GRAND RAPIDS, MI A National Institutes of Health researcher who has uncovered genetic causes of Parkinsons disease today became the first to receive an honor named after Amway co-founder Jay Van Andel.

Dr. Andrew Singleton was honored with the Jay Van Andel Award for Outstanding Academic Achievement in Parkinsons Disease Research during a research symposium at Van Andel Institute.

Jay Van Andel, who died of the effects of Parkinsons in 2004, would have been pleased with the first recipient of the award named after him, said his son, David Van Andel, VAI chairman and chief executive officer.

Dr. Andrew Singleton is the type of scientist he would have envisioned honoring bold, pioneering and working to make a difference in human lives, David Van Andel said.

Singletons accomplishments include the discovery of a duplication and triplication of a gene that causes a severe, early-onset form of Parkinsons.

Scientists already knew that a few extremely rare mutant forms of the protein were bad, but Dr. Singleton showed us that too much of the normal protein also has ramifications, Van Andel said.

Singleton also led a group of researchers that identified mutations in a gene as a cause of familial Parkinsons disease.

His discoveries opened new fields of Parkinsons research, Van Andel said. Singletons lab has research programs investigating genetic diversity and the consequences of genetic alterations.

VAI today began a two-day symposium bringing together experts in Parkinsons disease research to showcase the latest developments.

This is truly a gathering of some of the worlds greatest minds in Parkinsons disease research, said Dr. Patrik Brundin, the chair of the Jay Van Andel Translational Parkinsons Disease Research Laboratory. The research shared at the conference will become the building blocks for therapies that may be commonplace a decade from now.

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Parkinson's researcher at NIH is first honored with award named for Jay Van Andel