• Dr Rebecca Jones has received £140,944 from the charity Muscular Dystrophy UK to research an overlooked condition affecting muscles, bones and nerves
• Inclusion body myopathy has no effective treatments and symptoms can include muscle weakness, bone disease and memory issues
• Together with a PhD student, Dr Jones will research the processes in the body that lead to the disease in an effort to find treatments.

Muscular Dystrophy UK, a charity working on behalf of 110,000 children and adults living with more than 60 muscle-wasting conditions, has awarded £140,944 in funding to Dr Rebecca Jones at Aston University for a project to understand the cause of a condition called inclusion body myopathy.

The condition, also known as VCP multisystem proteinopathy type 1 (VCP MSP-1), is a rare and often overlooked condition that affects muscles, bones and nerve cells. Symptoms can vary widely from person to person, but include muscle weakness, bone disease and memory issues. There are currently no effective treatments and scientists still don’t fully understand all the processes that lead to this damage or the reasons behind the differing symptoms.

The four-year project led by Dr Jones, who is a lecturer in the School of Biosciences, will explore how changes in a protein called VCP cause muscles to become weak in people with VCP MSP-1. Dr Jones and her PhD student will focus on how these changes impact how muscles repair themselves, how the structure of muscle cells is affected, and how muscle fibres are formed.

By understanding what goes wrong in these processes, scientists hope to find ways to slow down or stop the condition – potentially leading to the first targeted treatments.

The project is one of 13 new research projects being funded by Muscular Dystrophy UK in England and Northern Ireland, with a total investment of £2m. It is the first time the charity has funded research at Aston University and the first time it has funded research into inclusion body myopathy.

Dr Jones said:

“Receiving this funding from Muscular Dystrophy UK means a great deal to me. It’s the first substantial grant I’ve received. It means I can now explore the translational aspect of my research interests in DNA replication and the nuclear membrane. I really hope that we can contribute to the growing body of research on inclusion body myopathy and ultimately make a difference to the people living with this life-changing condition.”

Kate Adcock, director of research and innovation at Muscular Dystrophy UK, said:

“We’re proud to be increasing our investment in research year after year – reaching new areas, exploring more conditions, and supporting a growing community of scientists. Our funding at Aston University reflects that ambition, supporting research into VCP MSP-1 for the first time. This project expands our reach into rare and often overlooked conditions, while also nurturing the next generation of researchers through support for Dr Rebecca Jones and her PhD student.”

Another project led by Professor Jordi Diaz-Manera, at Newcastle University, will also be exploring the condition further. With the latest investment, this brings the charity’s total research commitment to almost £10m. Across more than 25 conditions, it’s now supporting 51 active projects that aim to deepen understanding, explore new treatments, improve care and make a meaningful difference to the lives of those living with muscle wasting and weakening conditions.

Muscle wasting and weakening conditions can affect anyone, no matter where they live. The charity is adding to its portfolio of research that now spans the UK. This will help to reach more people and communities. The charity has also awarded new funding to researchers in Belfast, London, Newcastle, Nottingham, Oxford and Portsmouth.