Shifting focus from treatment to prevention of Parkinson’s disease and dementia

Source: Innovation Center for Neuroresilience (ICoN), UiB. 📸UiB, at the time of being awarded SFI status in December 2025

ICoN was awarded the status of a Centre for Research-based Innovation (SFI) at the turn of the year, with a budget of over NOK 250 million over eight years. The centre is led by Professor Charalampos (Haris) Tzoulis at the University of Bergen, who also serves as Director of Neuro-SysMed.

– We are excited about this fantastic news! Our vision is to make effective treatment and prevention of neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s possible, said Tzoulis when the award was announced at the end of last year.

A rapidly growing challenge

Today, more than 70 million people worldwide live with neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s, Lewy body dementia and multiple system atrophy. By 2050, this number could exceed 175 million. Yet there are currently no treatments that can halt or slow disease progression – interventions are often introduced too late, after brain damage has already occurred. This is precisely the gap ICoN aims to address.

What makes ICoN unique is the breadth of its collaboration. The centre brings together leading research institutions such as the University of Bergen, Haukeland University Hospital, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health and SINTEF – along with more than 20 industry partners across pharmaceuticals, biotechnology, health technology, nutrition and the food industry.

– Through ICoN, we are addressing this challenge in close collaboration with leading academic environments, public institutions and Norwegian and international industry partners, says Tzoulis.

– We look forward to a meaningful and productive collaboration with these stakeholders, adds Innovation Director Yamila Torres Cleuren.

Several of our members are part of ICoN

Among ICoN’s research and industry partners are several organisations from the Norway Health Tech network: Pre Diagnostics, Vitalthings, Ledidi, Age Labs, Bulbitech, Motiview, Youwell and Bio-Me are all involved – alongside Haukeland University Hospital, the University of Bergen and SINTEF, which are also central members of the cluster. The breadth of Norwegian health technology – spanning diagnostics, digital health, research and clinical practice – is being brought together around a shared goal: preventing disease before it develops.

The Rector of the University of Bergen, Margareth Hagen, points out that the award is a recognition not only of a strong academic environment, but also of the ability to think innovatively and develop solutions with significant impact for both society and individuals.

Would you like to learn more about how ICoN works to bridge the gap between research and patient benefit? On 29 June, the centre is hosting a morning event inspired by Stanford – you can find registration and more information here.