Brin Foundation Donates $3 million to The Parkinson's Institute and Clinical Center

Brin Foundation Donates $3 million to The Parkinson's Institute and Clinical
Center

SUNNYVALE, Calif., Aug. 27 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Parkinson's
Institute and Clinical Center (PI) is very excited to announce the receipt of
a $3 million challenge grant from the Brin Foundation as the lead gift in the
PI's $15 million Capital Campaign - "A Campaign to Conquer Parkinson's
Disease." The "Challenge" feature of the grant invites individuals,
foundations and corporations to partner with the Brin Foundation in support of
Parkinson's research.

"This capital campaign will allow us not only to continue cutting-edge
research, but also to expand it dramatically, while at the same time ensuring
that we will continue to deliver compassionate care of the highest quality to
our patients. We are thrilled to be in a new expanded facility that makes all
of this possible," said J. William Langston, MD, founder and CEO of The
Parkinson's Institute.

"The generosity of the Brin Foundation is a cornerstone of our long range
fundraising initiative, which provides both stability and critical growth
potential for PI," says Jonathan Friedman, Director of Development at PI.

Irwin Helford, Board Chairman of PI and former CEO of Viking Office Products
and retired Vice Chairman of Office Depot, expressed his delight at learning
of the gift. "It's heartening to see a leader of the new generation of
successful entrepreneurs is taking up the banner of promising research
philanthropy. Anne and Sergey have set the bar at a high level. I hope that
other leaders, who care about ending terrible disease, will follow their
example."

A portion of the campaign is devoted to the capital improvements in the
organization's new, expanded 60,000 square foot facilities - for advanced
research labs and state-of-the-art equipment. Additional funds are being used
to engage new talented scientific research staff. This will enable the
Institute to greatly accelerate its efforts to find the causes and cure for
Parkinson's disease, expand effective, highest quality patient care and to
significantly expand clinical trials for new drugs to better treat patients
with Parkinson's disease.

Approximately 1 million Americans are affected with Parkinson's disease (PD),
a common neurodegenerative disease that causes a high degree of disability and
adds financial burden for our health care system. It is estimated that the
number of PD cases will double by the year 2030. There is a critical need for
new, novel therapies that will prevent or even reverse progression of
Parkinson's disease. This is a major priority research focus at the Institute.

About the Parkinson's Institute and Clinical Center
Founded in 1988, The Parkinson's Institute and Clinical Center (PI) is
America's only independent non-profit organization that provides both basic
and clinical research, clinical trials and a comprehensive movement disorder
patient clinic for Parkinson's disease (PD) and related neurological movement
disorders, all under one roof. Its mission is to find the causes, provide
first class patient care and discover a cure.

For more information, please visit www.thepi.org or call 408.734.2800

SOURCE Parkinson's Institute

Jonathan Friedman, Development Director of The Parkinson's Institute and
Clinical Center, +1-408-734-2800, jfriedman@thepi.org