and  Preventive  Impact  of 
Nutritional  Lipids  on  Neuronal  and  Cognitive  Performance  in  Aging,  Alzheimer’s  disease  and 
Vascular Dementia”. This is based on previous observations that lipids change the risk for dementia. 
Especially some omega-3 lipids appear to lower the Alzheimer risk. Major aim of this endeavour is to 
increase the effectiveness of current therapies, particularly as regards disease prevention and treatment 
in early phases of the disease. 
The Department of Neurology is also a partner of PredictAD83, an EU project aiming at developing a 
standardised  and  objective  solution  that  would  enable  an  earlier  diagnosis  of  Alzheimer’s  disease, 
improved monitoring of treatment efficacy and enhanced cost-effectiveness of diagnostic protocols.  

Funded by the NOS-M Joint Committee of the Nordic Medical Research Councils, the Department of 
Neurology as well as the Virtanen Institute are part of the 2004-2009 network on Neurodegeneration - 
Nordic  Centre  of  Excellence  Programme  in  molecular  medicine.84 This  network  gathers  12  research 
groups from Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden and is coordinated by the Neuronal Survival Unit 
of  the  Wallenberg  Neuroscience  Centre  at  Lund  University.  Research  is  focused  on  Alzheimer’s, 
Huntington and Parkinson diseases. Main aims are to address the role of protein aggregation and stress 
in neurodegeneration as well as the mechanisms of cell dysfunction and death in this process.  

Helsinki University 
The  Research  Program  of  Molecular  Neurology85  is  one  of  the  six  Research  Programmes  of  the 
Faculty of Medicine, Helsinki University, for 2007 - 2011. The programme goal is to clarify disease 
mechanisms  underlying  neurodegenerative  and  neuropsychiatric  diseases.  In  particular,  to  address 
mitochondria in degenerative diseases, cell death and neuroprotection, disease and susceptibility genes 
for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson diseases, as well as the study of disease mechanisms in cultured cells, 
animal  models  and  in  patients  and  their  tissues.  The  programme  offers  also  patient  counselling  for 
information on risk factors.  

FRANCE 

France  is  endowed  with  a  comprehensive  strategy  in  this  area  including  a  National  Neuroscience 
Institute  (2009),  NPD  programme  of  the  National  Research  Agency  and  a  National  Research 
Foundation for Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders. 

The National Neuroscience Institute  
The  National  Neuroscience  Institute86  located  within  the  Institut  National  de  la  Recherche  Médicale 
(INSERM), conducts research across a broad spectrum from basic research to disease-related science. 

The National Research Agency  
The National Research Agency87 includes the following programme schemes: 

- 
Non thematic / blue sky: Aims to support basic research characterized by novel approaches. 
Open  without  restriction  of  scientific  areas  of  disciplinary  fields.  Could  be  public-public  as  well  as 
public-private partnerships.  

Thematic: Focuses funding on identified questions that could concern societal, scientific and 

- 
technological domains which can be either basic or applied.  

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http://www.ncoe.eu/research.html 
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For  public-private  partnerships:  Thematic  programmes  directed  exclusively  to  public-private 

- 
partnership aimed to promote transfer of technologies and valorisation of basic researches. 

- 

Transnational: Thematic programmes open in collaboration with foreign funding agency. 

Current initiatives on Alzheimer's disease research through the ANR programmes include:  

- 

Basic research, trough the blue sky and young researcher's schemes 

Medical  research,  Neurological  and  psychiatric  diseases  trough  the  ERA-NET  NEURON, 

- 
aimed at promoting multidisciplinary approaches & partnerships between basic & clinical research 

- 
Applied  research,  through  Technologies  health  and  assisted  living  (public-clinic-private 
partnership). This initiative intends to enhance quality of life and autonomy by developing solutions 
using  molecular  imaging,  instrumentation,  medical  informatics,  biomaterials  and  computer-aided 
technologies 

The French National Plan for Alzheimer's disease and related disorders 
The Plan88 proposes 3 axes of action, 11 goals, 44 specific objectives and is endowed with an overall 
budget of € 1.6 billion over 5 years. 

The 3 axes are: Medical and social segment (€ 1.2 billion); Healthcare segment (€ 200 million) and the 
Research segment (€ 200 million). The plan intends to provide an unprecedented research effort in the 
field of Alzheimer’s disease and related diseases. 

The main objectives of the plan are: to create a  national and international dynamic for collaborative 
research fundamental to care, to use an attractive policy to bolster the network of public and private 
sector  researchers,  to  establish  highly  capable  fundamental  clinical  and  para-clinical  research 
infrastructures, to promote interaction with health industries to reduce development time. 

The French Quebec-Canada collaboration 
In  addition,  France  through  the  INSERM89  has  a  bilateral  programme  on  neurodegeneration  with 
Quebec-  Canada.  The  joint  financial  contribution  will  be  of  €  700.000/year  for  France  and  1.2 
million/year Canadian dollars. Main objectives are to ensure scientific excellence, support innovative, 
cutting edge aspects of the proposed projects, benefit from the added value of partnership and address 
the  likelihood  to  reach  the  stated  objectives  over  3  years.  The  five  themes  identified  for  the 
collaboration are biomarkers, animal models and preclinical studies, innovative therapeutic strategies, 
prevention and social and psychological research. 

GERMANY 

The main funding bodies in Germany include the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, budget of 
€  1.5  billion  €  in  2007),  which  supports  bottom-up  basic  research  and  the  Federal  Ministry  of 
Education and Research (BMBF) which has a top down approach, focussing on applied research. Its 
budget was of € 3 billion in 2008. 

Institutional funding includes: 

Universities 

- 

- 

20 out of 36 Universities with medical faculties have a focus on neuroscience  

Clusters of Excellence in neurosciences at the universities of Tübingen and Berlin 

Non-university research institutes 

Institutes of Max-Planck Society (MPG) 

Helmholtz Association (HGF) 

http://www.plan-alzheimer.gouv.fr 
http://www.inserm.fr/en/index.html 

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Wilhelm Gottfried Leibniz Association (WGL) 

- 
The  BMBF90  supports  research  on  neurodegenerative  diseases  and  dementias  through  different 
schemes.  The  Health  Research  programme  for  project  funding  of  the  Federal  Ministry  of  Education 
and Research currently has a budget of circa € 150 million per year with an increasing tendency. On 
average  about  20%  of  this  budget  is  spent  on  neurosciences,  neurology  and  psychiatry  (with  annual 
variation according to specific funding initiatives). One can differentiate between initiatives which are 
specific for research into neurodegenerative diseases, while others are "generic". In the latter, projects 
on  neurodegenerative  diseases  can  be  applied  for  and  will  be  selected  along  with  other  topics 
according to their quality these include: 

Competence networks in Medicine 

These  networks  are  clinically  oriented.  The  goal  is  connect  research  competences  with  care 
competences, to establish interdisciplinary national research networks and to integrate nationwide the 
clinical competences of research on a certain disease, in order to promote the transfer of knowledge 
form basic research to clinical application. 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

Stroke (1999-2008, € 14.5 million) 

Parkinson‘s Syndromes (1999-2008, € 15.3 million) 

Dementia (2002-2009, € 12.9 million) 

Degenerative Dementias (2007-2010, € 11.6 million, envisaged until 2019, € 40 million) 

BrainNet (1999-2009, € 8.1 million) 

National Genome Research Network (NGFN) 

These projects are oriented towards the basic knowledge foundation of clinical problems. Molecular 
biology teams cooperate  with clinical  teams, to advance the understanding about healthy and patho-
physiological molecular processes of the socio-economically important disease groups by using high 
throughput methods. There are currently several different relevant consortia 

- 

- 

- 

Alzheimer‘s Disease (2008-2011, € 5.2 million) 

Parkinson‘s Disease (2008-2011, € 6.2 million) 

Neurodegeneration (2008-2011, € 5.9 million) 

Generic funding measures comprising neurodegeneration 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

- 

Stem cells (2008-2011, € 10 million) 

Regenerative Medicine (2005-2011, € 30 million) 

Molecular diagnostics (2006-2011, € 20 million) 

Innovative Therapies (2005-2013, € 60 million) 

Innovative methods for drug development (2007-2012, € 23 million) 

Molecular imaging (2008-2014, € 45 million) 

Clinical trials (2005-2018, € 120 million) 

GoBio (10 yrs, € 140 million, transfer from academia into spin-offs) 

BioPharma (5 yrs, € 100 million, public-private partnerships) 

Nursing Research (2004-2010, € 1.5 million) 

Health in Old Age (2008-2011, € 17 million)  

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In  addition,  the  BMBF  has  recently  established  the  National  Centre  for  Neurodegenerative  Diseases 
(approx  €  50  million/year  is  envisaged)  together  with  the  Helmholtz  Society.  The  core  institute  is 
located  in  Bonn,  satellites  in  Göttingen,  Magdeburg,  Munich,  Rostock/Greifswald,  Tübingen  and 
Witten-Herdecke. Main areas of research include etiopathology, prevention, and diagnosis, therapies, 
health care and nursing.  

