Newswise — (ROCHESTER, Minnesota, August 2019) – The American Neuromuscular Foundation (ANF) has a new chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy (CIDP) development grant award recipient, Dr. Karissa Gable.
The ANF is a nonprofit association dedicated to the advancement of neuromuscular, musculoskeletal, and electrodiagnostic research and medicine. Development grants are intended to recruit a generation of talented physicians and research scientists to help launch research into muscle and nerve disorders. Grants have been focused on a few core areas, with CIDP being one. Dr. Gable’s particular interest in autoimmune neuropathies is why she chose to apply for the ANF grant.
“The immune system is fascinatingly complex. After treating many patients with this disease, I feel there remains a number of unanswered questions with respect to the underlying immune mechanism driving this neuropathy,” Dr. Gable said. “Further understanding of how the disease process works could potentially help guide treatment regimens as well as expectations for prognosis.
Dr. Gable completed neurology residency training at Northwestern University and her neuromuscular medicine fellowship at the Harvard Partners program. She is now a junior faculty member at the Duke University School of Medicine, Department of Neurology.
“Dr. Gable is a very talented, board-certified neurologist who is also board-certified in electrodiagnostic medicine and neuromuscular medicine,” said Dr. Richard O’Brien, Professor and Chair of the Department of Neurology at Duke. “She has been involved in laying the foundations of developing our neuromuscular biorepository program and contributing to our neuromuscular database that will enable our group to pursue a wide variety of research projects in neuromuscular immunology.”
The grant includes complimentary registration to the American Association of Neuromuscular and Electrodiagnostic Medicine (AANEM) Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida in October 2020 (along with a free membership during the grant year) and travel costs to attend the meeting, where she will present her findings. AANEM is the nonprofit membership association that funds the ANF’s operations, allowing all ANF donations going toward funding research and education projects like the one proposed by Dr. Gable.
The goal of her forthcoming work will be to “define the pattern of immune regulatory cell pathology in CIDP,” according to her fellowship proposal. The ANF finances research projects through its $3 million endowment from the AANEM, generous individual donations, and grants from industry supporters. Dr. Gable’s development grant was made possible thanks to a grant from CSL Behring to the AANEM. Her work will be funded for an entire year, hopefully providing actionable insight for other research scientists.
“I came across this grant opportunity at the perfect time when results from some preliminary data showed significant promise in further exploring the immune mechanisms of CIDP, and so decided to apply,” she said. “I have always been impressed with the dedication the ANF and AANEM have to promoting quality education, advocacy, and research.”
Dr. Gable will present the findings of her research at the AANEM Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida in October 2020.
For more information about the American Neuromuscular Foundation or to make a donation, visit www.neuromuscularfoundation.org.
About the American Neuromuscular Foundation
Based in Rochester, Minnesota, the American Neuromuscular Foundation (ANF) is a nonprofit association that provides funds to help develop the next generation of researchers to advance the science and practice of neuromuscular (NM) and electrodiagnostic (EDX) medicine. The ultimate goal in promoting and advancing NM and EDX scientific research and education is to improve the lives of patients with NM diseases.
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Media Contact: Robbie Spencer
AANEM Sr. Communications & Membership Senior Coordinator
507.288.0100
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