By Jennie Erin Smith – Science –
New effort is modeled after the state’s long-running cancer research institute
Texas voters this week made a bet that their state could build on a legacy of success in cancer research and become a powerhouse in neurological research as well. The Dementia Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (DPRIT), approved by two-thirds of voters in a 4 November ballot measure, authorizes $3 billion in state surplus funds to be awarded over 10 years to Texas-based researchers for work in Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other diseases.
The new effort is closely modeled after the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas (CPRIT), which got off the ground in 2009 and has since doled out nearly $4 billion in grants. Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick, who led DPRIT’s creation, said he aimed to help the 500,000 Texans with dementia and their families. DPRIT will make Texas “the premier destination” for dementia prevention and research, and give Texans access to the best care “right here at home,” Patrick said in a statement earlier this year. Following the ballot measure’s approval this week, the Alzheimer’s Association heralded the planned institute on social media as “the largest state-funded dementia research program in the country.”