Project  funding  within  the  programme  on  “Forschung  an  Fachhochschulen”  of  the  Federal 
Ministry of Education and Research  

In  Germany  there  is  a  second  type  of  University  (“Fachhochschule”)  which  covers  more  applied 
disciplines  and  education  of  students.  BMBF  manages  a  programme  to  foster  research  at  these 
university-ties.  Within  this  programme  "Forschung  a  Fachhochschulen",  a  funding  initiative  is 
planned,  which  focuses  on  social  innovation  for  quality  of  life  in  old  age.  The  purpose  is  foster 
research how to in-crease quality and efficiency of care and the life situation of elder and chronically 
ill  responding  to  changes  in  demand  and  requirements  in  the  disciplines  “Social  Work”,  “Public 
Health” and “Nursing Research”, which can contribute significantly to ameliorate life of elder persons.  

“Leuchtturm Demenz “ of the Federal Ministry of Health  

The BMG has launched a call for proposals on health care research on Alzheimer’s disease 
and related dementias on the following four domains (2009-2010, € 13 million, 14 projects): 
1. interventions in therapy and care, effectiveness during everyday care 2. Evaluation of care 
infrastructures  3.  Ensuring  evidence  based  care  4.  Evaluation  und  promotion  of  targeted 
education of personnel  

Alzheimer Forschung Initiative e.V. (AFI) 

Established in 1995 it is the largest private sponsor for AD research in Germany. AFI is interested in 
funding  causal,  diagnostic  and  clinical  research  for  AD.  66  projects  from  German  universities  and 
public bodies were funded with a total amount of € 3,625 million since 1995. In 2005/2006: 5 projects 
from  German  universities  were  funded  with  a  total  amount  of  €  318.000,  2  projects  were  funded  in 
France with a total amount of € 80000 to support European research and the French sister organisation. 
In 2007, 8 projects were funded for € 480.000. For the 2006-2009 period, 13 projects were funded for 
a total amount of € 797 000.  

GREECE 
The  General  Secretariat  for  Research  and  Technology  (GSRT)91,  at  the  Greek  Ministry  of 
Development, is the central agency for the administration of the Greek R&D and Innovation system. 
The GSRT is responsible for drawing up and implementing a national R&D and Innovation strategy. 

The  national  research  programmes  implemented  by  the  GSRT,  together  with  the  EU  R&D 
programmes  are  the  main  sources  of  funding  for  R&D  in  Greece.  One  of  these  programmes,  the 
Operational Programme ''Competitiveness" 2000-2006 utilises European Social Fund and focuses on 
sectors which are expected to generate long-term growth for the Greek economy. One of the actions is 
devoted to "Health - Biomedical Research, Diagnostic & Therapeutics Procedures".  

The  objective  of  this  programme  is  to  promote  collaborations  between  business  enterprises  and 
research entities with regard to long-term research and technological development projects, aiming at 
producing innovative products or services. The Programme supports both basic and industrial research 
in  the  areas  of  diagnosis,  treatment,  molecular  and  pathogenetic  mechanisms  and  biomedical 
technology. 21 projects are financed for an overall budget of € 11,9 million. Total project budget will 
range between € 587,000 and € 500,000, for a length up to 36 months.  

Greek Association for Alzheimer's Disease and Relative Disorders 
The  Greek  Association  of  Alzheimer  Disease  and  Relative  Disorders92  is  a  non-profit  organisation 
founded in 1995 by relatives of patients suffering from the Alzheimer Disease as well as by medical 

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professionals  and  other  stakeholders.  The  association  promotes  scientific  research  as  well  as  raises 
awareness on the need to incorporate best available therapies into current clinical practice. 

Athens Association of Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Disorders 

The  Athens  Association  of  Alzheimer’s  Disease  and  Related  Disorders  is  a  non-profit  organisation 
founded in 2002 by dementia patients’ relatives, doctors, psychologists and other relevant health care 
professionals. The Association aims at promoting awareness, care and support for everyone in anyway 
related to the disease. In February 2009, the Association launched the “Greek Alzheimer’s Initiative”, 
a signature - collection campaign. This should be the first step towards a national action plan against 
Alzheimer’s disease. 

Stavros Niarchos Foundation 
The  Stavros  Niarchos  Foundation93,  an  international  philanthropic  organization,  supports  charitable 
activities in four primary areas: arts and culture, education, health and medicine, and social welfare. 
The Foundation makes grants to not-for-profit organizations throughout the world. Since its inception 
in 1996, the Stavros Niarchos Foundation has provided total grant commitments of US$ 361,254,582 
(19%  to  health  and  medicine)  with  1,647  grants  in  86  nations  around  the  world  to  various  not-for-
profit organizations. 

Since February 2007, a Dementia Day Centre for patients suffering from dementia and their families 
has  opened  in  Athens.  The  Centre  is  supported  by  both  the  European  Social  Funds  and  the  Greek 
Ministry  of  Health,  and  managed  under  the  responsibility  of  the  Athens  Association  of  Alzheimer’s 
Disease  and  Related  Disorders.  Aims  include  training,  help  and  support  of  patients  suffering  from 
Dementia  (cognitive  training,  physical  exercise,  occupational  therapy,  art  therapy;  education  and 
support of carers; advocacy of patients’ and carers’ rights and needs; increase of public awareness.  

Institute of Organic and Pharmaceutical Chemistry (IOPC) 
Established  in  1979  as  the  Centre  for  Organic  Chemistry94  to  pursue  research  in  organic  and 
organometallic chemistry, in 2003 the Institute incorporated research on structure-based drug design 
into  its  field  of  activities.  Much  of  the  Institute’s  research  is  focused  on  combating  illnesses  and 
conditions including multiple sclerosis and neurodegenerative diseases.  

The  Laboratory  for  Molecular  Analysis  (LMA)  carries  on  research  in  the  rational  design  of  novel 
drugs  for  illnesses  like  neurodegenerative  diseases.  It  recently  received  a  €  1,125  million  award  for 
infrastructure  on  the  “Design  and  Synthesis  of  Bioactive  Molecules”  programme  by  the  Greek 
Ministry of Development, which will reinforce current efforts in this area. Support research in this area 
such important research.  

IOPC has been awarded Excellence in Research on ''Novel strategies against neurodegeneration (2002-
2005) by the Greek General Secretariat of Research and Technology, and recently received a grant of 
€ 1.125 million for infrastructure on ''Design and Synthesis of Bioactive Molecules'' (2005-2008) by 
the Greek Ministry of Development. 
EURODESY95  is  a  European  Research  Training  Site  for  the  "Design  and  Synthesis  of  Novel 
Neuroprotective  and  Hypoglycaemic  Agents".  It  focuses  on  the  development  of  new  agents  for 
potential therapeutic intervention in neurodegenerative diseases and type 2 diabetes mellitus.  

HUNGARY 

Hungarian Scientific Research Fund 

For the period 2002-2007 this institution supported 4 projects in the field of Alzheimer's disease for an 
overall amount of € 451 680. 

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93 
94 
95 

http://www.greeceindex.com/greece-health/greece_health_voluntary_alzheimer_institute.html 
http://www.snf.org/ 
http://www.eie.gr/nhrf/institutes/iopc/index-en.html 
http://www.eie.gr/nhrf/institutes/iopc/eu-projects/eurodesy/overview-en.html 

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National Office for Research and Technology (NKTH) 
NKTH96 is responsible for implementing the government’s science and technology policy. Its duties 
are  to  provide  a  new  framework  for  the  national  innovation  system  and  to  promote  research  and 
development that will boost Hungarian economy. 

To create a predictable environment for the exploitation of R&D results, the Research and Technology 
Innovation Fund has been recently established. The Fund is managed by NKTH. The goal of NKTH is 
to  provide  sufficient  funding  for  innovation  programmes  that  aim  to  create  innovative  services  and 
products.  
Mecenatúra Calls (Part of the Albert Apponyi Programme) 

This  programme  aims  at  supporting  individual  investigators  to  present  their  results  on  Alzheimer's 
disease at national and international conferences.  
Széchenyi Action, National Research and Development Programmes  

The  programme  aims  at  supporting  One  project  (Application  of  PET  minicamera;  additional  aim  to 
distinguish between Alzheimer and other diseases showing similar symptoms like AD) was supported 
with 200 000 000 Ft = 847 817 Euro (at the rate of 31/12/2002) in 2002 
Péter Pázmány Programme for Regional Knowledge Centres (RKC) 

The main goal of the Péter Pázmány Programme is to establish Regional Knowledge Centres (RKC) to 
exploit  research  and  development  results  in  close  cooperation  with  the  industrial  sector.  The  task  of 
the  supported  Knowledge  Centres  is  to  transfer  R&D  results  to  marketable  new  products  and 
technologies.  

