The Neurosurgery Research and Education Foundation is celebrating two milestones in 2006. The first is the NREF’s silver anniversary. In 1981 Robert Ojemann, MD, Robert King, MD, Sidney Goldring, MD, and William Buchheit, MD, with the help of a number of other AANS members, formed the NREF to: provide private, nongovernmental funding for neurosciences research; to ensure continued viability and expansion of the field based on fundamental research in the basic sciences and clinical enterprises; to augment support for research by the neurosurgical community; and to stimulate lifelong learning by neurosurgeons. During the past 25 years, the NREF has awarded nearly $4.5 million dollars in one- and two-year grants to 113 residents and junior neurosurgical faculty members.
Alone, the NREF’s 25th anniversary is a cause for celebration; however, an equally important milestone also was achieved this year. For the first time the NREF awarded a double-digit number of grants, 12 total. Eight applicants received research fellowships and four received young clinician investigator awards.
Robert Grossman, MD, chair of the NREF’s Scientific Advisory Committee, thinks that some of the most innovative and interesting investigations occurring in neurosurgical labs today are funded by the NREF. “The scientific quality of the grant applications has increased each year and meets our highest expectations,” he stated.
Thanks to generous support of the Corporate Associates program by AANS members, hospitals, neurosurgery departments, the general public, and our corporate partners, the NREF has committed $500,000 in research support for 2006, an increase of $100,000 from last year. “The NREF continues to secure support from neurosurgeons, neurosurgical practices and programs, hospitals and the general public,” noted Martin H. Weiss, MD, FACS, chair of the NREF Executive Council. “However, we are consistently exploring other partnerships in an effort to fund as much great science as we can.”
Partnerships with industry, foundations and voluntary health associations have enabled the NREF to maximize its funding without compromising its integrity. In 2004, the AANS Development Committee, under the leadership of Jon H. Robertson, MD, developed the Guidelines for Corporate Relations document. The guidelines define appropriate relationships between the AANS and NREF and their corporate partners such as DePuy Spine, Kyphon Inc., Medtronic Neurological, and W. Lorenz Surgical. According to Dr. Weiss, such partnerships enable the NREF to allocate more funding for research grants each year while building ethical relationships with industry.
In 2006 the AANS and NREF will cosponsor an annual research grant from funds raised through the AANS Pinnacle Partners in Neurosurgery corporate giving program. “The Pinnacle Partners program provides an opportunity for industry to financially support neurosurgical research and education through the NREF in a responsible and ethical manner,” said Dr. Robertson. “A company’s participation in the Pinnacle Partners program generates recognition that reflects its commitment to the future of neurosurgery and the public good.”
The 2006 NREF awardees come from 11 different neurosurgery programs. The research grants encompass neurosurgical areas of pediatric brain tumors, spine trauma, deep brain stimulation, aneurysms, epilepsy, pain biomaterials and stem cell research.
The 2006 Research Fellows include:
Ming (David) Cheng, MD (University of North Carolina), Lewis Chun Hou, MD (Stanford University), Eric M. Jackson, MD (University of Pennsylvania), Adrian W. Laxton, MD (University of Toronto), Daniel A. Lim, MD, PhD (UCSF), Neil R. Malhotra, MD (University of Pennsylvania), Wael Musleh, MD, PhD (University of Chicago), and Lyman Whitlach, MD, PhD (Duke University).
The 2006 Young Clinician Investigators include:
John A. Boockvar, MD (Cornell Medical College), Alfredo Quinones-Hinojosa, MD (Johns Hopkins University), Michael D. Taylor, MD, PhD (Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto), and G. Edward Vates, MD (University of Rochester).
Cutting-Edge Research
Two examples of the cutting-edge research the NREF is funding this year are the projects of Dr. Lim and Dr. Boockvar. Dr. Lim’s research has established an in vitro SVZ stem cell culture system which will allow him to determine the role that the Mll gene plays in stem cell self-renewal, differentiation, cellular migration, and cell survival. Dr. Boockvar’s research seeks to identify the mechanism by which EGFR signaling enhances human progenitor cell invasiveness for the purpose of improving the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme.
It is hoped that the exciting potential of projects like these will stimulate continued growth in financial support from neurosurgeons, as well as partnerships with industry and other funding sources. The extent to which the entire neurosurgical community recognizes the importance of research and development to the future of the specialty and the patients it serves will determine the outlook for the NREF research grant program over the next 25 years.
For information about the NREF or to make a donation, visit www.aans.org/research/make/donation.asp or contact the AANS Development department at (847) 378-0500.
Michele S. Gregory is AANS director of development.