New UCL Neuroscience centre to unite research and treatment
Work has begun to bring a landmark neurological research and treatment centre to reality.
The UCL Neuroscience centre of excellence will be home to three bodies: the world-leading UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology; the headquarters of the UK Dementia Research Institute, the single biggest investment the UK has ever made in dementia; and the UCLH National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery (NHNN), which is the UK’s largest dedicated neurological and neurosurgical hospital.
Clinical work and research will take place together within the new facility, at 256 Grays Inn Road in London, enabling an active dialogue between people with neurological disorders, their doctors, and researchers.
UCL is a global leader in pioneering research into neurological diseases and is one of the world’s largest, most productive and highest-impact neuroscience centres, with research including developing blood tests that could pick up Alzheimer’s disease years before symptoms, leading global efforts to develop what could be the first disease-modifying treatment for Huntington’s disease and finding that head injuries may increase the risk of cognitive decline or Alzheimer’s-related pathology.
Over the past year, UCL’s neuroscientists have also made valuable contributions to the fight against COVID-19, such as clarifying the range of potential neurological symptoms of the disease in children and adults.
UCL Neuroscience, a 17,500sq m facility, is set to be completed in 2024.
“This flagship facility is a powerful tool in our quest to develop treatments for devastating neurological diseases,” says Dr Michael Spence, UCL president & provost.
“By equipping the next generation of researchers to develop cures, we hope to make conditions like dementia a thing of the past.”
Professor Alan Thompson, dean of faculty of brain sciences and Garfield Weston professor of clinical neurology and neurorehabilitation at UCL, says: “We’re delighted to have entered the construction stage of this transformational development for UCL Neuroscience.
“Through this facility, we aim to translate UCL’s research into new therapies to tackle neurological conditions such as dementia.
“The collaboration which the building will enable between research scientists, clinical partners and patients will be fundamental in developing effective treatments for patients with disabling neurological conditions.”