One of the supported centres is the Szeged Neurobiological Knowledge Centre (DNT), which has been 
awarded a 1.7 billion Forints subsidy for 4 years, to establish amongst other a project the mechanisms 
underlying the development of neurodegenerative disorders as well as the development of compounds 
with neuroprotective effects. 

Institute of Experimental Medicine of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences 
The  scientific  activity  of  the  Institute  of  Experimental  Medicine97  is  dedicated  exclusively  to 
biomedical  research.  The  major  focus  of  research  is  on  neurosciences  including  studies  on 
mechanisms of synaptic and non-synaptic neuronal transmission, processes of learning and memory, 
central  regulation  reproduction,  metabolism  and  stress  behaviour  and  neurodegenerative  diseases,  in 
particular Alzheimer's and their modelling.  

The Institute hosts the Neuroscience Department of the Pazmany Catholic University and runs a PhD 
programme in neurosciences with the Semmelweis University. The Institute is also coordinator of the 
EURO-EURO-NETWORK EU Centre of excellence. 

Semmelweis University 
Semmelweis  University98  is  the  largest  health  care  institution  in  Hungary.  Major  efforts  of  this 
institution are devoted to research on neurosciences.  

Current  research  activity  of  Semmelweis  University  in  the  field  of  neurosciences  comprises 
anatomical, physiological, pharmacological, biochemical and behavioural approaches. Main topics of 
the research groups supported by standard funding of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences include – 
besides several others – studies on neural plasticity in the cerebellum, cortex and thalamus, functional 
anatomy  and  physiology  of  the  visual  cortex,  computer  simulation  models  of  neural  networks, 
neurotransmitter systems in the human brain, etc. Further research projects funded by the University 
and  external  grants  deal  with  vestibular  coordination,  synaptic  plasticity  in  relation  to  motivation, 
learning  and  memory,  neural  regeneration,  functional  neuroanatomy  of  the  spinal  cord  and  pain 

96 
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mechanisms,  infobionics,  etc.  Clinically  oriented  research  programs  relevant  to  sleeping  disorders, 
psychosomatic problems and psychotic conditions are also being carried out. 

.One of the most extensive platforms for neuroscience research at Semmelweis University is provided 
by the Szentágothai János Knowledge Centre99 which focuses on neuroscience and drug development. 
Recognised  as  a  regional  centre  of  excellence  it  consists  of  14  research  groups  from  Semmelweis 
University, the Institute of Experimental Medicine of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences and from 
the  Faculty  of  Informational  Technology  of  the  Pázmány  Péter  Catholic  University.  Main  research 
topics  include  Alzheimer's  disease,  Parkinson  disease,  oxidative  stress  and  neuroprotection  and 
cognition. 

Other institutions working in the field of neurodegenerative diseases, in particular Alzheimer's include 
the University Medical School of Debrecen and the Medical School of Pécs University. 

ITALY 
Italy, through specific programs of the Ministry of Health100, the Ministry of Labour, the Ministry of 
Research101 has devoted in the last 10 years strong efforts to the area of Alzheimer's disease and other 
dementias promoting basic and applied clinical research either by financing Universities and Clinical 
Research Institutes or by yearly calls for proposals under the helm of different institutional agencies 
including  the  Superior  Institute  of  Health,  The  National  Research  Council  (PRIN,  FIRB,  Progetti 
Strategici, Progetti Finalizzati, Progetti Ordinari, Progetto Giovani) for an overall annual amount of € 
30 million. 

The Cronos Project was launched by the Ministry of Health in 2000. Endowed with a budget of € 40 
million  Euro  it  allowed  the  setting-up  of  500  Alzheimer  Evaluation  Units  with  the  specific  aim  of 
diagnosing and treating dementia. The initiative has allowed to improve diagnostic skills and to offer 
patients and caregivers a site for pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment. 

In 2002, a Commission for the study of Alzheimer's disease was established by the Ministry of with 
the  objective  of  developing  a  precise  strategy  for  the  maintenance  of  residual  health  in  demented 
people  and  promote  interventions  for  the  amelioration  of  health  and  quality  of  life  of  patients  with 
Alzheimer's  disease.  Such  Commission  is  still  active  as  a  Centre  for  the  Development  of  Concerted 
and  Integrated  Actions  directed  to  the  Regions  in  order  to  rationalize  and  establish  plans  for  the 
improvement of Health and Social Care of patients and caregivers. 

In  2008,  the  Ministry  of  Labour  has  sponsored  a  specific  program  under  the  helm  of  the  Health 
Superior Institute (ISS) to provide for a state-of-the art of the situation of the national network of care 
including the development of guidelines for the implementation of a National Program of Integrated 
Management of dementia.  

Italy is also endowed with several centres of excellence in the field of neurodegenerative diseases field 
including  the  San  Raffaele  Institute  of  Milan,  the  Istituto  Neurologico  Besta  of  Milan,  the  Institute 
Mario Negri of Milan, the Istituto Sacro Cuore Fatebenefratelli of Brescia, the Istituto Santa Lucia of 
Rome, the INRCA of Ancona, and the Neuromed Institute of Isernia.  

IRELAND 

Almost  €100  million  in  age-related  disease  and  care  research  is  currently  supported  in  this  country. 
This includes the following initiatives:  

Trinity  College  Institute  of  Neurosciences  (TCIN)102:  launched  in  2000,  Ireland’s  largest 
- 
neurosciences  institute,  €28m  government  funding,  plus  Glaxo  SmithKlein  investment  of  €14.6 
million for Alzheimer’s. 

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100 
101 
102 

http://www.nkth.gov.hu/english/regional-knowledge/szentagothai-janos-080519 
http://www.ministerosalute.it 
http://www.miur.it/DefaultDesktop.aspx 
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UCC  Biosciences  Institute103:  built  in  2002,  its  mission  is  to  deepen  the  understanding  of 
- 
disease  mechanisms,  to  develop  new  therapies,  to  explore  linkages  between  food  and  health  and  to 
promote health through diet. € 4 million are devoted to the area of neurosciences. 

University College Dublin104, Applied Neurotherapeutics group, which has received from the 
- 
Science  Foundation  Ireland  (SFI)  a  €  7.7  million  award  together  with  the  Neuroscience  Discovery 
Group  of  Wyeth  Research  to  support  to  support  research  into  the treatment  of illnesses  that  include 
Alzheimer’s Disease, schizophrenia, and depression. 

The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing105 (TILDA): launched by the Ministry of Health in 
- 
2006, to study a representative cohort of at least 8,000 Irish people over the age of 50 charting their 
health, social and economic circumstances over a 10-year period. 

The  study  is  being  carried  out  by  Trinity  College  Dublin  in  collaboration  with  an  inter-disciplinary 
panel  of  scientific  researchers,  with  expertise  in  various  fields  of  ageing,  from  Dundalk  Institute  of 
Technology (DKIT), Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), National University of Ireland 
Galway (NUIG), The Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland (RCSI), University College Cork (UCC), 
University  College  Dublin  (UCD)  and  Waterford  Institute  of  Technology  (WIT).  Funding  was 
provided by Atlantic Philanthropies (€ 1.3 million) and Irish Life (€ 4 million). 

Technology  Research  for  Independent  Living106  (TRIL):  launched  in  2007,  and  an 
- 
academic/industry  partnership  the  TRIL  Centre  is  a  coordinated  collection  of  research  projects 
addressing the physical, cognitive and social consequences of ageing. The TRIL Centre’s mission is to 
discover  and  deliver  technology  solutions  which  support  independent  ageing,  ideally  in  a  home 
environment. Funding is provided by the company Intel and IDA (Investment Ireland) for an overall 
value of € 25m over 3 years.  

- 

Health Research Board107 

This  is  the  lead  agency  supporting  and  funding  all  areas  of  health  research  in  Ireland.  With  30 
Researcher-led  projects  and  programmes  there  is  over  €  13  million  awards  for  neurodegenerative 
disease research. The research funded spans a broad area of neurodegenerative disease, from palliative 
care to novel therapies. It also includes a fund of € 4.2 million for a PhD programme hosted by TCIN 
addressed to training the future research generation. 

LATVIA 
The Latvian Institute of Organic Synthesis108 was founded in 1957 as a unit of the Latvian Academy of 
Sciences.  The  Institute  is  involved  in  the  fundamental  studies  in  the  field  of  organic  chemistry, 
molecular  biology  and  bio-organic  chemistry.  The  other  direction  of  the  Institute's  work  is  drug 
research  in  view  of  potential  medical  and  agricultural  applications.  The  Institutes  performs  also 
clinical trials in areas such as Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. It also participates to the EU 
project DeZnIT. The main objectives of DeZnIT program are to develop new drug design technology 
specifically focused on the family of zinc metalloenzymes and to use this technology to identify new 
candidate drugs.  

