Science News

At ARVO 2019, the world’s largest gathering of vision scientists, BrightFocus grantees stood out for their insights into key cells in the retina and surrounding tissue that participate in macular degeneration.

A new blood-based Alzheimer’s screening test, created with a grant from BrightFocus, received a “Breakthrough Device” designation by the FDA. This speeds up its timeline for possible approval and public use.

All mouse models used to represent Alzheimer’s disease are imperfect, and can only approximate how the disease develops in humans. However, a BrightFocus-funded research project is being hailed as a game-changer that could make results highly relevant to human disease.

Randall Bateman, MD, thinks we aren’t learning enough from current methods for detecting Alzheimer’s plaques. With a BrightFocus grant, he’s developing an entirely new technology.

In 2003, after his mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen put part of his fortune into brain research. What a fitting legacy for an “idea man,” whose philanthropy remains an inspiration.