Dr. Urszula Kozlowska has become the winner of the 1st nationwide SPARK Poland competition, organized by the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Poland and the Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences. The SPARK Poland program is an intensive, two-year mentoring initiative developed at Stanford University, aimed at supporting innovative biomedical research, helping to translate research findings into clinical trials, and commercializing novel products, including new therapies.

The goal of the SPARK project titled “Development of an affordable therapeutic candidate for Alzheimer’s Disease” is to work toward the implementation of a proposed low-cost and safe drug—designed to delay the progression of dementia in Alzheimer’s disease—into clinical trials, under the guidance of experienced domestic and international mentors. For this purpose, under the SPARK Poland program, the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Republic of Poland will allocate PLN 300,000 to finance R&D and in-kind support, coordinated by the Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences.

Alzheimer’s disease is characterized by chronic inflammation, disruption of metabolic processes, and the accumulation of toxic proteins in the cerebral cortex. It is the leading cause of dementia in the elderly. Approximately 50 million people worldwide suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, including about 0.5 million in Poland. It is estimated that, due to population aging, this number may triple by 2050. Currently, the only available drugs for Alzheimer’s disease are monoclonal antibodies. The annual cost of such therapy is approximately PLN 100,000, which highlights the urgent need to develop a highly effective and more affordable treatment.