UC Davis researcher receives grant for groundbreaking arthritis research9578862

Iannis Adamopoulos, a UC Davis researcher who specializes in skeletal and immune-system diseases, continues to be selected being an Arthritis National Research Foundation (ANRF) Scholar and Sontag Foundation Fellow. Adamopoulos get a grant of $75,000 to help expand his promising research on rheumatoid arthritis. Among 13 ANRF scholars, he or she is the sole awardee to be identified by the Sontag Foundation. ANRF is just one of a small selection of tax deductible charities specializing in Arthritis Research.

"We are delighted to name Dr. Adamopoulos since the Sontag Foundation Fellow for 2011," said philanthropist and Sontag Foundation President Rick Sontag. "His work may provide you with the next breakthrough to finally end the debilitating ailment that plagued my mother for 37 a few years ended her life." Adamopoulos, a helper professor of internal medicine, found that an immune cytokine known as interleukin 23 (IL-23) is really a key regulator of joint inflammation and bone destruction. His finding that abnormal expression of IL-23 causes severe arthritis and bone loss in mice was recently confirmed in human cells. The next thing as part of his research is to ascertain the potential of IL-23 inhibitors as arthritis treatments. "Dr. Adamopoulos is shifting the target of arthritis research and bone health investigations toward immune-system cells not previously thought to be significant," said Timothy Albertson, acting chair from the Department of Internal Medicine at UC Davis. "This change may well possess a profound impact on expanding therapeutic options for those whose arthritis can not be managed with current treatments. It really is admirable that the ANRF and Sontag Foundation hold the insight to realize his innovative work." Ahead of joining UC Davis in 2010, Adamopoulos conducted drug discovery research at Schering-Plough Biopharma in Palo Alto, Calif. He holds a B.Sc. honors degree in the University of Surrey, an M.Phil. from University College London as well as a D.Phil. through the University of Oxford, Wolfson College, where he received a scholarship for research on inflammatory arthritis. Situated in Long Beach, Calif., the ANRF provides research grants to outstanding, early-career scientists who are becoming leading researchers in rheumatic disease, autoimmunity and inflammation together with the goal of finding new treating debilitating, chronic diseases. The ANRF's highly competitive, NIH-level review process -- conducted by its Scientific Advisory Board -- helps to ensure that only top-tier applicants and projects are funded. Annually, the Sontag Foundation fully funds the grant of the ANRF-selected researcher that is studying rheumatoid arthritis. For more information on the best way to make online donations visit curearthritis.org. The [http://bragso.com/profile/theodorecalderon6035 is probably the nation's leading medical schools, with regard to its research and primary-care programs. The institution offers fully accredited master's degree programs in public areas health and in informatics, and its combined M.D.-Ph.D. program is training the next generation of physician-scientists to conduct high-impact research and translate discoveries into better clinical care. As well as as being a recognized leader in scientific research, the college is devoted to serving under served communities and advancing rural health.