• Skip to Content
  • Skip to Main Navigation
  • Skip to Search

Indiana University Indianapolis Indiana University Indianapolis IU Indianapolis

Open Search
  • Patient Care
    • New Patients
    • Current Patients
    • Dental Faculty Practice
    • Services Offered
      • General Dentistry
      • Specialty Care
      • Emergency Care
    • Fees & Insurance
    • Patient Rights and Responsibilities
    • Other Options for Low-Cost Dental Care
  • Academics & Admissions
    • Degrees & Programs
    • Academic Departments
    • Student Experience
      • Student Organizations
      • Service Learning Opportunities
    • Costs & Financial Aid
    • How to Apply
    • Plan a Visit
      • Admissions Tour Registration
      • Dental Day
      • Dental Hygiene Day
      • Dental Assisting Day
        • A Day in the Life of a Dental Assisting Student
    • Library
  • Research
    • Areas of Focus
      • Salivary research
    • Clinical Trials
    • Principal Investigators
      • Investigator Profile: Tien-Min Gabriel Chu, PhD, DDS
      • Investigator Profile: Anderson Hara, PhD, DDS, MSD
      • Investigator Profile: Chandler L. Walker, PHD
      • Investigator Profile: E. Angeles Martinez Mier, PhD, DDS, MSD
      • Investigator Profile: Domenick T. Zero, DDS, MS
      • Investigator Profile: Frank Lippert, PhD, MSc
    • Oral Health Research Institute
      • Clinical Research Core
      • Laboratory Research Core
    • Research Day
    • Student Research
      • Student Research Opportunities
  • CE & Professional Services
    • Continuing Education
      • Certification Programs for Dental Assistants and Hygienists
      • 2025 ACDE Webinars
    • TMJ Institute
    • Cone Beam Imaging Facility
    • Oral Pathology Biopsy Service
    • Sterilization Monitoring Service
  • Alumni & Giving
    • School of Dentistry Alumni Association
      • IU School of Dentistry Alumni Association Board
      • Nominate Someone for the IUSD Alumni Awards
    • Pediatric Alumni Association
      • IU Pediatric Alumni Association board
      • Nominate someone for the IU Pediatric Dentistry Distinguished Alumni Award
      • Pediatric Alumni Awards
    • Periodontic Alumni Association
      • IU Periodontic Alumni Association board
    • Orthodontic Alumni Association
      • Orthodontic Alumni Association Board
    • IUSD Spirit Store
  • About
    • Dean's Welcome and Leadership Team
    • Annual Report
    • Offices & Units
    • People Directory
    • Community Outreach Programs
    • Global Engagement
      • Global Partnerships
    • News & Events
      • GKAS
    • Employment Opportunities
    • Directions & Parking
    • Contact

Indiana University School of Dentistry

  • Home
  • Patient Care
    • New Patients
    • Current Patients
    • Dental Faculty Practice
    • Services Offered
    • Fees & Insurance
    • Patient Rights and Responsibilities
    • Other Options for Low-Cost Dental Care
  • Academics & Admissions
    • Degrees & Programs
    • Academic Departments
    • Student Experience
    • Costs & Financial Aid
    • How to Apply
    • Plan a Visit
    • Library
  • Research
    • Areas of Focus
    • Clinical Trials
    • Principal Investigators
    • Oral Health Research Institute
    • Research Day
    • Student Research
  • CE & Professional Services
    • Continuing Education
    • TMJ Institute
    • Cone Beam Imaging Facility
    • Oral Pathology Biopsy Service
    • Sterilization Monitoring Service
  • Alumni & Giving
    • School of Dentistry Alumni Association
    • Pediatric Alumni Association
    • Periodontic Alumni Association
    • Orthodontic Alumni Association
    • IUSD Spirit Store
  • About
    • Dean's Welcome and Leadership Team
    • Annual Report
    • Offices & Units
    • People Directory
    • Community Outreach Programs
    • Global Engagement
    • News & Events
    • Employment Opportunities
    • Directions & Parking
    • Contact
  • Search
  • Home
  • About
  • News & Events
  • School News
  • IU Dentistry researcher Dr. Chandler Walker awarded $1.1 million for ALS Research

IU Dentistry researcher Dr. Chandler Walker awarded $1.1 million for ALS Research

Wednesday, November 02, 2022

Dr. Chandler Walker in his lab at IU School of Dentistry

Dr. Chandler Walker, associate professor in the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Comprehensive Care at Indiana University School of Dentistry, was awarded a three-year, $1.1 million grant package from Neurodegenerative Disease Research, Inc. (NDR) for stem-cell research and to study pathological changes related to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), more commonly known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

The goal of Dr. Walker’s NDR-funded research is to move stem cell-based therapies into clinical trials for people afflicted with ALS. This research involves thoroughly characterizing the protein and extracellular vesicle/exosome content of the conditioned medium and optimizing the therapy to provide maximal benefits with reduced risk and side effects.

“These outcomes will lay the groundwork to support the therapeutic efficacy and progress of a stem cell conditioned medium as a viable ALS treatment,” Dr. Walker said.

Dr. Walker’s research at Indiana University School of Dentistry is a collaboration with the Richard L. Roudebush Veterans Affairs Medical Center. The projects funded by NDR will build upon his VA research for translating promising stem-cell based therapies to clinical application.

“NDR provides research funding to advance our understanding of the cause of ALS, as well to use that knowledge to develop, test, and translate therapies for ALS patients,” Dr. Walker said. “There are no cures for ALS, and it is 100% fatal. We hope our funded research will help accelerate effective therapies to patients sooner than later.”

 

About Indiana University School of Dentistry: 

Indiana University School of Dentistry (IUSD) fosters an exceptional learning environment in which teaching, research, and community service converge to prepare future dental professionals. IUSD was founded in 1879 as the Indiana Dental College, with operational oversight assumed by Indiana University in 1925. IUSD is one of the oldest dental schools in the nation with more than 13,000 living alumni located across the United States and approximately 30 other countries. In March 2018, IUSD dedicated its newest facility on the IUPUI campus – the 45,000-square-foot James J. Fritts, DDS Clinical Care Center – to continue our tradition of excellence in service and education into the future.


About Neurodegenerative Disease Research, Inc.

Neurodegenerative Disease Research, Inc., is a not-for-profit organization that was formed with a mission to provide funding to researchers with an emphasis to identify and validate biomarkers for determining drug effectiveness in neurodegenerative diseases and facilitate pathology-based treatments to ALS patients.  This novel research is helping to identify the causes of ALS, the phase of disease progression, and developing targeted treatments to end neurodegeneration. More information at https://www.ndrinc.org. 

 

 

  • Dean's Welcome and Leadership Team
  • Annual Report
  • Offices & Units
  • People Directory
  • Community Outreach Programs
  • Global Engagement
  • News & Events
    • GKAS
  • Employment Opportunities
  • Directions & Parking
  • Contact

Indiana University School of Dentistry resources and social media channels

  • Give
  • DentNet
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn

Indiana University

Accessibility | College Scorecard | Open to All | Privacy Notice | Copyright © 2025 The Trustees of Indiana University