LITHUANIA 

As part of the HAPPIEE study (Health, Alcohol and Psychosocial factors In Eastern Europe) funding 
by  the  WE)  funded  by  the  Wellcome  Trust,  Lithuania  is  participating  to  a  large  cohort  population 
screening  (over  7000  people  aged  45-72  years)  which  amongst  other  issues  includes  also  the 
assessment of the cognitive functions. Screening included blood sampling and DNA extraction.  

103 
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http://bsi.ucc.ie 
http://www.ucd.ie/conway/research/integrativebiology/appliedneurotherapeuticsresearchgroup 
http://www.tilda.tcd.ie 
http://www.trilcentre.org 
http://www.hrb.ie/ 
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The  Lithuanian  States  Science  and  Studies  Foundation  is  supporting  since  2008  2  projects  on  the 
generation of novel methods for the early detection of pathogenic oligomers of amyloid B in biological 
fluids  (blood  and  cerebrospinal  fluids).  Lithuania  is  also  collaborating  to  the  transnational 
collaborative effort "Kaunas Health Ageing Study: late life mental health" (started also 2008), aiming 
to determine the prevalence of dementia and depression and their related risk factors. Other partners 
include London King's College Institute of Psychiatry and Oslo University College in Norway, who is 
coordinating these efforts.  

The  University  Clinics  of  Neurology  at  Vilnius  and  Kaunas  are  also  taking  part  in  clinical  studies 
aimed at designing and validating a novel battery of cognitive testing.  

LUXEMBOURG 
The  programme  PROVIE109  (Research  into  the  medical  aspects  of  ageing) programme is  one  of  the 
multi-annual programmes of the National Research Fund110 (NRF) which supports public research. 

is 

to  study 

the  epidemiological,  psychosocial  and  biological  aspects  of 

Its  purpose 
the 
neurodegenerative  diseases  of  old  age  in  Luxembourg  and  view  them  against  the  broader  European 
canvas. The objectives of the programme are: 1) to improve the skills of the biomedical community in 
Luxembourg and the transfer of knowledge concerning pathologies linked to ageing of the brain; 2) to 
correlate medical, epidemiological, psychosocial and biological aspects; 3) to improve the prevention 
of  cerebrovascular  accidents 
for 
to  acquire 
neurodegenerative diseases and other diseases in the elderly.  

innovative  detection  methods 

(strokes);  4) 

Research  areas  addressed  include:  basic  research  and  technology  transfer,  study  of  the  risk  or 
protection factors, primary and secondary prevention and clinical and epidemiological aspects of these 
diseases.  

MALTA 
Malta Dementia Society - The Malta Dementia Society111 was established in September 2004 and is 
affiliated  to  Alzheimer  Europe.  It  aims  are  to  encourage  and  promote  the  best  methods  of  care, 
education  and  treatment  of  persons  with  dementia  and  related  disorders  generally  throughout  the 
Maltese  islands  and  elsewhere  as  well  as  to  provide  and  furnish  support,  help,  assistance  and 
information to the families, relatives and friends of persons with dementia and related disorders. They 
are also in charge of training of caring personnel as well as to promote fund raising 

Zammit Clapp Hospital - An autonomous publicly funded hospital specializing in Geriatric Medicine 
under  the  responsibility  of  the  Hospital  Management  Committee  and  the  Foundation  for  Medical 
Services, The Zammit Hospital112 strives to provide a service of excellence according to each patient’s 
medical  condition  and  needs,  regarding  assessment,  management  and  general  rehabilitation,  through 
an  interdisciplinary  approach.  It  is  endowed  with  on-going  in-patient,  out-patient  and  Day  Hospital 
services of acute and rehabilitative nature. The hospital plays an important role in the comprehensive 
system of care for the elderly in the country 
The  University  of  Malta,  Faculty  of  Medicine  and  Surgery113  supports  also  research  on  the 
neuropharmacology and neuropathology of Alzheimer's disease. 

Malta  Council  for  Science  and  Technology  -  The  National  Research  and  Innovation  (R&I) 
Programme114  2008  is  a  funding  programme  for  research  and  innovation  projects  in  the  fields  of 
science  and technology and will be managed and administered by the Malta Council of Science and 
Technology.  Applications  are  called  in  4  main  areas:  ICT,  Environment  and  Energy,  Health  and 

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http://www.fnr.lu/SIML_FNR/Channel/FNRen.nsf/fs_Root?OpenFrameset 
http://www.innovation.public.lu/html/portal/EN/81/85/99/C50/ 
http://www.maltadementiasociety.org.mt/ 
http://www.sahha.gov.mt/pages.aspx?page=15 
http://www.um.edu.mt/ 
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Biotech  and  Manufacturing.  One  of  the  seven  projects  supported  this  year  aims  at  identifying 
neuroprotectants  from  marine  and  terrestrial  plant  extracts  in  neurodegenerative  disorders  of  the 
amyloid type115.  

NORWAY 

In Norway, research on neurodegenerative diseases, in particular Alzheimer’s disease is significantly 
funded  by  the  Research  Council  of  Norway116  and  performed  in  universities  and  Centres  of 
Excellence. Projects in this area can be supported through the Council’s Independent Basic Research 
Projects (researcher initiated) - Biology and biomedicine (FRIBIO) programme, as well as a specific 
Clinical Research programme which aims at supporting large clinical trials and covers, among other 
subjects, geriatrics.  

A major performer in this area is the Center for the Biology of Memory (CBM), which is part of the 
Centre  of  Excellence  scheme  of  the  Norwegian  Research  Council  and  closely  linked  with  the  Kavli 
Institute for Systems Neurosciences117 in the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. The 
scientific  goal  of  the  CBM  is  to  understand  the  biological  processes  behind  memory  with  the  view, 
among other objectives, to determine how a disruption of the processes may lead to various forms of 
neurological disease or psychopathology.  
Another important actor is the Centre for Molecular Biology and Neurosciences118 (CMBN) of Oslo 
University,  another  Council’s  Centre  of  Excellence.  In  order  to  exploit  the  ideas  developed  in 
conjunction  with  this  CoE  project,  it  signed  a  letter  of  intention  with  GlaxoSmithKline  and  other 
investors  groups.  Teams  are  also  working  on  these  topics  in  the  Rikshospitalet119,  Oslo,  and  the 
Akershus University Hospital120.  

Alzheimer’s  and  Parkinson  diseases,  as  well  as  epilepsy,  are  studied  in  the  Nordic  Centre  of 
Excellence in Neurodegeneration, a Nordic Network funded, among other contributors, by the Nordic 
Medical Research Councils, which is co-coordinated by the Wallenberg Neuroscience Centre at Lund 
University and comprises 12 teams from Sweden, Finland, Denmark, and Norway.  

is  also  subject  of 

Dementia  (including  Alzheimer’s  disease)  and  Parkinson’s  disease 
the 
“TrønderBrain”  Survey  implemented  by  the  Norwegian  University  of  Science  and  Technology121  in 
the Trøndelag region. The Research Council of Norway supported the establishment of this project in 
2003  through  the  Age  Research  Programme,  and  currently  supports  it  through  the  NevroNor 
programme.  The  project  “TrønderBrain”  is  cooperation  between  several  research  groups  at  the 
University  Hospital  of  Trondheim  (St.  Olav's  Hospital)  and  the  Department  of  Neuroscience, 
Norwegian  University  of  Science  and  Technology.  Because  the  population  in  the  counties  of  North 
and  South  Trøndelag  of  central  Norway  has  been  relatively  stable  over  several  centuries,  this  will 
hopefully  make  it  easier  to  identify  inherited  factors  that  contribute  to  the  development  of  various 
forms of dementia and other progressive, neurodegenerative diseases. 

The  University  Hospital  of  North  Norway  and  the  Norwegian  Foundation  for  Health  and 
Rehabilitation implement "The Dementia Study" in Northern Norway, a Clinical Trial with donepezil 
superimposed  on  a  non-medical  intervention  with  cognitive  and  social  stimulation  therapy  in  rural 
community medical practice.  

