The money raised with the help of a flash mob that opened a new gene.
In July 2014, the charity flashmob, which took place in many countries with pouring ice water Ice Bucket Challenge, has raised $115 million, the money helped in scientific discovery.
The collected funds were distributed among several research groups who are investigating neurodegenerative diseases. One of the groups – the project MinE – achieved a positive result: the researchers discovered the gene NEK1. He is responsible for the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (als) also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.
Scientists have studied the genomes of 15 thousand people who died from als and their healthy relatives. Thus the project of MinE managed the money collected with the help of a flash mob, open a new gene.
Recall, the Ice Bucket Challenge has gained incredible popularity and quickly spread around the world. The main idea of the initiators of this flash mob was planned to raise funds for research neurogenerative diseases. All the money raised was able to sponsor six research projects.
Only Facebook was flooded with 17 million videos with the hashtag #IceBucketChallenge.
The Lou Gehrig’s disease is a progressive degradation of muscle, over time it spreads throughout the body. However, it is diagnosed about 30 thousand people annually (the US example),whereas for example, the illness of Altsgejmera – more than 5 million people. Therefore pharmacists do not develop research in this direction.
