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Press Releases & Research Commentary

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Nedergaard Recognized with Nakasone Award for Pioneering Research

Tuesday, March 26, 2024

Maiken Nedergaard, MD, DMSc, has been recognized by the International Human Frontier Science Program Organization (HFSPO) with its 2024 Nakasone Award for her “groundbreaking discovery and exploration” of the glymphatic system, the brain’s unique waste removal system, and the role that sleep plays in its function.  

“Dr. Nedergaard forever changed the way we understand sleep as an essential biological function that promotes brain health and plays a crucial role in preventing diseases, such as Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and Huntington’s diseases,” said HFSPO secretary-general Pavel Kabat. “It is a fundamental discovery worthy of being honored with the 2024 HFSPO Nakasone Award.”

Nedergaard is co-director for the Center for Translational Neuromedicine, which maintains research facilities at the University of Rochester Medical Center and the University of Copenhagen.  In 2012, her lab first described the glymphatic system, a previously unknown network of channels that piggybacks on blood vessels.  The system is used to transport cerebrospinal fluid deep into brain tissue and flush away toxic waste, including beta amyloid and tau, two proteins associated with Alzheimer’s disease. 

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