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116 
117 
118 
119 
120 
121 

http://www.mcst.gov.mt/files/uploaded/R&I-2008-068-NeuroAmyloid.pdf 
http://www.forskningsradet.no/servlet/Satellite?c=Page&cid=1177315753906&p=1177315753906&pagenam  
http://www.ntnu.no/cbm/ 
http://www.cmbn.no/ 
http://www.rikshospitalet.no/ikbViewer/page/no/pages/hygiene/english?p_dim_id=32373 
http://www.med.uio.no/ahus/english/ 
http://www.ntnu.no/dmf/research 

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POLAND 

NENCKI Institute of Experimental Biology 

One of the main five Departments of this reputed Institute, the Department of Molecular and Cellular 
Biology122  is  involved  in  research  on  neurodegenerative  diseases.  This  includes  the  areas  of  signal 
transduction processes leading to cell proliferation and differentiation; neural plasticity; learning and 
memory formation as well as neurodegeneration; regeneration, plasticity and ageing.  

The  Institute  also  participates  to  several  EU  projects  including  AXREGEN  (Axonal  regeneration, 
plasticity  and  stem  cells,  Marie  Curie  Initial  Training  Network);  MARK-AGE  (European  study  to 
establish Biomarkers of Human Ageing); MEMSTICK (Synaptic mechanisms of memory loss: novel 
cell adhesion molecules as therapeutic targets) PLASTICISE (Promotion of plasticity as a treatment of 
degenerative conditions). 

Institute of Pharmacology 
Part  of  the  Polish  Academy  of  Sciences,  the  Institute  of  Pharmacology  (IF)123,  through  its  center  of 
excellence  on  neuro-  and  psychopharmacology,  devotes  particular  efforts 
the  area  of 
neurodegeneration  research.  The  areas  covered  include  research  on  the  role  of  neurotransmitters  in 
neurodegenerative  diseases'  development,  the  establishment  of  animal  models  for  these  diseases  as 
well as the role of neurotoxic substances on the development of neurodegeneration.  

to 

International Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology 

International 

Institute  of  Molecular  and  Cell  Biology, 

The 
its  Laboratory  of 
Neurodegeneration124 is studying the molecular mechanisms involved in learning and memory, as well 
as  in  neurodegeneration.  Major  efforts  are  being  devoted  to  the  identification  of  mutations  in 
Alzheimer's disease and the search for biomarkers and therapeutic targets for this disease and related 
disorders.  

through 

Mossakowski Medical Research Centre Polish Academy of Sciences 

The  Mossakowski  Medical  Research  Centre  of  the  Polish  Academy  of  Sciences  is  focused  on 
fundamental and clinical research in the areas of neurophysiology, neuroimmunology, neurochemistry, 
neuropathology,  neurology,  neurosurgery,  experimental  transplantology,  endocrinology  and  cellular 
biology. Research on neurodegenerative disorders is one of the key areas of investment. 

PORTUGAL 

Alzheimer Portugal 
Alzheimer  Portugal125  is  a  non-profit  organization  established  in  1988.  It  provides  awareness, 
information  and  research,  support  and  advocate  for  people  with  dementia  and  caregivers  and  at 
creating models of care.  

Centre for Neurosciences and Cell biology 
The Centre of Neurosciences and Cell Biology126 at the Coimbra University is part of the Network of 
European  Neuroscience  Institutes  (ENI).  The  CNC  is  also  involved  in  collaborations  between  the 
Portuguese  government  and  the  Massachusetts  Institute  of  Technology  (MIT)  and  Harvard  Medical 
School (HMS). Neurosciences and disease127 , and in particular neurodegenerative diseases, is one of 
its six areas of investment. Specific areas tackled include: mitochondrial dysfunction, neuronal death 
and neuroprotection, mechanisms of disease(s) and brain repair.  

122 
123 
124 
125 
126 
127 

http://www.nencki.gov.pl/en/working_groups/index.html 
http://www.if-pan.krakow.pl/ifpan/dept/npsych.html 
http://www.iimcb.gov.pl/kuznicki_lab.php 
http://www.alzheimerportugal.org/clientSite/ 
http://www.cnbc.pt/ 
http://www.cnbc.pt/research/research01.asp 

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The Institute participates also to two Biomedical Inter-Institutional Research Programme (CNC, HUC, 
CHC, IPO) on "Neurology research: studies on neurodegenerative disorders" and "DNA investigation 
in Neurodegenerative Disorders" 

Champalimaud Foundation Neuroscience Programme  
Starting in 2007, the Champalimaud Foundation of the Gulbenkian Institute for Science128 specifically 
supports  a  research  programme  in  Neurosciences,  aimed  at  unraveling  the  neural  basis  of  behavior. 
The  program  is  embodied  to  several  research  groups,  working  in  close  interaction  with  the  broad-
based research biology and biomedicine conducted at the IGC. 

Instituto de Medicina Molecular 
Located  in  the  campus  of  Lisbon  Medical  School,  the  Instituto  de  Medicina  Molecular129  (IMM), 
established  in  2001,  is  an  Associate  Laboratory  of  the  Portuguese  National  Ministry  of  Science, 
Technology and  Higher  Education  (MCTES). Neurosciences  research  is  one  of  its  key  areas  of 
investment.  The  Cellular  and  Molecular  Neurosciences  Unit  focused  on  the  understanding  of  the 
molecular mechanisms which lead to neurodegeneration in diseases such as Parkinson's, Huntington's, 
or Alzheimer's disease. 

The  Dementia  Research  Group  of  the  Clinical  Neurology  Research  Unit  is  particularly  interested  in 
the clinical, neuropsychological and imaging characterization of the initial phases of AD. The Clinical 
Neuropharmacology  Group  aims  to  contribute  to  the  development  of  effective  and  safe  therapeutic 
interventions  for  neurodegenerative  diseases  through  the  establishment  of  optimised  methodologies 
and  infrastructures  for  the  assessment  of  the  clinical  impact  of  these  measures.  The  Genomics  of 
Complex  Disease  laboratory  focuses  on  understanding  the  genetic  architecture  of  complex  diseases 
such as Parkinson's disease.  

ROMANIA 
The  Romanian  National  Authority  for  Scientific  Research  (ANCS)130  -  Ministry  of  Education  and 
Research-  is  the  major  source  of  financing  research  projects  by  the  National  Plan  for  Research, 
Development and Innovation. 

The VIASAN- Life and Health research programme promotes and sustains the basic, strategic and 
applied research for understanding the pathological mechanisms, treatment and prevention of diseases 
with a great impact in the population, for the harmonisation of best quality care, and for increasing the 
level of health in Romania. 

Neurosciences  is  one  of  the  areas  of  investment  within  the  VIASAN  programme  and  addresses, 
amongst  others,  the  study  of  the  cellular  mechanisms  of  neurodegenerative  diseases,  the  molecular 
mechanisms involved in cellular senescence and degeneration..  

CEEX is a national program for excellence in research, accorded by the same national organisms.  
The National Council for Scientific Research (CNCSI)131 is also national funding agency, targeting 
neurosciences research. 

National Neuroscience Society of Romania and the Centre for Excellence in Neuroscience "Carol 
Davila" University of Medicine and Pharmacy Bucharest  

The  project  "The  development  of  a  European  Network  for  the  investigation  of  interneuronal  and 
neuroglial  relations  in  energetic  stress,  neurodegenerative  diseases  and  ageing,  aiming  the 
development  of  new  therapeutic  strategies"  in  collaboration  with  European  partners  from  UK  and 
Germany was financed by the CEEX program of the Romanian Ministry of Education and Research. 
Other basic and clinical neurological research projects are financed by VIASAN program. 

128 
129 
130 
131 

http://www.igc.gulbenkian.pt/ 
http://www.imm.ul.pt/indexi.html 
http://www.ancs.ro/ 
http://www.cncsis.ro/index.php 

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National Institute of GERONTOLOGY and GERIATRY ‘ANA ASLAN’ 

Within  the  National  Plan  for  Research,  Development  and  Innovation,  the  Institute  is  performing 
fundamental  and applicative research,  under the coordination of the Academy for Medical Sciences, 
within the field of ageing pathology. 

"The  Day  Hospital  for  the  Diagnosis  and  Treatment  of  Memory  Impairments"  was  founded  by  the 
“Ana Aslan” International Academy of Ageing in Romania. This study, which actively screened for 
MCI patients using international criteria for diagnosis, is the first descriptive study in East-European 
countries on MCI.  
Alzheimer  Romania132  is  a  member  of  the  international  associations  Alzheimer's  Groups  European 
Organisations and Making Dementia a Public Health priority. 

In  2006,  and  with  the  support  of  Pfizer,  Alzheimer  Romania  organized  the  campaign  “Don't  forget 
those who forget”. The role of this campaign was to inform and educate Romanian people regarding 
problems concerning Alzheimer's disease and to increase the trust of people into specialized medical 
consultation.  Novartis  Pharma  supported  a  project  for  helping  families  of  patients  affected  by 
Alzheimer's disease. 

Hoffman-  La  Roche  initializes  in  2009  a  clinical  trial:"  A  dose-ranging,  randomized,  double-blind, 
placebo-controlled  study  of  the  effect  of  RO5313534,  used  as  add-on  therapy  to  donepezil,  on 
cognitive function in patients with mild to moderate symptoms of Alzheimer's disease". 

