National Institutes of Health (NIH) has selected the Swedish Neuroscience Institute (SNI) as the Pacific Northwest member of a national consortium of 25 neuroscience centres that will conduct clinical research studies on a variety of brain-related diseases.

SNI received a seven-year, $2.2 million grant from the National Institute of Neurological Disease and Stroke (NINDS), part of the NIH, through a competitive selection process. The NeuroNEXT programme at Swedish Neuroscience Institute will be led by associate chief medical director and director of Neurology, John W Henson, MD, FAAN, and director of Research Dan Rizzuto, PhD.

“The strength of our clinical programmes and investment in research infrastructure in the neurosciences made SNI a strong candidate for this center designation,” said Dr Henson. He noted that the major challenge for the NeuroNEXT consortium will be to translate discoveries about neurological diseases into improvements in health, while pushing the frontiers of basic research forward. Many serious neurological disorders will become more common as the US population ages.

“Our research programme is focused on discoveries that can be directly applied to patient care,” said Dr Rizzuto. “Everything we do is geared toward solving some problem or improving the quality of life for those who have a complex neurological disease. Participation in the NeuroNEXT consortium is a natural addition to our existing efforts.” He noted that SNI has more than 80 active clinical research projects under way now in 10 different neurological diseases.

“NeuroNEXT will expand the capability to test the most promising new therapies for a wide range of neurological disorders affecting children and adults,” said Elizabeth McNeil, MD, the NIH/NINDS program director who will oversee the programme. “Through 25 clinical sites across the US, as well as a clinical- and a data-coordinating centre, NIH will provide the expertise and infrastructure needed to rapidly assess treatment options as they become available from both academic and industry investigators.”

Marc Mayberg, MD, chief medical director at SNI said, “I believe SNI was selected because of its broad areas of specialization, the track record of quality research by SNI investigators, and the high volume of patients with neurological and neurosurgical disorders treated at Swedish Neuroscience Institute.”

Drs Henson and Rizzuto along with other SNI staff will attend a kickoff meeting on Friday, Nov. 18 at the National Institutes of Health in Washington, DC.

According to NIH, the first study will investigate a rare but devastating condition in paediatric patients called spinal muscular atrophy. The NeuroNEXT consortium hopes to identify biomarkers that improve diagnostic testing, track disease progression, and permit assessment of the effectiveness of new therapies. Identifying biomarkers for spinal muscular atrophy is an example of translational research, as the study is not testing a new therapy per se, but is expected to support the development of new therapies in the future. Due to the rare nature of spinal muscular atrophy, having a nation-wide consortium of 25 regional centres will be very important for enrolling sufficient numbers of patients into the trial. SNI will work closely with neurologists throughout the WWAMI (Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana and Idaho) region and with disease-specific community organizations, such as the Multiple Dystrophy Association, to raise awareness of the NeuroNEXT trials and help identify appropriate study participants.

In addition to SNI, other NeuroNEXT clinical sites include:

Albert Einstein College of Medicine Yeshiva University, Children’s Hospital – Boston, Children’s National Medical Centre, Columbia University – Weill Cornell, Emory University, Massachusetts General Hospital, Northwestern University, Ohio State University, Oregon Health and Science University, SUNY (Buffalo, Downstate, Upstate, and Stony Brook), University of Alabama at Birmingham, University of California – Davis, University of California – Los Angeles, University of Cincinnati, University of Colorado – Denver, University of Kansas Medical Centre, University of Miami School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, University of Rochester, University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center, University of Utah.

The goal of the NINDS Network for Excellence in Neuroscience Clinical Trials, or NeuroNEXT, is to conduct exploratory (phase II) trials of treatments for neurological diseases through partnerships with academia, private foundations, and industry. The network is designed to expand the Institute’s capability to test the most promising new therapies, to increase the efficiency of clinical trials before embarking on large efficacy studies, and to respond quickly as new opportunities arise to test promising treatments for people with neurological disorders.

In October 2011, the NINDS made awards to 25 US clinical sites, a clinical coordinating centre, and a data coordinating centre, and announced the programme in a series of meetings with academic researchers, industry representatives, and patient groups.