Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) News and Research

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Two studies highlight important new discovery around most common genetic defect linked to ALS

In today's issue of Nature, two new studies funded in part by The ALS Association both highlight an important new discovery around the C9orf72 mutation, the most common genetic defect associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

27 Aug 2015

Common gene mutation may cause brain damage associated with ALS and FTD

Johns Hopkins researchers say they have discovered some of the first steps in how a very common gene mutation causes the brain damage associated with both amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD).

27 Aug 2015

Scientists reveal how a common gene mutation in ALS and FTD disrupts normal cell function

Researchers have determined how the most common gene mutation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) disrupts normal cell function, providing insight likely to advance efforts to develop targeted therapies for these brain diseases.

27 Aug 2015

Others consider our moral traits, not memory, to be core component of our identity

We may view our memory as being essential to who we are, but new findings suggest that others consider our moral traits to be the core component of our identity. Data collected from family members of patients suffering from neurodegenerative disease showed that it was changes in moral behavior, not memory loss, that caused loved ones to say that the patient wasn't "the same person" anymore.

18 Aug 2015

Johns Hopkins researchers discover role of TDP-43 protein in autopsy brain cells of patients with ALS

Autopsies of nearly every patient with the lethal neurodegenerative disorder amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and many with frontotemporal dementia (FTD), show pathologists telltale clumps of a protein called TDP-43. Now, working with mouse and human cells, Johns Hopkins researchers report they have discovered the normal role of TDP-43 in cells and why its abnormal accumulation may cause disease.

7 Aug 2015

New fly model developed to study motor neuron degeneration

Researchers at the Babraham Institute and University of Massachusetts Medical School in the United States have developed a new model to study motor neuron degeneration and have used this to identify three genes involved in the neurodegeneration process. These findings could have relevance for understanding the progression of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other forms of motor neuron disease (MND).

7 Aug 2015

Diaphragmatic pacing ’harmful’ in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Diaphragmatic pacing in conjunction with non-invasive ventilation is detrimental to patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and respiratory insufficiency, show findings from a randomised controlled trial.

5 Aug 2015

Brain-controlled prosthesis could improve quality of life in people with spinal cord injuries

When we type or perform other precise tasks, our brains and muscles usually work together effortlessly. But when a neurological disease or spinal cord injury severs the connection between the brain and limbs, once-easy motions become difficult or impossible.

3 Aug 2015

Key differences identified among patients with ALS

Researchers on Mayo Clinic's Florida campus have identified key differences between patients with sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease) and those with the most common genetic form of ALS, a mutation in the C9orf72 gene.

21 Jul 2015

Gene therapy provides life-long protection to photoreceptor cells in animal model of retinitis pigmentosa

A collaboration between scientists in the UK and the USA has shown that gene therapy can give life-long protection to the light-sensitive photoreceptor cells responsible for colour vision in a mouse model of the most common inherited eye disorder.

15 Jul 2015

Robert G. Miller awarded $1.5 million grant to help fund Neuraltus' Phase 2 clinical study of NP001 for ALS

Neuraltus Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a privately-held biopharmaceutical company focused on the development of groundbreaking drugs to treat neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), announced today that Robert G. Miller, M.D., Director of the Forbes Norris MDA/ALS Research Center at Sutter Health's California Pacific Medical Center in San Francisco, has been awarded a grant from The ALS Association for $1.5 million to help fund a Phase 2 clinical study of the company's investigational therapy for ALS, NP001.

1 Jul 2015

Kay E. Davies named recipient of ASHG's 2015 William Allan Award

The American Society of Human Genetics has named Kay E. Davies, DPhil, Dr. Lee's professor of anatomy, associate head of the medical sciences division; and director of the Medical Research Council Functional Genomics Unit in the department of physiology, anatomy and genetics at the University of Oxford, the 2015 recipient of the annual William Allan Award.

