New University of Minnesota gift will benefit rare disease research

Photo credit: University of Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS/ST. PAUL (April 30, 2025) — The University of Minnesota and M Health Fairview’s Rare Disease Center of Excellence recently received $500,000 from the Wasie Foundation to support rare disease research and patients. The gift will fund small pilot grants for rare disease research and assist families with the costs of genetic testing to identify rare diseases and obtain a diagnosis in a timelier manner. 

“This extraordinary commitment from The Wasie Foundation allows us to fast-track innovative research that will help us continue to uncover answers for patients who have waited far too long for a diagnosis,” said Susan Berry, MD, a professor at the University of Minnesota Medical School and physician with M Health Fairview. She is also the director of the Rare Disease Center of Excellence. “It’s a game changer in helping us close the gap between discovery and care.”

The University of Minnesota Medical School, College of Pharmacy and M Health Fairview Masonic Children’s Hospital’s joint designation as a Rare Disease Center of Excellence recognizes expertise in diagnosing, treating and researching rare diseases. At the University, researchers are working on everything from basic disease biology, first-in-human studies and clinical trials and biomarker discovery of predictors for outcomes after treatment of rare diseases. 

“The Wasie Foundation gift will be particularly impactful for University investigators as it will allow them to initiate early-stage basic and translational research targeted at the development of new therapies for rare disease,” adds Jim Cloyd, PharmD, professor and director of the College of Pharmacy’s Center for Orphan Drug Research. “Such funding will result in the generation of information and data needed to pursue additional funding beyond the University. Further, the gift will also play an important role in attracting students interested in getting involved in rare disease research.” 

“This funding will be crucial in helping families affected by rare diseases get diagnoses, which can lead to a better understanding of these conditions and how to provide the best care,” said Paul Orchard, professor at the U of M Medical School and blood and marrow transplant physician with M Health Fairview. 

The Wasie Foundation has supported medical discovery for over 50 years, helping University of Minnesota researchers and clinicians boldly advance innovative, life-changing care for patients with rheumatic and autoimmune disease, as well as epidermolysis bullosa (EB) and schizophrenia.