TARGET ALS FOUNDATION INC

RESEARCH WE FUND:TARGET ALS IS THE LARGEST AND MOST IMPACTFUL PRIVATE FUNDER OF ALS RESEARCH WORLDWIDE. THANKS TO THE GENEROUS TRUST PLACED IN US BY OUR DONORS, WE CAN DIRECT RESOURCES TO THE MOST PROMISING IDEAS AND EMERGING SCIENTIFIC LEADERS ACROSS THE GLOBE. OUR FUNDED PROJECTS HAVE A HIGH SUCCESS RATE, DELIVERING MEANINGFUL RESULTS TO ADVANCE IDEAS FROM EARLY TO LATE STAGE RESEARCH. IN 2025, WE CONTINUED TO EXPAND FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES, DRIVING NEARLY $12M INTO INNOVATION ACROSS 151 GRANTS IN THREE CRITICAL AREAS:UNDERSTANDING ALS BIOLOGY: ADVANCING INSIGHTS INTO THE ROOT CAUSES OF DISEASE TO IDENTIFY NEW DRUG TARGETS.ACCELERATING DRUG DISCOVERY: SUPPORTING PROOF-OF-CONCEPT STUDIES THAT PAVE THE WAY TOWARD CLINICAL TRIALS.DEVELOPING BIOMARKERS: ENABLING EARLIER DIAGNOSIS, IDENTIFYING ALS SUBTYPES, AND MONITORING DISEASE PROGRESSION WITH PRECISIONEVERY GRANT THAT TARGET ALS FUNDS IS TIED TO A DELIBERATE STRATEGY AND A LONG-RANGE VISION FOR THE FIELD, ENSURING THAT PROMISING IDEAS MOVE THROUGH THE FULL RESEARCH PATHWAY: UNCOVERING DISEASE BIOLOGY, IDENTIFYING AND REFINING NEW THERAPEUTIC TARGETS OR BIOMARKERS, VALIDATING THEM IN RIGOROUS MODELS, GENERATING TRANSLATIONAL DATA, AND PREPARING THE STRONGEST CANDIDATES FOR CLINICAL DEVELOPMENT. OUR FUNDING ALLOCATION REFLECTS WHERE THE STRONGEST IDEAS EMERGE. THE DISTRIBUTION OF OUR FUNDING ISN'T SET BY QUOTAS OR PERCENTAGES. IT'S SHAPED BY WHERE THE MOST COMPELLING SCIENCE IS HAPPENING. EACH YEAR, WE INVEST IN THE PROPOSALS WITH THE CLEAREST BIOLOGICAL RATIONALE, THE STRONGEST EVIDENCE, AND THE GREATEST POTENTIAL TO ADVANCE THE FIELD. RESEARCH WE ENABLE:TARGET ALS CONTINUES TO BREAK DOWN BARRIERS TO PROGRESS BY OFFERING NO-STRINGS-ATTACHED ACCESS TO CRITICAL TOOLS AND RESOURCES THROUGH OUR RESEARCH CORES. THESE SHARED RESOURCES ADDRESS LONGSTANDING CHALLENGES IN ALS RESEARCH THAT HAVE HISTORICALLY SLOWED DISCOVERY: LIMITED ACCESS, HIGH COSTS, AND LACK OF STANDARDIZATION. THE RESEARCH CORES ACCELERATE DRUG DISCOVERY AND BIOMARKER DEVELOPMENT WHILE FOSTERING COLLABORATION ACROSS THE GLOBAL ALS COMMUNITY. IN 2025, TARGET ALS INVESTED OVER $8M TO EMPOWER SCIENTISTS WITH THE MATERIALS, DATA, AND INFRASTRUCTURE THEY NEED TO DRIVE PROGRESS FROM THE BENCH TO THE CLINIC. FROM OUR POSTMORTEM TISSUE CORE TO THE LONGITUDINAL BIOFLUIDS CORE POWERED BY OUR GLOBAL NATURAL HISTORY STUDY (GNHS) AND OPEN-ACCESS DATA ENGINE, TARGET ALS PROVIDES RESEARCHERS WORLDWIDE WITH STATE-OF-THE-ART BIOSAMPLES, DATASETS, ANTIBODIES, AND MORE, WITH NO REACHTHROUGH ON INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY (IP). THESE TOOLS ARE AVAILABLE TO BOTH ACADEMIA AND INDUSTRY, ENSURING THAT SCIENTIFIC BREAKTHROUGHS CAN MOVE SWIFTLY AND COLLABORATIVELY TOWARD THERAPIES FOR PEOPLE LIVING WITH ALS. TO DATE, MORE THAN 1,750 PROJECTS HAVE RELIED ON THESE RESOURCES, SPANNING BASIC BIOLOGY, TARGET VALIDATION, BIOMARKER DISCOVERY, AND THERAPEUTIC DEVELOPMENT. AND THE MOMENTUM IS ONLY GROWING: OVER 500 RESEARCHERS HAVE ACCESSED OUR DATA ENGINE, WHILE GLOBAL CONSORTIA OF PREEMINENT SCIENTISTS ARE WORKING TOGETHER WITH TARGET ALS FUNDS TO SHARE DATA, REPLICATE FINDINGS, AND AMPLIFY IMPACT.RESEARCH WE CONDUCT:ALS IS A DISEASE THAT AFFECTS PEOPLE OF EVERY RACE AND ETHNICITY AROUND THE WORLD. HOWEVER, CLINICAL TRIALS ENROLL PRIMARILY PEOPLE OF WHITE, EUROPEAN DESCENT RESULTING IN A BIASED, INCOMPLETE VIEW OF DISEASE BIOLOGY ACROSS THE ALS GLOBAL POPULATION. THE ALS GLOBAL RESEARCH INITIATIVE (AGRI) IS THE ONLY COMPREHENSIVE, GLOBAL RESEARCH EFFORT THAT BRINGS TOGETHER TWO COMPLEMENTARY CLINICAL STUDIES DESIGNED TO UNCOVER THE CAUSES OF ALS AND IDENTIFY NEW BIOMARKERS THAT CAN DIAGNOSE THE DISEASE EARLIER, TRACK ITS PROGRESSION, AND PREDICT OUTCOMES. THESE STUDIES PROVIDE RESEARCHERS UNPRECEDENTED ACCESS TO PATIENT DATA AND BIOSAMPLES WORLDWIDE, RAPIDLY ACCELERATING NEW DISCOVERIES AND DRIVING PROGRESS TOWARD MORE EFFECTIVE THERAPIES. ULTIMATELY, INCLUSIVE RESEARCH STRENGTHENS SCIENTIFIC VALIDITY, IMPROVES PATIENT OUTCOMES, AND HELPS ENSURE THAT BREAKTHROUGHS BENEFIT EVERYONE, NOT JUST A SUBSET OF THE POPULATION. THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, WE INVESTED OVER $1.5M, WHICH FUELED AGRI'S BOLD GOAL: BRING THE WORLD TOGETHER TO TACKLE ALS FROM EVERY ANGLE. THROUGH OUR GLOBAL NATURAL HISTORY STUDY (GNHS) AND COMMUNITYBASED POP-UP CLINICS, WE'RE MAKING ALS RESEARCH MORE INCLUSIVE, MORE IMMEDIATE, AND MORE COLLABORATIVE THAN EVER BEFORE.