30 Jun 2015

Novel combination of non-toxic dietary and hyperbaric oxygen therapies doubles survival time in cancer model

A team of researchers from the Hyperbaric Biomedical Research Laboratory at the University of South Florida (USF) doubled survival time in an aggressive metastatic cancer model using a novel combination of non-toxic dietary and hyperbaric oxygen therapies.

11 Jun 2015

Immune system linked to death of motor neurons in Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

A previously unknown link between the immune system and the death of motor neurons in Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, has been discovered by scientists at the CHUM Research Centre and the University of Montreal. The finding paves the way to a whole new approach for finding a drug that can cure or at least slow the progression of such neurodegenerative diseases as ALS, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and Huntington's diseases.

10 Jun 2015

Frankfurt researchers decode molecular details that provide better understanding of neurodegenerative diseases

Quality control is important - this is not only applicable to industrial production but also true for all life processes. However, whereas an enterprise can start a large-scale recall in case of any doubt, defects in the quality control systems of cells are often fatal.

9 Jun 2015

U of T researchers uncover new insights on genetic causes of ALS

Researchers at the University of Toronto have uncovered new insights on the genetic causes of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), which is also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. These findings could uncover a new way to detect a genetic predisposition to ALS before the disease strikes.

4 Jun 2015

Mayo Clinic scientists create mouse model of ALS, FTD caused by mutations in C9ORF72 gene

Scientists at Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, Florida created a novel mouse that exhibits the symptoms and neurodegeneration associated with the most common genetic forms of frontotemporal dementia (FTD) and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, Lou Gehrig's disease), both of which are caused by a mutation in the a gene called C9ORF72.

24 May 2015

TSRI study provides new insight into preventing diseases that cause vision loss in adults

A new study from scientists at The Scripps Research Institute shows that nerve cells and blood vessels in the eye constantly "talk" to each other to maintain healthy blood flow and prevent disease.

28 Apr 2015

Discovery unveils novel drug targets to halt peripheral neuropathies, neurodegenerative disorders

New research highlights how nerves - whether harmed by disease or traumatic injury - start to die, a discovery that unveils novel targets for developing drugs to slow or halt peripheral neuropathies and devastating neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

22 Apr 2015

BrainStorm presents positive results from NurOwn phase 2a study in ALS at AAN annual meeting

BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics Inc., a leading developer of adult stem cell technologies for neurodegenerative diseases, is presenting results from its phase 2a study of NurOwn in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) at a poster session today at the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting, taking place in Washington D.C.

21 Apr 2015

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) News and Research

Two studies highlight important new discovery around most common genetic defect linked to ALS

Common gene mutation may cause brain damage associated with ALS and FTD

Scientists reveal how a common gene mutation in ALS and FTD disrupts normal cell function

Others consider our moral traits, not memory, to be core component of our identity

Johns Hopkins researchers discover role of TDP-43 protein in autopsy brain cells of patients with ALS

New fly model developed to study motor neuron degeneration

Diaphragmatic pacing ’harmful’ in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Brain-controlled prosthesis could improve quality of life in people with spinal cord injuries

Key differences identified among patients with ALS

Gene therapy provides life-long protection to photoreceptor cells in animal model of retinitis pigmentosa

Robert G. Miller awarded $1.5 million grant to help fund Neuraltus' Phase 2 clinical study of NP001 for ALS

Kay E. Davies named recipient of ASHG's 2015 William Allan Award

Novel combination of non-toxic dietary and hyperbaric oxygen therapies doubles survival time in cancer model

Immune system linked to death of motor neurons in Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Frankfurt researchers decode molecular details that provide better understanding of neurodegenerative diseases

U of T researchers uncover new insights on genetic causes of ALS

Mayo Clinic scientists create mouse model of ALS, FTD caused by mutations in C9ORF72 gene

TSRI study provides new insight into preventing diseases that cause vision loss in adults

Discovery unveils novel drug targets to halt peripheral neuropathies, neurodegenerative disorders

BrainStorm presents positive results from NurOwn phase 2a study in ALS at AAN annual meeting

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