SOCODOR Center for Research and Treatment of Alzheimer Disease is the first center created in 
Romania in 2009 with an investment of 5 million euro. It will be supported by the collaboration with 
Hungarian and Canadian partners and also by the Romanian Ministry of Health which will finance the 
expensive treatment of the patients. 
CONEURAL Centre for Cognitive and Neural Studies133 focuses on three main research directions: 
recording and analysis of electrophysiological data, development of advanced tools for data analysis 
and modelling of neuronal processes, issues ranging from mechanistic levels, of rhythm generation, up 
to the level of human cognition. 

Two scientific projects are financed by CNCSI – Romanian National Council for Scientific Research. 
Another project intended to strengthen the collaboration between Coneural and Max Planck Institute 
for  Brain  Research  in  Frankfurt  (MPI),  established  a  direct  and  close  collaboration  with  the 
Neurophysiology Department of the MPI. There are numerous projects ongoing that will include the 
study of temporal structure in neuronal activity, funded by Max Plank Society from Germany.  

SLOVAKIA  

Slovakia  has  a  national  comprehensive  Alzheimer's  disease  network  constituted  by  the  Institute  of 
Neuroimmunology134  of  the  Slovak  Academy  of  Sciences,  the  Slovak  Alzheimer's  society,  the 
MEMORY Foundation135 and the MEMORY Centre-Psychiatric Ambulatory Care Centre136. 

The  Institute  of  Neuroimmunology  was  established  in  1996  with  support  from  the  MEMORY 
Foundation. The Institute studies neuroscience at various levels, from a) molecular level, to b) cellular 
level, to c) systems level up to d) cognitive level and uses its observations and findings for searching 
the  underlying  causes  of  neurodegenerative  diseases  with  focus  on  Alzheimer’s  disease  and  related 
neurodegenerative disorders (tauopathies) and prion diseases. The Institute is coordinator of the Centre 
of Excellence for Alzheimer's disease and related disorders.  

132 
133 
134 
135 
136 

http://www.alz.ro/ 
http://www.coneural.org/ 
http://www.niu.sav.sk/index.php?id=33&lang=en 
http://www.alzheimer.sk/ 
http://www.alzheimer.sk/ 

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It  is  responsible  for  the  genetic  analysis  of  patients  with  early  onset  forms  of  Alzheimer  disease, 
manages the Slovak Brain Bank and is the national reference laboratory for Transmissible Spongiform 
Encephalopathies (TSE). 

The MEMORY Centre – Alzheimer Diagnostic Centre is a fully integrated platform for Alzheimer's 
disease patients and their relatives. The Centre contains also a Psychiatric Ambulatory Cancer Centre, 
opened in 2002 by the MEMORY Foundation is a specialised facility for the prevention, diagnosis and 
education for AD. 

SLOVENIA 

Forget-me-not 
"Forget-me-not137",  the  Alzheimer's  Disease  and  Related  Disorders  Association  of  Slovenia  , 
established  in  1997,  is  a  non-governmental  organisation  aimed  at  raising  awareness  of  all  forms  of 
dementia and other mental disorders encountered in old age. Its goals include organising support for 
caregivers,  promoting  training  of  staff,  developing  a  network  of  medical  practitioners  interested  in 
mental  health  of  the  elderly,  encouraging  further  knowledge  development  in  this  area,  cooperating 
with similar foreign organisations.  

University medical centre Ljubljana 
The  University  Medical  Centre  Ljubljana138  (UMC)  is  a  public  health  care  institution  providing 
medical  services  at  the  secondary  and  tertiary  level.  The  UMC  is  the  leading  medical  institution  in 
Slovenia and one of the largest hospitals in central Europe. As the main training base for the Faculty of 
Medicine in Ljubljana, the UMC effectively combines clinical work with education and research. The 
Department of Neurology is a teaching, research oriented clinical hospital located in Ljubljana and one 
of the largest centre dedicated to improving neurological health in the country. 

Jozef Stefan Institute 
The Department of Biochemistry139 of the Jozef Stefan Institute performs substantial research in the 
area  of  proteases  and  their  role  in  neurodegenerative  disorders,  as  well  as  in  the  development  of 
amyloid fibres and their role in neurodegenerative disorders. 

Ad-Futura – Science and education Foundation 
The  Ad-Futura140  foundation  encourages  networking  among  people  involved  in  education  and 
research,  and  by  providing  financial  support  enhances  the  mobility  of  knowledge,  ideas  and  people 
within the society. The foundation allocates its financial support to extraordinary researchers, faculty 
and secondary school students from abroad for the purpose of education and research in Slovenia. Part 
of  the  funds  is  also  available  to  Slovene  citizens  for  the  purpose  of  acquiring  additional  knowledge 
abroad. In 2005, the Foundation granted 360 scholarships.  

SYNAPSA 
SYNAPSA141,  the  Slovenian  Neurosciences  association  is  responsible  for  advancing  neurosciences 
knowledge  in  Slovenia.  It  facilitates  multidisciplinarity  and  cooperation  with  similar  national  and 
international  organizations.  It  organises  each  2  years  an  international  conference  around  a  specific 
theme. The 2009 conference will address memory.  

137 
138 
139 
140 
141 

http://www.ljudmila.org/~zzppd/adrda.htm 
http://www3.kclj.si/ang/index.php 
http://bio.ijs.si/prot/prot_en/index.htm 
http://quark-magazine.com/pdf/quark07/114ADFUTURA.pdf 
http://www.sinapsa.org/en/mission.php 

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National Research and Development Programme (NRDP) 
The current NDRP programme142 (2006-2010) gives a special emphasis to technical natural sciences 
and  biomedical  research.  It  different  areas  are  implemented  through  the  Slovenian  Research 
Agency143. For the period 2004-2008, Slovenia has devoted 72,3 and 73 full-time equivalents (FTE) to 
medical and biotechnological sciences, respectively. 

SPAIN 
Spain has established in 2007 the Network of Biomedical Research on Neurodegenerative Disease144 
(CIBERNED)  under  the  initiative  of  the  Insituto  de  Salud  Carlos  III145  (ISCIII).  62  research  groups 
belonging  to  Spanish  Science  and  Technology  System  (universities,  hospitals,  public  research 
organisms). Financial support was of € 8 million in 2007. 

include: 

the  molecular  pathology  of  Alzheimer  (mechanisms  of 
The  areas  of  research 
neurodegeneration, neuroprotection and new therapies in AD); diagnosis, treatment and prevention of 
dementias (genetic epidemiology, animal and cell models in AD); cell therapy in Parkinson disease; 
neural circuits in Parkinson; neuromuscular pathologies; molecular pathology of Huntington disease. 
The Network of Biomedical Research on Mental Health146 (CIBERSAM) was also established by the 
ISCIII  in  2008  and  endowed  with  a  financial  support  of  €  3,4  million  for  the  2008  fiscal  year.  It 
includes  25  research  groups  and  addresses  research  areas  such  as  depression,  schizophrenia,  bipolar 
disorders and other disorders. It also has a Brain Bank Platform in psychiatric diseases. 
The Health Research Funding Agency147 (FIS), managed by ISCIII, has supported over 36 projects on 
Alzheimer disease and other dementias in the past 4 years with an overall budget of €3.8 million. 
The  Ministry  of  Science  and  Innovation148  has  supported  21  Research  projects  on  Alzheimer  and 
related dementias in the period 2007-2009. Overall budget is of € 2.8 million. 

The ISCIII’S CIEN FOUNDATION (Centre for Research on Neurological Diseases): provides € 0.7 
million/  year  and  the  Queen  Sofia  FOUNDATION  provides  €  0.5  million/  year  to  support  the 
Alzheimer's  Disease  Project149  at  the  Alzheimer's  Disease  Research  Unit  (UIPA)  of  the  Foundation. 
Areas and facilities supported include medical assistance, coordination of research programmes, brain 
banking, and imaging platform. Priority lines for 2006-2010 are: research on early diagnosis of AD – 
MRI, biomarkers, molecular and cell biology in AD – β-amyloid peptide, tau; ageing and risk factors 
for AD; translational research in AD; assignment of resources and quality of care for AD patients 

Up to € 2,5 million/year is devoted to neurodegenerative disorders research through regional funds. 

