By HEATHER J. CARLSON
Associated Press
Dr. James Galvin has spent four years investigating how the brain
changes as adults grow older, trying to uncover what triggers
dementia and Alzheimer's disease.
The Washington University assistant professor credits a $26,000 seed
grant from the state in 2001 for launching his study by giving him
the money he needed to start collecting basic data. He then used
that data to secure $1.2 million in federal grants to fund his
research.
But those state seed grants for Alzheimer's disease research would
be eliminated under Missouri Gov. Matt Blunt's proposed budget.
Losing those dollars could seriously hurt Alzheimer's research in
the state, Galvin said.
"I think (the grants) are critical," he said. "You can't write a
grant to the National Institutes of Health without preliminary data,
and you can't get data unless you have money to do the research."
Blunt has recommended eliminating the $227,000 program that funds
private and public research on Alzheimer's and related disorders in
the 2006 budget year....
http://www.newstribune.com/articles/2005/03/24/news_state/0032405001.txt