FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ON March 25, 2006
Associate Professor from Atlanta’s Emory University to Receive Clinical Research Training Fellowship from AAN Foundation
St. Paul, Minn., -
Michael Benatar, MBChB, MS, DPhil, an Assistant Professor of Neurology at the Emory University in Atlanta, Ga., has been selected to receive a Clinical Research Training Fellowship from the American Academy of Neurology Foundation. Benatar will be honored during the American Academy of Neurology 58th Annual Meeting held April 1 – 8, 2006 in San Diego, Calif., The two-year fellowship is designed to support a young neurologist conducting clinical research in a mentored environment. Benatar’s research will focus on Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, which is a neurodegenerative disorder that leads to progressive weakness and death from respiratory failure over a period of several years. One form of the disease is considered to be inherited. The goal of Benatar’s research is to determine the feasability of a clinical trial designed to delay or prevent the onset of disease in those at risk for developing the familial form of ALS. “Currently the treatment options for patients with ALS are extremely limited,” said Benatar. “People with a strong family history of disease and who may carry one of the genetic abnormalities known to cause ALS live with the constant fear that they will develop ALS. If the current research achieves the desired results, we shall be in a position to design and implement a clinical trial in asymptomatic people at risk for developing ALS.” The fellowship also provides tuition reimbursement for education in clinical research methodology. The fellowship is supported by the AAN Foundation and the Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Association. The 58th Annual Meeting takes place in the San Diego Convention Center. It is the world’s largest annual gathering of neurologists.