Knight Initiative News

Michael T. Nietzel

A $90 million gift from Penny and Phil Knight will extend the work of the Knight Initiative for Brain Resilience at Stanford’s Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute

In this research roundup, we look back on some of the ways Knight Initiative scientists have been pursuing ways to keep our minds sharp well into old age

The teams will tackle questions linked to Parkinson's pathology and mechanisms with an eye toward treatments

We talk with neurologist Kathleen Poston about early signs of Parkinson's outside the brain and how they might influence treatment and detection

Brain Resilience Postdoctoral Scholar Annie Goettemoeller is studying how epilepsy-like activity might drive the spread of Alzheimer’s pathology in the brain

Neuroscientists studying inflammation and age-related brain decline engineered a protein that spurs the growth of new neurons in aging mice

Faculty Scholar Guosong Hong and institute affiliates Christoph Thaiss and Steven Banik were among eight Stanford researchers to receive the honor

Researchers from around the world convened at Stanford to present their latest work on neurodegeneration and brain resilience

Proteins that start life inside neurons build up faster in old age and spread to other brain cells—a potential source of neurological mischief

From studying post-viral fatigue to engineering transparent mouse brains, round three of the Wu Tsai Neurosciences Institute’s Big Ideas grants will push the bounds of what’s possible

Everything we know now, and what we hope and pray is coming

Neuroradiologist Raag Airan and his lab have found a non-invasive, drug-free method to help clean the brain, reduce inflammation, and treat disease—and with Knight Initiative for Brain Resilience support, they plan to test it in people soon.

The Knight Initiative’s Fall Symposium featured researchers building new molecular atlases of the brain alongside new updates on neurodegenerative disease and what might be done about it.

Amyloid plaques have long been the focus of Alzheimer’s therapies. But Wu Tsai Neuro's Emmanuel Mignot and others are focusing on the stringy tangles of a protein called tau, the unsung second hallmark of Alzheimer’s.

The genetic variant APOE4, carried by one-fifth of the world’s people, substantially boosts Alzheimer’s risk. But scientists have been puzzled about how to reverse that risk: punch up the gene variant’s potency, or smack it down? Now we know, thanks to research funded by the Knight Initiative for Brain Resilience.

Stanford's Office of Postdoctoral Affairs has named Hulya Torun one of this year's Postdoc Champions

A new study finds links between two popular models of the disease—and the results could change how researchers think about treatment.

Blood and cerebrospinal fluid markers tied to inflammation and metabolism sort some patients into subgroups, according to Knight Initiative researchers, a step toward predicting progression and tailoring care.

Knight Initiative-funded research ran the gamut from chemistry to public health, but one theme brought it all together: Studying what makes the brain resilient will help more people live better lives.