Aurora,
Colo. (Sept. 22, 2008) - Anna and John J. Sie have high hopes for their granddaughter
Sophia, born five years ago with Down syndrome. Today, through
the largest private contribution dedicated to people with Down
syndrome, the family is determined to significantly enhance the
lives of all people with Down syndrome. The new Linda Crnic
Institute for Down Syndrome unveiled at the University of Colorado
Denver’s Anschutz Medical Campus will have the single research
focus of eradicating the ill effects associated with Down
syndrome and will be the first to comprehensively
address basic research, clinical research
and clinical care all under one umbrella.
>After
years of due diligence and in the face of steady decreases in
National Institutes of Health (NIH) funding for Down syndrome,
the Anna and John J. Sie Foundation decided that the best hope
for real break-through and advocacy was a combined force made up
of the University of Colorado Denver, the University of Colorado
at Boulder, and The Children’s Hospital in Aurora. Each
organization has committed space, personnel
and overhead to the Institute and it
will be managed out of the Anschutz Medical
Campus.
Chancellor
M. Roy Wilson stated, “It has been a pleasure
working with the Sie family in establishing this premier Institute
here at the University of Colorado Denver. They bring a unique
combination of philanthropy, family focus and business acumen to
the table. The first $1 million
in research grants that the Sies supported
in 2006 has already started to bear fruit.
We are confident that insights that might
be unimaginable today will soon be within
our grasp due to the work of this Institute.”
The Institute will aggressively recruit the best
and brightest talent worldwide – both inside
and outside the field of Down syndrome and is expected
to grow into a $150 million organization within ten
years with staff estimated at more than 160.
World-renowned neurologist, William C.
Mobley, MD, PhD, has signed on as the
Executive Director of the Institute and
has been a life-long advocate for Down
syndrome related research.
“One of the focuses of the Linda Crnic Institute for Down
syndrome is to better understand ways to improve the cognitive
ability of people with Down syndrome. We are going to do that by
chasing down the genes that are responsible for the problems with
cognition that happen in children” said Dr. Mobley, executive
director of the Institute. “Through
research and improved care, we can make
it easier for them to go to school, make
friends, have jobs, get married and ultimately
live independently. We will help them
live richer, fuller lives.”
One in 733 babies in the United States is born with
Down syndrome. A chromosomal disorder caused by an
extra chromosome, more specifically, the presence
of all or part of an extra 21st chromosome. The
condition is associated with impairment
of cognitive ability and an increased chance of various
medical issues. An estimated 400,000 people in the
United States have Down syndrome and millions more
worldwide.
Leslie
Leinwand, PhD, of the University of
Colorado at Boulder and Denver has
served as the Interim Director of the
Linda Crnic Institute. She said, “The
establishment of the Linda Crnic Institute
by Anna and John J. Sie Foundation
is a landmark event for research in
Down syndrome. This Institute will
attract the best and the brightest
minds to Colorado to tackle this complex
problem to work with our existing outstanding
faculty.
“Sophia has been such a blessing in our lives and has led
us to meet brilliant and huge hearted scientists such as Linda
Crnic, Leslie Leinwand, Larry Gold and the wonderful new leaders
at the University of Colorado and The Children’s Hospital. It
has given my wife, Anna, and I a whole new purpose in life and
Sophia’s parents, Michelle and Tom Whitten, have been laser
focused on understanding what we can do better for not just Sophia
but for generations of people with Down syndrome to come. We
are grateful that the best place to effectuate real change and
discovery happens to be in our own back yard,” said
John J. Sie.
The
Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome
is named in honor of the University
of Colorado Denver School of Medicine
professor of pediatrics and psychiatry
who died in a bicycle accident in 2004. Linda became a friend and mentor of Michelle and Tom
Whitten when they received the prenatal diagnosis that Sophia would
have Down syndrome. Linda has
inspired the Whittens and the Sies to
establish this global institute for Down
syndrome that will provide the highest
quality of basic, clinical and translational
research trials, therapeutic development,
medical care, education and advocacy.
The
Anschutz Medical Campus is the largest
academic health center between Chicago,
Texas and the West Coast. The campus
is home to the health sciences programs
of the University of Colorado Denver
as well as University of Colorado Hospital.
UC Denver researchers have a proven
record of success and expertise in
innovation, discovery and commercialization
of therapies, drugs and medical devices.
Research accomplishments of being “the first” include
the development of a classification and
numbering system for human chromosomes,
the identification of a genetic factor
that converts normal cells into cancer
cells, discovering that lymphocytes are
preprogrammed to respond to antigens,
the foundation of modern immunology,
how a human cancer gene functions, and
first to identify that naturally occurring
proteins in the blood prevent the AIDS
virus from reproducing and spreading
to healthy cells. The Anschutz Medical
Campus stands as a model across the nation
for a successful redevelopment of a decommissioned
army base.
The University of Colorado Denver School
of Medicine faculty work to advance
science and improve care as the physicians,
educators and scientists at University
of Colorado Hospital, The Children’s Hospital, Denver Health,
National Jewish Medical and Research Center, and the Denver Veterans
Affairs Medical Center. Degrees offered by the UC Denver School
of Medicine include doctor of medicine, doctor of physical therapy,
and masters of physician assistant studies. The
School is part of the University of
Colorado Denver, one of three universities in the University
of Colorado system. For additional news and information, please
visit the UC Denver newsroom online.
The
Anna and John J. Sie Foundation supports
the sharing of knowledge amongst peoples
and cultures throughout the global
community, with an emphasis on Down
syndrome, international security and
diplomacy, education, media, business
and technology. The foundation is
a supporter of the The Children’s Hospital, the University
of Colorado’s “The Sie Family Down Syndrome Break-Through
Research Initiative,” the University of Denver’s
Korbel School of International Studies,
the Denver Art Museum, the Starz Film
Center, and numerous other civic, social
and educational institutions.
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