$1.7M Grant to Help Sanford Research Study Genetic Disorder

A $1.7 million grant from the Children's Tumor Foundation is helping a Sanford Research scientist better understand a rare genetic disorder that causes tumors in the nervous system.

Dr. Jill Weimer is leading a team that's developing a new pig model for Neurofibromatosis type 1. The disease causes pigmented birth marks, growth deformities and benign tumors, a portion that can become cancerous.

The grant is as part of the not-for-profit organization's Synodos program, an integrated, multidisciplinary consortium of scientists working to develop treatments.

Weimer is a scientist and director of the Children's Health Research Center at Sanford Research. She studies nervous system development, neural development disorders and neurodegenerative diseases.

Sanford Research is a non-profit research organization that's part of Sanford Health, an integrated health system headquartered in the Dakotas.

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