Neuroscience

Donor support of neuroscience research at Indiana University School of Medicine makes so much possible as we work to expand our knowledge of the brain and the central nervous system as a whole. Generosity helps us to better understand the diseases and injuries that disrupt the work of this system and paves the way to breakthroughs that preserve, protect and restore the brain’s vital functions.

Gifts of all sizes enable IU researchers to pursue bold new ideas that lead to international recognition for innovation in multiple neuroscience research fields, including addiction, neurodegenerative disorders, neurodevelopment, ocular neurobiology, pain, psychiatric disorders and spinal cord and brain injury.

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What Giving Makes Possible

A message from Andrew Saykin, PsyD

Gifts of all sizes to education and research in the neurosciences at Indiana University School of Medicine are incredibly impactful. Andy Saykin, PsyD, director of the Center for Neuroimaging and the Indiana Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, shares how the generosity of donors facilitates IU’s ability to recruit top notch talent and enables innovative preliminary research that leads to significant federal grants and major discoveries in the neurosciences.

Paul & Carole Stark Neurosciences Research Institute: By the Numbers

100+ investigators working to better understand disease

$75 million in NIH funding, made possible by initial support from pilot funding

9 research interest groups, including addiction, neurodegenerative disease, brain injury and more

Generosity helps researchers see the possibilities

Jason Meyer, PhD, the A. Donald Merritt Professor of Medical & Molecular Genetics, and his team at Stark Neurosciences Research Institute are exploring ways to help the optic nerve connect a donor eye to the brain.

Bringing promising Alzheimer’s drug target closer to potential clinical trials

Philanthropic support gives researchers like Timothy Richardson, PhD, in the TREAT-AD Center freedom to innovate in new, unexplored areas of drug discovery. These bold new ideas can lead to significant grant funding, clinical trial opportunities, and ultimately better treatments for patients around the world.

Faculty Spotlight

Malú Tansey, PhD

Tansey was recruited to expand neuroimmunology research at IU’s Stark Neurosciences Research Institute. One of the factors in her decision to come to IU was being named the James A. Caplin, MD Professor of Alzheimer’s Research. Her research in inflammation and immunity spans both Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease and the donor-created position supports work that isn’t covered by grants from the National Institutes of Health. Read about Tansey’s current work in Parkinson’s disease.

Read about Tansey’s current work in Parkinson’s disease

David A. Kareken, PhD

David A. Kareken, PhD, director of the Indiana Alcohol Research Center (ARC), originally had research interests in Alzheimer disease. At the time, Kareken was helping a colleague in the ARC leverage what was then the emerging technology of functional neuroimaging. The collaborative and translational spirit of the ARC showed Kareken the importance of an interdisciplinary team in answering complex questions about the brain, motivated behavior, and the ways in which they can become maladaptive.

Meet Dr. Kareken