Ride Ataxia Research Funds

Its payoff time! Now is when we can see the tangible impact of the Ride Ataxia efforts! Today FARA and NAF announced funding of the 4th, 5th and 6th Ride Ataxia research grants. Funding of these three grants brings us to 6 grants totaling over $700,000 in three short years. With this announcement we can clearly see the difference that is made with our combined efforts. This research will advance potential treatments toward clinical trials so that they will soon be available for patients like me and many of my teammates. This research provides hope to all who are searching for a cure and we are all a part of that hope with participation in Ride Ataxia either as a donor, rider or volunteer.

Press Release:
The National Ataxia Foundation (NAF) and the Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance (FARA) announced today that, this year, they are co-funding two $120,000 Kyle Bryant Awards that are going to promising translational research in Friedreich’s Ataxia (FA). A third award will be funded by FARA for $120,000, made possible by sponsorship from Outback Steakhouse. One award is being made to Dr. Mark Payne of Indiana University School of Medicine, proposal titled “Optimizing delivery of frataxin using cell penetrant peptides”. The second award goes to Dr. Gino Cortopassi of the University of California Davis, proposal titled “Screening for mitofunctional Friedreich's Ataxia therapeutics”. The third will be granted to Dr. Marek Napierala from the University of Texas, MD Anderson Cancer Center, proposal titled “Crosstalk between microRNAs and iron metabolism in pathogenesis of Friedreich’s ataxia”. -->Read the entire press release.