Antonello Mallamaci, director of the Laboratory of Cerebral Cortex Development at SISSA, has been awarded a two-year grant from the Telethon Foundation to study FOXG1 syndrome, a rare genetic disease that leads to complex neurological conditions. The group intends to develop drugs capable of ensuring persistent correction of FOXG1 activity levels in the central nervous system, testing their effect on nerve cell activity, their specificity and neurotoxicity.
Mallamaci is among the 35 winners of the first round of the Telethon call for proposals open to researchers active throughout the country, with a total of 5 million and 370 thousand euros allocated, raised thanks to the generosity of Italian donors.
The second round of the call for proposals will start these days, with a new tranche of funds to be allocated next summer. From 2022 onwards, this new 'multi-round' funding modality will offer researchers four opportunities within three years to present their projects, eventually revised following the committee's comments in case of a negative evaluation.