King’s opens world-class centre for age-related diseases research

The numbers of people suffering from stroke and dementia continue to rise as the population of the UK ages, but at present our ability to repair a damaged brain is limited. Now a new centre at King’s College London brings leading clinical researchers and basic scientists under one roof, with the aim of developing treatments for age-related diseases.

The Wolfson Centre for Age-Related Diseases, opened by HRH The Princess Royal on 9 November 2004, houses world experts in brain development, stem cells, neurodegenerative diseases, and brain repair. Working together and sharing their expertise will help the researchers to answer more complex questions about dementia, Parkinson’s and stroke, and enable research findings to be more rapidly translated into therapies.

Professor Patrick Doherty, Head and co-Director of the Wolfson Centre is excited about what the new centre could achieve. ‘We have assembled a team of outstanding scientists who on their own might have had some impact on this problem; but by working together we aim to make a substantial difference,’ he said.

Professor Clive Ballard, co-Director of the Centre explained why this centre is so important: ‘Neurodegenerative diseases are a major problem in this aging society. In the UK alone, over 700,000 people are suffering from dementia. Many of the current treatments only control the symptoms of these diseases, but by understanding more about the brain we might be able to develop therapies that prevent further degeneration, or even begin repair the damage.’

The Wolfson Centre for Age-Related Diseases places King’s College London at the forefront of research into age-related diseases. Funded by a generous £6 million donation from the Wolfson Foundation, the state-of-the-art building provides laboratory and office space for 25 research groups around an atrium entrance hall.