Alzheimer's Association Selects Gladstone's Katerina Akassoglou as 2025 Zenith Fellows Award Recipient

The Alzheimer's Association has chosen Dr. Katerina Akassoglou, a senior investigator at Gladstone Institutes, as a recipient of the prestigious Zenith Fellows Award. Dr. Akassoglou's research has shed light on the interactions between the brain, blood vessels, and immune system, revealing how these interactions drive the development and progression of Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases.

Key Takeaways:

• Dr. Katerina Akassoglou, a senior investigator at Gladstone Institutes, has been selected as a 2025 recipient of the Zenith Fellows Award for her pioneering research into the interactions between the brain, blood vessels, and immune system.
• Her research has shown how these interactions drive the development and progression of Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases.
• Dr. Akassoglou has identified fibrin as a key culprit in Alzheimer's disease, and has developed a new immunotherapy to neutralize its toxic effects.
• The Zenith Fellows Award provides $450,000 in research funding, which Dr. Akassoglou will use to further unravel the mechanisms of cerebrovascular dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease.
• The research aims to uncover how the brain, immune system, and vascular systems communicate with each other, with the goal of developing novel approaches for treating and preventing disease.
• Dr. Akassoglou's discoveries have significant implications for the development of new treatments for Alzheimer's and other neurological diseases.
• The award is supported by the Alzheimer's Association Zenith Society, which has an exceptional commitment to advancing Alzheimer's and other dementia research.
• Gladstone Institutes has a long history of leadership in Alzheimer's research, with several investigators, including Dr. Lennart Mucke, having previously received the Zenith Fellows Award.

Statistics:

• The Alzheimer's Association Zenith Fellowship has provided over $48 million in awards to 152 leading Alzheimer's researchers in nine countries since 1991.
• Dr. Akassoglou's research has shown that Alzheimer's disease is linked to a toxic immune reaction caused by blood that leaks into the brain through damaged blood vessels.
• In mouse models, Dr. Akassoglou's immunotherapy protected against neuroinflammation, neurodegeneration, and disease progression.
• Human trials of the immunotherapy are currently underway, with a humanized version of the treatment being tested in patients with Alzheimer's disease and diabetic macular edema.

Sources:

• Alzheimer's Association, "Zenith Fellows Award Recipient, 2025: Katerina Akassoglou, PhD"
• NewsRx, "Gladstone's Katerina Akassoglou Selected as 2025 Zenith Fellows Award Recipient"
• Gladstone Institutes, "Katerina Akassoglou, PhD, Receives Zenith Fellows Award"
• National Multiple Sclerosis Society, "Barancik Prize"