Earlier this year, the Rotary Club Dudelange celebrated the 1st edition of its Prix Jeunes Talents and initiated an appeal for donations to support the LCSB. The charity event raised 11,000 Euros for research on rare childhood diseases in Assistant Prof. Carole Linster’s group.
The Rotary Club Dudelange together with the École Régionale de Musique celebrated the 1st edition of its “Prix Jeunes Talents” in January 2020. This competition supports and rewards young musicians for their efforts and commitments within the École Régionale de Musique. The event took place in the Eglise Saint-Martin of Dudelange where the laureates performed on stage together with the professional musicians of the Orchestre de Chambre du Luxembourg (OCL).
In addition to this award ceremony, the Rotary Club of Dudelange initiated an appeal for donations to support the LCSB and its research on rare childhood diseases. That evening Director Professor Rudi Balling had the chance to give a brief presentation on the work of his interdisciplinary research centre within the University of Luxembourg.
Even though rare diseases affect typically less than 1 in 2,000 people, the total number of individuals suffering from one of the many different rare diseases in Luxembourg is estimated at over 30,000. “At the LCSB, we study several rare diseases that are caused by genetic mutations and lead to chronic and life-threatening symptoms”, explained Professor Balling. “For the development of novel therapies, it is essential to identify the underlying genetic cause and to understand the molecular mechanisms underlying the disease.”
The charity event raised a total of 11,000 Euros and at the end of June, representatives of the Rotary Club Dudelange presented the check to Assistant Professor Carole Linster, group leader of the Enzymology & Metabolism Group. “Because of the low number of patients affected by the individual diseases, drug development for rare diseases is often not supported by pharma industries”, she said. “Therefore, we are very grateful for the financial support we received from the Rotary Club Dudelange!”
