A Bold, Comprehensive Strategy to Address Parkinson’s Disease
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic, neurodegenerative disorder that gradually and relentlessly robs patients of coordinated movement while inflicting non-motor symptoms ranging from cognitive impairment to gastrointestinal issues.
Our Work
Parkinson’s Disease: A Giving Smarter Guide
In 2015, the SPARC team partnered with the Sergey Brin Family Foundation (SBFF) to better understand the landscape of PD research and funding, identifying opportunities for future investments. Building on this analysis, SPARC published a Giving Smarter Guide that outlines effective ways for philanthropists to support progress in addressing PD. These include:
From 2016–2019, SBFF and SPARC leveraged this landscape assessment to build a bold, groundbreaking new initiative that sought to accelerate discovery in Parkinson’s disease research.
Aligning Science Across Parkinson’s
Aligning Science Across Parkinson’s (ASAP) was launched in 2019 and continues to transform the state of Parkinson’s and neurodegenerative disease research. Managed by the Coalition for Aligning Science, ASAP now includes a platform dedicated to genotyping hundreds of thousands of volunteers worldwide (the Global Parkinson’s Genetics Program, or GP2); an international network of collaborative researchers supported by ASAP to pursue high-risk studies (the Collaborative Research Network, or CRN); and robust support for an observational study committed to studying biomarkers for PD (Parkinson’s Progression Markers’ Initiative, or PPMI).
A commitment to open science and transparency is foundational to all ASAP programs. Since its inception, ASAP has committed more than $1 billion to Parkinson’s research, grounded in the strategic and operational guidance developed in partnership with SPARC.
