John Paul II Medical Research Institute Receives ALS Research Support

While the summer of 2014 will stand out in many people's minds as the season that the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge went unpredictably viral, for Alan Moy, a physician, scientist and director of the John Paul II Medical Research Institute in Iowa City, the globally popular fundraising campaign provided an unanticipated yet welcome boost to financing his critical research. Dr. Moy, a devout Catholic and dedicated researcher, was pleasantly surprised by the results of a social media campaign, which encouraged pro-life individuals around the world to consider the ethical implications of donating to the ice bucket challenge and to direct their money instead to his biotech non-profit organization.

IOWA CITY, IA (Catholic Online) - While the summer of 2014 will stand out in many people's minds as the season that the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge went unpredictably viral, for Alan Moy, a physician, scientist and director of the John Paul II Medical Research Institute in Iowa City, the globally popular fundraising campaign provided an unanticipated yet welcome boost to financing his critical research.

Dr. Moy, a devout Catholic and dedicated researcher, was pleasantly surprised by the results of a social media campaign, which encouraged pro-life individuals around the world to consider the ethical implications of donating to the ice bucket challenge and to direct their money instead to his biotech non-profit organization.

JP2MRI, which was founded in 2006, is among a handful of groups across the country involved in the exciting and emerging field of ethically minded adult stem cell research.
 
www.jp2mri.org

In collaboration with biotech company Cellular Engineering Technologies, Inc., (CET), the Institute seeks cures and therapies for a number of chronic diseases using regenerative medical research. It is also keen to decrease the cost and time of developing drugs, which can normally take years to advance.

Using this latest funding for research on ALS is a priority for Dr. Moy, but his team of scientists is also interested in finding cures for other neurodegenerative diseases that are becoming increasingly common, including Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases, as well as cancer and certain rare diseases that are hard to treat and receive little research support.

Local parishioners, diocesan priests and representatives from the Iowa City Young Adult Catholics chose to donate to JP2MRI's efforts last summer. Large and small donations have also poured in from all 50 states and from more than 38 countries, further elevating JP2MRI's position as the go-to organization in adult stem cell research.

In the process of getting recognized by a number of US Catholic Church leaders, JP2MRI also gained the articulated support of four bishops in its home state of Iowa, who pledged to back its adult stem cell research and the organization's plan to train the next generation of scientists in bioethics.

The hope, explains Dr. Moy, is that the adult stem cell research being conducted by JP2MRI and in collaboration with bio ethically conscious companies like CET can emphasize the importance of ethically minded research and how Catholic healthcare systems in particular can play a greater role in this type of research.

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"Over the past 70 years, there has been a progressive secularization of medical research and healthcare, with most private medical foundations supporting embryonic stem cell research," says Dr. Moy, which includes the majority of medical research that is done by government-funded academic medical centers and the pharmaceutical industry.

Adult stem cell research is the perfect opportunity, he says, for the healthcare community to address the myriad chronic diseases that are lacking in medical cures. "Adult stem cells have the potential to repair damaged organs, which in return would decrease healthcare costs and restore an improved quality of life for patients." 

Some of JP2MRI's immediate plans include the following:
·    Acquiring adult stem cell tissue from more patients across the country and around the world using current and future partnerships with Catholic healthcare systems.
·    Creating personalized stem cells specific to individual patients, thereby doubling the chance for successful treatment and a cure.
·    Manufacturing FDA-approved adult stem cells that could be approved for clinical trials.
·    Creating cancer cells from patients and identifying the most effective chemotherapy to kill a patient's cancer.

About JP2MRI

The John Paul II Medical Research Institute (JP2MRI) seeks to find cures and therapies exclusively using a variety of adult stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells, and does not engage in embryonic stem cell research. JP2MRI is developing preclinical research technologies that will broadly advance drug discovery and regenerative medicine for many diseases. In addition, the Institute will engage in educational outreach to increase the number of scientists and future medical practitioners that will work with adult stem cells, always with an emphasis on medical bioethics that is consistent with the dignity of human life. To donate to JP2MRI, visit:
jp2mri.org