How much is $1 million worth? Well, it could buy an 1,800 square foot cottage in Newport Beach, California, or fund four years of multiple sclerosis research in Australia. While the cottage has a certain appeal, the Australian government is putting its money on the MS research.
Starting August 25, it is providing $1 million over four years to fund a national research project to identify the proteins that cause MS.
The project is led by the University of Adelaide, “a major national collaboration between (itself), Monash University, the University of Queensland, and the Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital.” Each of those institutions already has years of MS projects underway. This national project’s goal is to identify the genes that are activated in each of the major stages of multiple sclerosis, and eventually discover the key proteins and their role in the development of the disease.