SWEDEN 

Swedish Brain Power  
Brain Power150 is a programme issued in 2005 that entails co-operation between the Invest in Sweden 
Agency,  the  Knowledge  Foundation,  the  Swedish  Foundation  for  Healthcare  Sciences  and  Allergy 
Research (the Vårdal Foundation), the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research, the Knut and Alice 
Wallenberg Foundation and VINNOVA. The programme aims to develop a new holistic concept for 
integration  and  co-operation  within  a  number  of  R&D  areas  that  are  important  to  the  diagnosis  and 
treatment  of  neurodegenerative  diseases.  This  national  consortium  is  led  by  the  Karolinska  Institute 

142 
143 
144 
145 
146 
147 
148 
149 
150 

http://www.sycp.si/sycp/Policy_Overview_RTD.wlgt 
http://www.arrs.gov.si/en/dobrodoslica.asp 
http://www.ciberned.es/default-en.aspx 
http://www.isciii.es/htdocs/en/index.jsp 
http://www.cibersam.es/opencms/opencms/cibersam/?idioma=en 
http://www.isciii.es/htdocs/en/investigacion/investigacion_presentacion.jsp 
http://web.micinn.es/contenido.asp?menu1=1&menu2=1&dir=01_Portada/01-Ministerio/01-Ministra 
http://www.fundacioncien.es/ponencias/Research%20Unit%20for%20AD%20-PMM.pdf 
http://www.swedishbrainpower.se/eng/index.htm 

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and  was  allocated  SEK  100  million  over  5  years.  It  includes  50  ongoing  research  projects  and  80 
researchers. The programme is now undergoing its mid term evaluation.  

The Swedish Dementia Registry, Svedem 
Svedem151 was started by the initiative of Swedish Brain Power. It now holds basic data about over 
4.000 dementia patients around Sweden. 61 care units have become members of Svedem, 21 of those 
are health care centres and one is a municipality. 

Svedem  is  a  national  quality  registry  on  the  dementia  care  in  Sweden.  The  aim  is  to  develop  the 
dementia care and create a more even care quality over the country. 

Stockholm Brain Institute 

Established in 2007, the Stockholm Brain Institute is a consortium for Cognitive and Computational 
Neuroscience,  joining  three  leading  Swedish  Universities;  Karolinska  Institutet,  Royal  Institute  of 
Technology and Stockholm University, gathering 80 scientists and 11 research groups. SBI has been 
granted 100 million Swedish Crowns from VINNOVA and the Swedish Research Council. Matching 
funds are expected from collaboration with industry. 

Areas  tackled  include:  1)  to  integrate  expertise  in  cognitive,  computational,  and  neural  sciences  in 
order  to  understand  the  human  brain  from  genes  to  behaviour,  2)  to  explore  the  neurobiological 
processes  leading  to  cognitive  dysfunctions  in  several  brain  disorders  such  as  Alzheimer's  and  3)  to 
develop  biomarkers  to  detect  and  monitor  the  pathological  processes  underlying  these  disorders,  as 
well as to develop new principles for prevention and intervention. 

Karolinska Institute 

The  Karolinska  Institute  provides  a  comprehensive  effort  in  the  field  of  neurosciences,  through  its 
Departments of Neurosciences, cell and molecular biology, physiology and pharmacology and clinical 
neurosciences. 
The Department of Neurosciences152 incorporates research groups dealing with different aspects of the 
function  of  the  nervous  system,  both  under  normal  conditions  and  during  different  diseases. 
Alzheimer's diseases and dementia is also one of the 8 specific areas addressed by the Department. 

Basic research carried out is aimed at  understanding the functional role of various neurotransmitters 
and  neuropeptides,  the  ionic  and  biochemical  mechanisms  involved  and  the  molecular  basis  of 
transmitter release. Extensive research is also carried out on the regulation of nerve cell growth and 
factors  involved  in  neuronal  regeneration  and  degeneration,  and  which  are  important  in  conditions 
such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease. Karolinska Institute also conducts more clinically 
orientated research into specific diseases, such as Parkinson's disease, psychiatric diseases 
The Department of Neurobiology, Care Sciences and Society153 (NVS) is responsible for one third of 
KI's clinical neuroscience research with a focus on dementia and intellectual failure for other reasons. 

University of Lund 
NeuroLund154 is a scientific platform established at the University of Lund focusing on the brain and 
its  related  diseases.  The  goal  is  to  develop  new  treatments  for  diseases  such  as  Parkinson's, 
Alzheimer's,  Parkinson's,  brain  damages  after  stroke  and  depression.  Neuroprotection,  cell 
replacement and gene therapy approaches for these diseases are amongst the expected outcomes.  
NeuroFortis at the Wallenberg Neuroscience Centre155 is a joint effort between four research teams in 
the field of brain damage and repair. The program explores novel mechanisms of neurodegeneration 

151 
152 
153 
154 
155 

http://www.ucr.uu.se/svedem/ 
http://ki.se/ki/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=21984&l=en 
http://ki.se/ki/jsp/polopoly.jsp?d=5528&l=en&fromnode=5478 
http://www.med.lu.se/neurolund 
http://www.med.lu.se/neurofortis 

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and  maladaptive  plasticity  in  animal  models  of  neurodegenerative  disease  or  ischemic  brain  injury, 
and  aims  at  devising  novel  treatment  strategies  based  on  disease  intervention,  cell  replacement  and 
functional restoration.  

SWITZERLAND 
There are several layers of funding provided by the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF)156 in 
support  of  research  on  neurodegenerative  disorders.  This  includes  supporting  investigation-initiator 
projects  but  also  providing  support  through  targeted  programmes  such  as  the  National  Targeted 
programme  on  "stems  cells  and  regenerative  medicine"  or  the  network  of  National  Competence 
Centres in Research.  

NCCR Neuro: Neural Plasticity and Repair  
The NCCR Neural Plasticity and Repair programme157 (2001-2012), is managed by the University of 
Zurich  in  collaboration  with  ETH  Zurich  and  part  of  a  large-scale  research  initiative  of  the  Swiss 
National  Science  Foundation  aiming  at  establishing  and  funding  a  national  network  of  National 
Competence  Centres  in  Research.  It  consists  of  8  main  programmes,  one  of  them  addressing 
specifically Alzheimer's disease 

The  focus  of  its  research  is  on  the  restoration  of  function  after  damage  or  disease  of  the  nervous 
system.  The  NCCR  will  elucidate  the  basic  cellular  and  molecular  mechanisms  of  regeneration, 
plasticity  and  functional  repair  of  the  damaged  nervous  system.  Using  animal  models  as  an 
intermediate step, novel approaches for therapies of human diseases will be developed with emphasis, 
amongst others, on Alzheimer's disease and multiple sclerosis.  

Neuroscience Centre Zurich 
The Neuroscience Centre of Zurich158 (ZNZ) is a joint competence centre of ETH and University of 
Zurich.  About  100  basic,  clinical  and  applied  research  groups  cover  the  entire  spectrum  of 
neuroscience ranging from molecular and cellular processes in the brain over physiology and diseases 
of the nervous system to computational modelling and psychology. The areas addressed include, for 
instance, research on ageing and disorders of the nervous system, molecular and cellular neuroscience, 
development  and  regeneration.  Research  on  neurodegenerative  disorders  is  comprehensively 
addressed through many angles. 

National Research Programme on stem cells and regenerative medicine 

Part  of  the  National  Research  Programmes  for  targeted  research  of  the  Swiss  National  Science 
Foundation  this  programme  starting  January  2009  aims  at  giving  a  boost  to  basic  research  on  stem 
cells  and  regenerative  medicine,  in  particular  areas  such  as  Parkinson's  disease  and  other 
neurodegenerative  disorders.  The  overall  financial  support  will  be  of  CHF  10  million 
for 5 years.  

Many private Swiss foundations, including the Roche and Novartis foundations fund applications for 
Alzheimer disease–related projects. Swiss academic researchers are also financially supported by their 
home institutions, the cantonal universities and the two Federal Institutes of Technology in Zurich and 
Lausanne. To support the transfer of knowledge between businesses and universities, and to foster the 
translation  of  innovative  research  into  product  development,  the  Swiss  Confederation's  innovation-
promoting  agency  supports  research  and  development  programs  jointly  done  by  universities,  young 
entrepreneurs and industry. 

In addition, many start-up and biotechnology companies including Cytos, Esbatech, AC Immune and 
The Genetics Company are involved in developing diagnostics and therapeutics for Alzheimer disease. 

