Mario Lopez to Host BE BEAUTIFUL BE YOURSELF Fashion Show in Denver

Decorated former NFL quarterback Peyton Manning is set to walk the runway at the 2016 Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show on Nov. 12 in Denver, the Global Down Syndrome Foundation announced today. Two-time Emmy Award winner and EXTRA host Mario Lopez will co-host the single largest fundraiser benefitting people with Down syndrome along with 9News Anchor Kim Christiansen.

Former Denver Broncos great Manning, who is slated to walk the runway with a model with Down syndrome, has a charitable history having founded the PeyBack Foundation with his wife in 1999. The foundation aims to improve the development of at-risk youth by providing leadership and growth opportunities.

"We're very fortunate to have the backing from one of the best quarterbacks to have played in the NFL," said Michelle Sie Whitten, President and CEO of the Global Down Syndrome Foundation. "And through grants, programs, and his continued support of the Global Down Syndrome Foundation, Peyton is actively improving the future of our children. He's a champion on and off the field."

Lopez has been dedicated to raising awareness of the major issues affecting children, including the importance of graduating from high school and maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

"Mario understands the significance of the work the Global Down Syndrome Foundation is doing and serves as a pioneer for children who are differently-abled and their families." said Whitten. "He's used his platform and success to bring to light issues affecting children who are disadvantaged, and that's why we admire him. With his philanthropic heart of gold and charismatic personality, Mario is the perfect luminary to host this beautiful evening."

The Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show is a fundraiser for the Global Down Syndrome Foundation benefiting the Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome on the Anschutz Medical Campus and the Anna and John J. Sie Center for Down Syndrome at Children's Hospital Colorado.

Global Down Syndrome Foundation is a public nonprofit dedicated to significantly improving the lives of people with Down syndrome through research, medical care, education and advocacy. Global supports two affiliates which together constitute the only academic home in the United States committed solely to research and medical care for people with Down syndrome - the Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome and the Sie Center for Down Syndrome. Global also publishes Down Syndrome World, a national award-winning quarterly magazine. For more information, visit www.globaldownsyndrome.org. Follow Global Down Syndrome Foundation on Facebook & Twitter @GDSFoundation.

The Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome is the first medical and research institute with the mission to provide the best clinical care to people with Down syndrome, and to eradicate the medical and cognitive ill effects associated with the condition. Established in 2008, the Crnic Institute is a partnership between the University of Colorado School of Medicine, the University of Colorado Boulder, and Children's Hospital Colorado. Headquartered on the Anschutz Medical Campus in Aurora, the Crnic Institute includes the Anna and John J. Sie Center for Down Syndrome at Children's Hospital Colorado and the Rocky Mountain Alzheimer's Disease Center. It partners both locally and globally to provide life-changing research and medical care for individuals with Down syndrome. The Crnic Institute is made possible by the generous support of the Anna and John J. Sie Foundation, and relies on the Global Down Syndrome Foundation for fundraising, education, awareness, and government advocacy. It is a research and medical-based organization without political or religious affiliation or intention.

Down syndrome is the most commonly occurring chromosomal condition, affecting one out of every 691 live births in the U.S., according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The average lifespan is 60 years. Down syndrome is caused by the genetic condition known as trisomy 21, whereby a person is born with three copies of chromosome 21. The presence of an extra copy of the chromosome affects human development in many ways, protecting people with Down syndrome from developing some diseases, such as most tumors, while predisposing them to others, such as autoimmune disorders and Alzheimer's disease. The reasons for this different 'disease spectrum' in the population with Down syndrome are unknown. Elucidating the molecular basis of this phenomenon could advance our understanding of many diseases affecting the typical population.