Oct 02 2026
Wake Up Narcolepsy Presents Research Grant to Dr. Emmanuel Mignot
h in News
Wake Up Narcolepsy (WUN) presented a research grant to Dr. Emmanuel Mignot, the Craig Reynolds Professor in Sleep Medicine and director of the Center for Narcolepsy at Stanford University School of Medicine. The presentation took place at WUN’s Bridging Perspectives Clinical Convening, held in Dallas, TX on Friday, October 2nd.
The funding will support Dr. Mignot’s ongoing groundbreaking research into Narcolepsy, with the goal of advancing understanding of the disorder and accelerating the development of improved treatments.
The presentation comes at a landmark moment in Dr. Mignot’s distinguished career. In September, Dr. Mignot was named a recipient of the 2026 Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award, one of the world’s most prestigious biomedical research honors. He shares the award with Dr. Masashi Yanagisawa who serves as a part-time Professor of Molecular Genetics UTSW and holds a primary appointment as Director of the International Institute for Integrative Sleep Medicine at the University of Tsukuba in Japan. The pair was recognized for their pioneering discovery of orexin, a brain peptide that plays a critical role in maintaining wakefulness, and their demonstration that orexin deficiency causes uncontrolled sleep in Narcolepsy.
Dr. Mignot’s decades of research have fundamentally changed the scientific understanding of narcolepsy and helped open the door to new approaches to treatment. His work identifying the role of orexin in Narcolepsy has contributed to a new generation of therapies targeting the underlying biology of the disorder.
“For nearly two decades, WUN has recognized that sustained investment in scientific research is essential to changing the future for people living with Narcolepsy. This grant reflects our continued commitment to supporting innovative researchers whose work can lead to better treatments and, ultimately, a cure,” said Tammy Anderson, Executive Director of WUN.
Since 2008, Wake Up Narcolepsy has provided critical research grant funding to Dr. Mignot and other leading scientists working to better understand Narcolepsy. Through this longstanding commitment, WUN has helped support research across multiple areas of Narcolepsy science and fostered continued investigation into the causes, mechanisms and potential treatments for the rare disorder.
To contribute to WUN’s research appeal and help fund future projects please make an online gift.