First Dystonia Scholars Named at UA

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — University of Alabama students John Ricketts and Emily Kay Woods, both from Birmingham, have been named the first Alabama Dystonia Scholars.

Ricketts and Woods work with Drs. Guy and Kim Caldwell in UA’s biological sciences department. They have been awarded a $20,000 research scholarship that will allow them to conduct extensive research on Dystonia, a neurological movement disorder, for the summers of 2008 and 2009.

Ricketts is a sophomore majoring in biology and a University Honors Program student. He attended the Altamont School and is a recipient of a UA Presidential Scholarship. Ricketts plans on going to medical school to become a physician.

Woods is a freshman majoring in biology and a student in the International Honors Program. She graduated from Oak Mountain High School in 2007 and has been awarded the Dr. Henry Walker Scholarship. She is a member of the National Society of Collegiate Scholars and Alpha Lambda Delta honor society. Woods plans on a career in biomedicine.

“I believe both students display the creativity and dedication to the cause of finding a cure for Dystonia that I expect from my student researchers, especially those who are to receive generous funds raised by patients and their loved ones. I could not be more pleased with their efforts in our lab thus far and see them as significant contributors for years to come,” said Dr. Guy Caldwell, associate professor of biological sciences, who co-directs what is known on campus as The Worm Shack, a UA research center for Dystonia and Parkinson’s disease

The UA research team uses a microscopic worm in their work to fight and learn more about these diseases. This organism enables testing of genetic factors and drugs that influence the disease state to be more rapidly discerned. Promising leads from this worm research has resulted in a partnership with an international pharmaceutical company, QRxPharma Ltd., who is interested in commercializing their discoveries and bringing them to the clinic. For their research efforts in this arena, the Caldwells were recently awarded the first ever HudsonAlpha Prize for Outstanding Innovation in the Life Sciences in ceremonies with Gov. Bob Riley and Dr. Francis Collins, director of the Human Genome Project.

“Dystonia is the most common neurological movement disorder after Parkinson’s and Essential Tremor, yet it receives minimal medical research funding. Dystonia is characterized by involuntary muscle contractions or spasms of parts of the body from the neck and head to the limbs … even the eyes and vocal cords,” said Ken Williams of Birmingham who suffers from Dystonia and is largely responsible for raising the $20,000 given to UA for the Alabama Dystonia Scholars.

“There is not a celebrity spokesperson to champion funding medical research to find a cause and cure. Only a few medical centers even specialize in diagnosis and available treatments, which at best offer temporary relief,” Williams noted.

“When Drs. Guy and Kim Caldwell of The Worm Shack spoke to a support group I’m active in, it was the first optimistic presentation I’d heard in 20-plus years. I inquired how I could help their research efforts. Funding the salaries and expenses of undergraduate students to remain on campus during summers and work in the biology lab on Dystonia research was a priority.

“We even discussed the future possibility of an Alabama Dystonia Research Center. This spurred me to pledge a donation, challenge 10 of my friends and past business associates to ‘match’ my donation, and successfully apply for a matching grant from a national company,” Williams said.