UAB will house one of eight Advanced Centers for Parkinson’s Research to be funded by the American Parkinson Disease Association, Inc. (APDA). Each center will receive a minimum of $100,000 a year for five years.

Parkinson’s disease, a chronic and progressive neurological condition, is a complex neurological disorder and is the second most common neurodegenerative disorder of aging after Alzheimer’s disease. It affects more than 1.5 million Americans, with 40,000 to 60,000 new cases diagnosed each year.

Parkinson’s research has been a priority at UAB since 2003, beginning with the creation of the Parkinson’s Disease and Movement Disorder Research Program under the direction of Ray Watts, M.D., chair of the Department of Neurology.

“I believe current and emerging therapies mean that medicine is on the brink of finding a cure for Parkinson’s disease,” Watts says.

“It is exciting to be at the forefront of this research, and we are honored to have been selected as an advanced research center by APDA.”