FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ON March 26, 2014

Northwestern Researcher to Receive $100,000 Potamkin Prize for Dementia Research

PHILADELPHIA -

The and the are awarding the 2014 Potamkin Prize for Research in Pick’s, Alzheimer’s and Related Diseases to M.-Marsel Mesulam, MD, with the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago. Mesulam will receive the award at the ��ɫ����’s 66th in Philadelphia, April 26-May 3, 2014. The Annual Meeting is the world’s largest gathering of neurologists with more than 12,000 attendees and more than 2,500 scientific presentations on the latest research advances in brain disease. The Potamkin Prize honors researchers for their work in helping to advance the understanding of Pick’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders. The $100,000 prize is an internationally recognized tribute for advancing dementia research. Mesulam’s research describes new findings on the tissue abnormality of primary progressive aphasia (PPA), a disease that impairs access to words rather than memories, and offers new insights into Alzheimer’s disease. “It was not all that long ago when the terms ‘dementia’ and ‘Alzheimer’s’ disease were used synonymously and when memory loss was considered an invariant feature of dementia,” said Mesulam. “This is no longer the prevailing opinion. We now know that there are multiple diseases that can cause dementia without Alzheimer’s pathology or memory loss. Conversely, we are also finding out that Alzheimer’s disease comes in different forms, some of which leave memory intact.” According to Mesulam, Alzheimer's disease and related dementias constitute one of the greatest health care challenges of the 21st century. “Understanding the complex brain abnormalities in dementias is an essential precursor to discovering means for prevention and treatment,” he said. Added Mesulam, “The Potamkin Prize is one of the world's most prestigious prizes awarded for research on Alzheimer's disease, Pick's disease and related disorders, and I feel very honored to receive the prize.” The Potamkin Prize is made possible by the philanthropic contributions of the Potamkin family of Colorado, Philadelphia and Miami. The goal of the prize is to help attract the best medical minds and most dedicated scientists in the world to the field of dementia research. The Potamkin family has been the Academy’s single largest individual donor since 1988, providing more than $2.5 million to fund the Potamkin Prize. Learn more about Pick’s, Alzheimer’s disease and related diseases at .

The ��ɫ����, an association of more than 27,000 neurologists and neuroscience professionals, is dedicated to promoting the highest quality patient-centered neurologic care. A neurologist is a doctor with specialized training in diagnosing, treating and managing disorders of the brain and nervous system such as Alzheimer’s disease, stroke, migraine, multiple sclerosis, brain injury, Parkinson’s disease and epilepsy.

For more information about the ��ɫ����, visit or find us on , , and .

The American Brain Foundation, the foundation of the ��ɫ����, supports crucial research and education to discover causes, improved treatments, and cures for brain and other nervous system diseases. Learn more at or find the Foundation on , , and .