Dr. Tsuneya Ikezu honored by Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative
The Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative (AAQI) honored Dr. Tsuneya Ikezu, Professor of Pharmacology and Neurology, last week for his continued efforts in Alzheimer’s disease research. AAQI is a national grassroots charity that raises awareness and funds research through the donation and sale of small art quilts.
Marge Farquharson and Dawn Forde, AAQI representatives, visited the Department of Pharmacology & Experimental Therapeutics at Boston University School of Medicine to present a quilt to Dr. Ikezu and the Laboratory of Molecular NeuroTherapeutics. This particular quilt displays 54 names of those afflicted by Alzheimer’s disease on the dull side of the fabric to symbolize the mental fading that occurs in 5.4 million patients in the nation and their loss of memories and skills. Each name represents the story of a once vital and productive individual.
Dr. Ikezu also received $60,560 for future AD research projects. His earlier study, “Exosome-mediated dissemination of tau aggregation in Alzheimer’s,” investigated the role of microglia in mediating the spread of tau aggregation. Hopefully this study will provide a new therapeutic target for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
The Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative is an all-volunteer organization that has raised more than $925,000 for Alzheimer’s disease research since January 2006. AAQI’s goal is to raise $1,000,000 by the end of 2013 and to provide funding directly to Alzheimer’s disease researchers. In this way AAQI aims to make a difference, one quilt at a time! For more information on the Alzheimer’s Art Quilt Initiative, please click here.
You can find out more about ongoing Alzheimer’s disease research in the Laboratory of Molecular NeuroTherapeutics and Principal Investigator Dr. Tsuneya Ikezu by following the respective links.
Congratulations on your award and recognition, Dr. Ikezu!