Alberta Diabetes Research Receives a Big Boost

Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta

Launch of new Alberta Diabetes Institute: Johnson & Johnson Diabetes Research Fund Call for Proposals

EDMONTON, March 18, 2014 /CNW/ - The Alberta Diabetes Institute at the University of Alberta has announced a new collaboration with Janssen Inc. in Canada to advance early-stage technologies related to Type I and Type II diabetes. Janssen is part of the Janssen Pharmaceutical Companies of Johnson & Johnson.

The Johnson & Johnson Diabetes Research Fund is a newly-created $600,000 partnership, funded between Janssen, the Government of Alberta, and the Alberta Diabetes Foundation. The three year competitive fund, administered by U of A's Alberta Diabetes Institute, will support research in either Type I or Type II diabetes with a focus on novel, discovery research with a high potential for commercialization.

"Alberta's decades-long commitment to diabetes research has brought ground-breaking discoveries and better quality of life for diabetes sufferers, " said Fred Horne, Minister of Health. "Working collaboratively with our innovation system, Campus Alberta and across the public and private sectors, means we can move promising discoveries to the marketplace faster where they can help Albertans and people worldwide."

Through the collaboration, the Alberta Diabetes Institute and technical experts from Johnson & Johnson Innovation Center in California will jointly identify several high-potential opportunities from medical researchers across Alberta and award up to $50,000 for one (1) year including indirect costs from the Research Fund.  All aspects of diabetes research are eligible to apply for funding. Proposals are expected to lead to further development of drugs, devices, cell therapies and processes that relate to the diagnosis, treatment and management of Type I or Type II diabetes.

"Advancing the care of people living with Type I or II diabetes is a priority for us," said Dr. Douglas Miller, dean of the Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry. "This collaboration of funding partners exemplifies the good will of the private, public and philanthropic organizations to work together to best serve patients. Only by scientists working together across Alberta will we find better treatments."

Letters of Intent are currently being accepted and instructions can be found by visiting the Alberta Diabetes Institute website: www.adi.ualberta.ca/researchfund.aspx.  The first call for Letters of Intent closes on April 30, 2014.

Over 9 million Canadians currently live with either pre-diabetes or Type I or Type II diabetes, and this private-public partnership fund will accelerate the development and validation of healthcare technologies within Alberta which is known for life-changing research in the causes, prevention, treatment and management of diabetes.

BACKGROUNDER

About Alberta Innovation and Advanced Education
Education and entrepreneurship are cornerstones of the dynamic economy that Albertans continue to build through their knowledge, adaptability and entrepreneurial spirit. Toward that end, Alberta Innovation and Advanced Education aligns economic development activities in the province with post-secondary education, entrepreneurship, industry training, research and innovation. Alberta is a leader in Canada with the implementation of this unique, inclusive structure, which builds on existing links between government functions that contribute to a stronger, more robust economy. Please visit our website at: http://www.eae.alberta.ca/.

About Alberta Diabetes Foundation
The Alberta Diabetes Foundation is devoted to raising money for diabetes research.  Through our fundraising efforts, we directly support scientific research which has yielded extremely positive results.  To date the Alberta Diabetes Foundation has raised over $11.8 million in support of cure-related diabetes research.  For more information about the Alberta Diabetes Foundation, please visit www.AlbertaDiabetesFoundation.com.

About Alberta Diabetes Institute
The Alberta Diabetes Institute (ADI) is a research facility dedicated to translating discovery science into health solutions for the prevention, treatment and cure of Type I and Type II diabetes.  The ADI uses a multidisciplinary approach, bringing together leading researchers from diverse fields of expertise in a state-of-the-art facility on the University of Alberta Campus.  Please visit our website at www.adi.ualberta.ca for more information.

Image with caption: "University of Alberta, Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry (CNW Group/Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20140318_C5837_PHOTO_EN_38094.jpg

SOURCE: Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry, University of Alberta

Media Contact(s):

Earl McKenzie
Innovation & Advanced Education
Government of Alberta
Tel: [phone]
Email: [email protected]

Jo-anne Nugent
Faculty of Medicine & Dentistry
University of Alberta
Tel: [phone]
Email: [email protected]