Our research For researchers Research Funded by Ataxia UK Ataxia UK funds a wide variety of research projects. Below is a list of all projects currently being funded, and of projects that have ended in the last 2 years. Friedreich’s ataxia Current Projects Project Principal Researchers & Institution Funders & Awards Effectiveness of LSVT in improving communication in people with Friedreich’s ataxia Prof Anja Lowit, Speech and Language Therapy, Strathclyde University (Glasgow) Research project small grant Award: £8,997 Funders: Ataxia UK, Swiss Association of Friedreich’s Ataxia (ACHAF) Listening devices for individuals with Friedreich’s ataxia and Spinocerebellar ataxias Dr Gary Rance, University of Melbourne (Australia) & Dr Kai Uus, University of Manchester (UK) Research project grant Award: £31,000 Funders: Ataxia UK, Swiss Association of Friedreich’s Ataxia (ACHAF), Ataxia Ireland Friedreichs ataxia Drug Discovery Project Pfizer (US & UK), Dr Paola Giunti, University College London (UK), Prof Richard Festenstein, Imperial College London (UK) & Dr Michele Lufino, Oxford University (UK) Consortium grant Funders: The consortium has been funded by Pfizer with some financial support from Ataxia UK. Exploring Ca2+ signalling in a Friedreich’s ataxia mouse model Dr Paola Giunti & Dr Sandip Patel, University College London (UK) PhD studentship grant Award: £82,000 Funders: Ataxia UK, UCL grand challenge studentship Beta-band EMG-EMG coherence: a novel, painless and simple screening test for the onset of corticospinal tract disease/dorsal root ganglionopathy in Friedreich’s ataxia Dr Mark Baker, Newcastle University (UK) Research project grant (joint call for research in biomarkers) Award: £84,446 Funders: Ataxia UK, GoFAR, FARA Early and longitudinal assessment of neurodegeneration in the brain and spinal cord in Friedreich’s ataxia Dr Pierre-Gilles Henry & Dr Christophe Lenglet, University of Minnesota Medical School (USA) Research project grant (joint call for research in biomarkers) Award: £92,652.40 Funders: Ataxia UK, GoFAR, Friedreich’s Ataxia Research Alliance (FARA) An investigation to determine the efficacy and safety of lentivirus mediated FXN gene delivery for the correction of Friedreichs ataxia Dr Michael Themis & Dr Mark Pook, Brunel University London (UK) Research project grant Award: £82,355 Funders: Ataxia UK, Friedreichs Ataxia Research Alliance (FARA) US, Friedreichs Ataxia Research Alliance (FARA) Australia Gene therapy of Friedreich´s ataxia: generation of Herpesvirus FXN vectors for use in humans Dr Filip Lim, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid (Spain) Research project grant Award: £31,450 Funders: Ataxia UK, Catalan Association of Hereditary Ataxias (ACAH) Cerebellar Ataxia Current Table Project Principal Researchers & Institution Funders & Awards Detecting retinal changes in autosomal recessive spastic ataxia of Charlevoix-Saguenay (ARSACS) and other ataxias using optical coherence tomography (OCT) Dr Paola Giunti, UCL Institute of Neurology (UK) Research project small grant Award: £4.500 Funders: Ataxia UK RBFox proteins as critical determinants for cell toxicity in DRPLA and other Spinocerebellar ataxias Dr Manolis Fanto, King's College London (UK) Research project seed funding Award: £14,000 Funders: Ataxia UK provided seed funding for the project to make it easier to then gain additional funding The role of glia in the pathogenesis of the ataxic syndrome Dentatorubropallidoluysian Atrophy (DRPLA) Dr Manolis Fanto, King’s College London (UK) PhD studentship grant Award: £76,920 Funders: Ataxia UK Investigating cerebellar glutathione in SCA14 by MR spectroscopy in order to identify a new treatment option Dr Sarah Doss & Dr Jan Rinnenthal, Charite University Medicine Berlin (Germany) Research project grant Award: £14,229 Funders: Ataxia UK & Deutsche Heredo Ataxie Gesellschaft (DHAG) Coenzyme Q10 a potential therapeutic target for ataxia: Evaluation of therapeutic strategies Dr Iain Hargreaves, University College London (UK) PhD studentship grant Award: £75,420 Funders: Ataxia UK, UCL Impact PhD Studentship For information on Ataxia UK funded research that has ended in the last few years, click here.