$25 million gift will advance Parkinson ’s research at UCLA

A $25 million gift from a Los Angeles foundation will create the UCLA Laurie and Steven Gordon Commitment to Cure Parkinson ’s Disease at theDavid Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA. The initiative  will accelerate research into the disorder, which affects more than 10 million people around the world.The gift, from the Steven Gordon Family Foundation, will fund research, establish five endowed faculty chairs in fields related to Parkinson ’s, and support a new lab with positron emission tomography, or PET scan, and MRI technology, where scientists can closely examine the mechanisms of the disease.Steven Gordon, the foundation ’s president, is a member of the executive committee for theCentennial Campaign for UCLA, and on boards for the Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, the UCLA Health System and the UCLA Ziman Center for Real Estate. He and his wife, Laurie, chair of the board of advisors of the Stewart and Lynda Resnick Neuropsychiatric Hospital at UCLA, have been steadfast advocates for funding neuroscience training and research, including in depression and Parkinson ’s disease, at UCLA.“The Gordons are generous funders of neuroscience investigations as well as influential advocates for families affected by Parkinson’s disease,” said Dr. John Mazziotta, vice chancellor of UCLA Health Sciences and CEO of UCLA Health. “The foundation’s gift is a testament to Laurie’s and Steve’s dedication to improving the lives and the health of people suffering from P...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news