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

Strategic Insights -

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 Alzheimer's disease.
  • She has shown how the interactions between the brain, blood vessels, and immune system drive the development and progression of Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative diseases.
  • Dr. Akassoglou's research has identified fibrin as the main culprit behind toxic immune reactions in Alzheimer's, multiple sclerosis, and other neurological conditions.
  • She has developed a new immunotherapy to neutralize the toxic effects of blood in the brain, which is currently in clinical trials for patients with Alzheimer's disease and diabetic macular edema.
  • 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.
  • Her 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 work has been recognized with numerous prestigious awards, including the Barancik Prize from the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and election as a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).

Statistics:

  • Since 1991, the Zenith Society has provided over $48 million in awards to 152 leading Alzheimer's researchers in nine countries.
  • The Zenith Fellows Award provides $450,000 in research funding to support the recipient's research project.
  • Dr. Katerina Akassoglou's humanized version of the fibrin-targeting immunotherapy is currently in clinical trials for patients with Alzheimer's disease and diabetic macular edema.
  • One in 10 people over the age of 65 in the U.S. lives with Alzheimer's disease.

Sources:

  • Mental Health Weekly Digest
  • NewsRx
  • Alzheimer's Association
  • Gladstone Institutes
  • National Multiple Sclerosis Society