The Fisher Center for Alzheimer's Research Foundation is an American nonprofit organization that supports research into the causes and treatment of Alzheimer's disease. The organization's mission is to "understand the causes of Alzheimer's disease, improve the care of people living with it, and find a cure."[1] The Foundation is funded through donations from the public.[2]
Zachary Fisher, a New York City businessman and philanthropist, created the organization in 1995 after his wife, Elizabeth Fisher, developed Alzheimer's disease. He teamed up with philanthropist David Rockefeller to establish the Zachary and Elizabeth M. Fisher Center for Research on Alzheimer's Disease at The Rockefeller University. Since its founding, the Fisher Center Foundation has primarily supported the research conducted at the Fisher Center Laboratory, which until 2019 was under the direction of Nobel laureate Paul Greengard.[3] The Foundation currently supports research programs at NYU Langone Health, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, and the Institut des maladies génétiques Imagine[fr] in Paris, France.[4]
The Foundation also publishes educational material for the public. Since 2007, the Foundation has published Preserving Your Memory, a subscription-based magazine featuring interviews with high-profile Alzheimer's patients and caregivers.[5] It also provides free access to research news and resources through a biweekly newsletter, Alzheimer's Research News You Can Use.[6]
History
When Elizabeth Fisher was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, her husband, New York City real estate developer and philanthropist Zachary Fisher, partnered with their friend David Rockefeller to start the Zachary and Elizabeth M. Fisher Center for Research on Alzheimer's Disease at The Rockefeller University (the Fisher Center Lab) in New York City.
The neuroscientist Paul Greengard directed the Fisher Center Lab from its founding until his death in 2019.The lab was then led by interim laboratory head Marc Flajolet and advised by a Neuroscience Advisory Committee including Nobel laureates Torsten Wiesel, Michael W. Young, and other faculty members from The Rockefeller University.[7][8] In 2022, the neuroscientist Nathaniel Heintz was appointed as new director of the Fisher Center Lab.[9]
The Fisher Center for Alzheimer's Research Foundation, a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, was founded by Zachary Fisher in 1995.[10] The Foundation raises funds via contributions from the public to support the Fisher Center Lab and Alzheimer's research at other labs around the globe.[1] The Fisher Center Foundation has been designated a four-star charity by Charity Navigator every year since 2010,[11] and it has received a Gold Seal of Transparency from Candid GuideStar every year since 2018.[1]
The longtime President and CEO of the Foundation was Kent Karosen, a New York City-based businessman and philanthropist. Karosen was also the co-author, along with Chana Stiefel, of Why Can't Grandma Remember My Name?, a children's book about Alzheimer's disease published by the Foundation in 2016.[12][13] Karosen died in 2018.[14] Since 2020, the Foundation has been led by the Executive Director Lucretia Holden.[15]
Research
Partnership with The Rockefeller University
Since its founding in 1995, the Fisher Center Foundation has financially supported the Zachary and Elizabeth M. Fisher Center for Research on Alzheimer's Disease (the Fisher Center Lab) at The Rockefeller University. In honor of longtime Fisher Center director Paul Greengard, in 2017 the Foundation also announced the endowment of the Paul Greengard Professorship.[16]
In subsequent years, the Foundation partnered with The Rockefeller University to create other professorships dedicated to the study of Alzheimer's disease and neurodegeneration. In 2021, it established the Zachary and Elizabeth M. Fisher Professorship in Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Disease, held by Sidney Strickland.[17][18] In 2024, it created the Fisher Center Foundation Assistant Professorship, held by Junyue Cao.[19][20]
In 2024, in collaboration with the university's Data Science Platform, the Foundation created the Fisher Artificial Intelligence Platform to Advance Research in Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases (the Fisher AI Platform), which provides critical machine learning expertise and computational infrastructure to support research efforts across the university.[21][22]
Information Program
Preserving Your Memory
Since 2007, the Foundation has published Preserving Your Memory, a triannual magazine available to subscribers which is also distributed to medical professionals nationally. The magazine is also made available for free on the Foundation website.[23]
The magazine has interviewed the caregivers of high-profile individuals suffering from Alzheimer's, as well as written features about high-profile caregivers themselves. It also provides educational materials, updates on discoveries in neuroscience, and brainteaser puzzles.[24]
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