156 
157 
158 

http://www.snf.ch/E/Pages/default.aspx 
http://www.nccr-neuro.uzh.ch/description 
http://www.neuroscience.ethz.ch/ 

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THE NETHERLANDS 

National Dementia Programme – LeARN 
The  Dutch  Alzheimer  Association  EINDE159  has  made  huge  strides  in  helping  to  implement  a 
National Dementia Programme, to which it contributed with an overall support of € 2.8 million for the 
period 2004-2009. In 2002, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Sport asked the association and the 
Netherlands Institute for Health and Welfare to develop a nationwide programme to improve dementia 
care  from  a  client  perspective.  Now,  improvement  teams  are  in  operation  in  58  regions  across  the 
country,  and  families  themselves  have  been  involved  in  coming  up  with  priorities  for  local 
improvement plans. 
The  Centre  for  Translational  Molecular  Medicine160  (CTMM)  is  dedicated  to  the  development  of 
medical technologies that enable the design of new and "personalized" treatments for the main causes 
of mortality and diminished quality of life, amongst them neurodegenerative diseases. It is a public-
private partnership that comprises a multidisciplinary group of parties – universities, academic medical 
centres, medical technology enterprises and chemical and pharmaceutical companies 
The  LeARN  project161,  "In  vivo  molecular  diagnostics  in  Alzheimer's  disease",  aims  at  developing 
new  instruments  with  which  to  make  an  earlier  and  more  reliable  diagnosis  of  AD  during  life  and 
create the conditions for an effective evaluation of novel medication therapies of AD patients. Overall 
funding  is  €  8  million  for  the  period  2008  –  2012.  Coordination  is  ensured  by  Leiden  University 
Medical Centre. 

This will be achieved by developing: 1) new imaging techniques that will use ultra-sensitive MRI and 
PET  to  visualize  ‘senile  plaques’  in  the  brains  of  AD  patients,  2)  new  technologies  that  allow 
visualization  of  glutamate  neurotransmitter  molecules  as  well  as  the  receptors  to  which  glutamate 
molecules  bind  and  3)  novel  technologies  that  allow  for  the  identification  and  quantification  of 
biomarkers  for  AD  in  cerebrospinal  fluid.  The  project  will  also  study  the  mechanism  of  action  of 
potential  novel  drugs  through  the  development  of  essential  biomarkers.  In  addition,  the  diagnostic 
tools listed above will be tested for their (additional) value in the diagnostic process of AD patients 

Pearlstring 

String-of-pearls  is  a  joint  infrastructure  to  collect  and  access  the  patient  data  and  biomaterials  of  at 
least eight patient categories, one of them being dementia. The consortium is composed of the eight 
University  Medical  Centres  (UMC's),  joined  in  the  Dutch  Federation  of  University  Medical  Centres 
(NFU),  which  provide  most  tertiary  care  in  The  Netherlands.  The  programme  on  dementia  and 
neurodegenerative  disorders,  Pearstring162,  which  is  mainly  focussing  on  establishing  a  bio  banking 
infrastructure for AD is endowed with an overall budget of € 8 million for the 2008 – 2012 period.  

Top Institute Pharma 
Founded  in  2006,  TI  Pharma163  is  a  collaborative  structure  consisting  of  industrial  and  academic 
research teams. TI Pharma conducts cross-disciplinary research and trains their personnel in improving 
the efficiency of the entire drug discovery and development process.  

TI Pharma is conducting a project on "Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s disease: from disordered 
human  brain  targets  to  novel  therapeutics".  The  objectives  of  this  project  are  the  identification  and 
validation of potential drug targets, the provision of novel cell and animal models as well as clinically 
validated biomarkers directly relevant for development of early diagnosis and treatment of Parkinson’s 
disease and Alzheimer’s disease. The initiative is supported for an overall value of € 6 million for the 
period 2008 – 2011. 

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160 
161 
162 
163 

http://www.dementieprogramma.nl/ 
http://www.ctmm.nl/pro1/general/home.asp 
http://www.ctmm.nl/pro1/general/start.asp?i=4&j=1&k=0&p=0&itemid=73 
http://www.parelsnoer.org/page/De-Parels/Neurodegeneratieve-hersenziekten 
http://www.tipharma.com/pro1/general/home.asp 

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The  consortium  consists  of  the  partners  DNage  BV,  Erasmus  MC  (University  Medical  Centre 
Rotterdam), Leiden University Medical Centre, the Netherlands Brain Bank, the Netherlands Institute 
for Neuroscience, Solvay Pharmaceuticals, the University Medical Centre Utrecht, Utrecht University, 
VU University Amsterdam and the VU University Medical Centre. 

Dutch  funding  for  Alzheimer's  related  research  includes  the  following  additional  projects  and 
initiatives:  

Neuro-Bsik  Mouse  Phenomics164,  which  address  research  on  mouse  models  of  neurological 

- 
disorders (€ 13,1 million, 2003-2009)  

- 

Brain and Cognition165, focused on cognition research (€ 7,5 million, 2008-2011) 
Netherlands  Consortium  for  Health  Ageing  -  Genomics  Initiative166,  addressing  genes  in 

- 
healthy ageing (€ 12,5 million, 2008-2012) 

National Programme on Care for the elderly167, addressing the improvement of care in elderly 

- 
populations (€ 80 million, 2008-2011) 

- 

Priority Medicines for the elderly, focused on drugs for older elder population. 

UNITED KINGDOM 

Neurodegenerative diseases research initiatives in the United Kingdom include: 
National  Dementia  Strategy  –  developed  by  the  Department  of  Health168  and  addressing  3  key 
themes:  

- 

- 

Raising awareness  

Early diagnosis and intervention  

Improving quality of care  

- 
MRC  Strategic  Review  of  Neurodegeneration169  –  published  in  2008,  the  review  formulated 
strategic advice to the MRC on:  

- 

- 

Changes in health need  

New scientific opportunities  

The  most  important  research  and  training  questions  that  the  MRC/UK  could  address.  The 
- 
report made three central recommendations: to strengthen biological research into disease origins and 
mechanisms,  to  improve  training  and  critical  mass,  to  provide  support  for  a  strategic  co-ordinated 
network that would address the key barriers to progress in the field.  

MRC/Wellcome Trust Call in Neurodegeneration  
In October 2008 WT/MRC170 launched a £30M joint call focussed on advancing the understanding of 
biological processes underpinning neurodegenerative diseases. The aims of the call were to:  

Create consortia comprising leading UK groups, which could include international researchers 

- 
and pharma  

Facilitate the use of interdisciplinary approaches to address key gaps in our knowledge of the 

- 
biological basis of neurodegenerative diseases  

164 
165 
166 
167 
168 
169 
170 

www.neurobsik.nl 
http://www.nwo.nl/nwohome.nsf/pages/NWOA_7BBK4H 
http://www.genomics.nl/GenomicsCentres/Health/NCHA.aspx 
http://www.nationaalprogrammaouderenzorg.nl/ 
http://www.dh.gov.uk/en/index.htm 
http://www.mrc.ac.uk/Utilities/Documentrecord/index.htm?d=MRC004898 
http://www.wellcome.ac.uk/Funding/Biomedical-science/Grants/Other-initiatives/WTX050533.htm 

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Catalyse  the  development  of  new  approaches  for  effective  diagnosis  and  therapeutic 

- 
interventions  

Dementias and Neurodegenerative Diseases research Network (DeNDRoN) 
The  DeNDRoN171  network  was  established  in  September  2005  as  part  of  the  UK  Clinical  Research 
Network, with the objective to facilitate clinical trials and research through enhancing NHS research 
infrastructure  and  increase  collaborative  working  between  academics,  clinicians,  patients,  carers  and 
research funders.  

It builds on strengths already present in the UK as well as increasing general capacity in the field of 
neurodegeneration. 

Lifelong Health and Wellbeing Initiative (LLHW) 
LLHW172  is  a  cross-council  programme  which  was  part  of  the  UK  Research  Councils’  ongoing 
commitment to support ageing-related research. This programme encompasses research that addresses 
health and wellbeing throughout the whole life course 

The aims of LLHW are: 

- 

- 

Targeting factors that may be major determinants of health and well being in later life  

Identifying and developing effective interventions 

Informing  policy  and  practice  including  the  development  of  services  and  technologies  to 

- 
support independent living 

- 

Establishing and strengthening multi-disciplinary teams to drive innovative research  

New UK Strategy for Brain Banking 

Led by the Medical Research Council for the UKCRC 

Key  recommendations:  UK  brain  banking  activity  should  be  organised  into  a  network  that  has  a 
central coordination centre; Brain Banks UK that is independently constituted and funded. There is a 
proactive  strategy  to  collect  controls  through  the  medico-legal  system  –  call  for  existing  banks  to 
expand activity 

Main aims: 

- 

- 

Facilitate sharing of brain tissue donations 

Provide easily available, high quality, fit-for-purpose control and disease tissue  

Ensure  high  quality  tissue  samples  suitable  for  molecular  genetic  DNA-based  studies,  RNA 

- 
analyses, proteomics expression profiling, target validation…  

Promote the  establishment of new brain tissue resources – normal control tissue, psychiatric 

- 
and other rarer CNS disorders requiring tissue based research 

- 

- 

Accelerate the accumulation of samples from rare conditions 

Reduce the administrative load on local banks 

171 
172 

http://www.dendron.org.uk/ 
http://www.mrc.ac.uk/Ourresearch/Priorities/LLHW/MRC005933 

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