National brain research initiative launch next week

National brain research initiative launch next week

Media Release - University of Auckland (in collaboration with University of Otago)
14 May 2015 - National brain research initiative launch next week

A new national brain research initiative intended to help New Zealanders to age well with a healthy brain will be launched simultaneously in Auckland and Dunedin this month. (22 May)

Brain Research New Zealand - Rangahau Roro Aotearoa, a new government funded Centre of Research Excellence (CoRE), aims to use its unique combination of scientific, clinical and community connections to unlock the secrets of the ageing brain.

The launch will be led by the Minister of Science and Technology, the Hon Steven Joyce, with a video link between researchers gathering at the sites of the CoRE’s key research units, the University of Auckland’s Centre for Brain Research and the University of Otago’s Brain Health Research Centre.

The CoRE is unique in being co-hosted by the University of Otago and the University of Auckland, with collaboration from researchers at University of Canterbury and AUT University, and clinicians at various District Health Boards.

The multi-centre research team will develop a better understanding of ageing-related neurological disorders in order to find new therapies that can lead to improved life-long brain health for all New Zealanders.

“We will be applying our cutting edge neuroscience research in partnership with outstanding clinicians and our growing relationships with the community, to develop a truly national, collaborative response to an issue of critical importance to all New Zealanders,” says BRNZ co-director, Professor Cliff Abraham from the University of Otago.

Fellow co-director, Professor Richard Faull from the University of Auckland, says the unique advantage of this CoRE is the collaborative integration of ageing-related neuroscience at New Zealand’s premier tertiary institutions.

“New Zealand has a world-class brain research capability and Brain Research New Zealand (BRNZ) draws on this capability to create a cohesive and mutually reinforcing national team. This collaboration brings researchers engaged in ageing-related neuroscience under one virtual roof, reducing competition and encouraging cooperation.”

BRNZ will seek answers to the increasing burden of ageing-related brain disorders in New Zealand and the world.

It is anticipated that by 2036 there will be 1.2 million New Zealanders aged over 65 years (up to 20 percent of the population), of whom 200,000 will be over 85 years old.

This increase in the number of older New Zealanders will result in large numbers of people living with the effects of ageing-related brain disorders such as stroke, dementia (e.g. Alzheimer’s disease), Parkinson’s disease, and various sensory/motor dysfunctions.

These disorders currently affect one in five of the New Zealand population aged over 65 years, and by 2036 one in four older New Zealanders will have an ageing-related brain disorder, creating a significant economic and social burden.

Dementia cost New Zealand $955 million in 2011 and the net value of the burden of disease was $12.4 billion, while stroke and traumatic brain injury have direct costs of over $250 million per annum.

“This represents a huge challenge that requires the development of a new approach that has a whole-of-life brain-health focus,” says Professor Faull. “To build a national response to meet this challenge, BRNZ will harness the world-class research capacities of our universities, the clinical expertise across our hospitals, in partnership with community organisations supporting people living with the devastating effects of ageing brain disorders.”

Brain Research New Zealand will be a national enterprise that, through a coordinated research, training and education programme, will develop new capacity and capability to address the increasing burden of ageing-related brain disorders.

ENDS

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