Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) News and Research

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Johns Hopkins researchers create the largest library of brain cells from ALS patients

Researchers at Johns Hopkins Medicine have transformed skin cells from patients with Lou Gehrig’s disease, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), into brain cells affected by the progressive, fatal disease and deposited those human-made cells into the first public ALS cell library, enabling scientists to better study the disease.

15 Apr 2015

Researchers explore influence of low-frequency magnetic fields on neurodegenerative disorders

Low-frequency alternating magnetic fields such as those generated by overhead power lines are considered a potential health risk because epidemiological studies indicate that they may aggravate, among other things, neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

8 Apr 2015

Aging associated with development of dysphagia

Nearly 40 percent of Americans 60 and older are living with a swallowing disorder known as dysphagia. Although it is a major health problem associated with aging, it is unknown whether the condition is a natural part of healthy aging or if it is caused by an age-related disease that has yet to be diagnosed, such as Parkinson's disease or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

8 Apr 2015

Study finds link between neurodegenerative disorders and inflammation

Researchers from McMaster University and the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York have discovered that a protein associated with neurodegenerative diseases like ALS also plays an important role in the body's natural antiviral response.

30 Mar 2015

Discovery opens new drug development avenues for treating multiple diseases

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered a control switch for the unfolded protein response (UPR), a cellular stress relief mechanism drawing major scientific interest because of its role in cancer, diabetes, inflammatory disorders and several neural degenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), otherwise known as Lou Gehrig's disease.

30 Mar 2015

Brainstorm Cell Therapeutics provides business update, announces financial results for 2014

BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics Inc., a leading developer of adult stem cell technologies for neurodegenerative diseases, today announced financial results for the three months and year ended December 31, 2014.

26 Mar 2015

Hypermethylation serves as protective barrier inhibiting development of ALS, FTD

Penn Medicine researchers have discovered that hypermethylation - the epigenetic ability to turn down or turn off a bad gene implicated in 10 to 30 percent of patients with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and Frontotemporal Degeneration (FTD) - serves as a protective barrier inhibiting the development of these diseases.

21 Mar 2015

Researchers identify new gene variants that could contribute to sporadic motor neurone disease

Researchers have identified a new host of gene variants that could make people vulnerable to sporadic motor neurone disease, according to a report published today in the journal, Scientific Reports.

17 Mar 2015

Neuralstem reports top line data from NSI-566 Phase II trial for treatment of ALS

Neuralstem, Inc. announced top line data from the Phase II trial of NSI-566 spinal cord-derived neural stem cells under development for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The study met primary safety endpoints. The maximum tolerated dose of 16 million transplanted cells and the surgery was well tolerated.

12 Mar 2015

TSRI researchers create picture of whole dynein-dynactin structure

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute has determined the basic structural organization of a molecular motor that hauls cargoes and performs other critical functions within cells.

12 Mar 2015

TREM2 protein may help slow progression of multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease

Highlighting a potential target in the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) and Alzheimer's disease, new research suggests that triggering a protein found on the surface of brain cells may help slow the progression of these and other neurological diseases.

3 Mar 2015

New pharmacological compounds block nerve cell damage in mouse models of MS

A newly characterized group of pharmacological compounds block both the inflammation and nerve cell damage seen in mouse models of multiple sclerosis, according to a study conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and published online this week in the journal Nature Neuroscience.

28 Feb 2015

Alzheimer's brains commonly have many neurons with more DNA and genomic copies of APP gene

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have found diverse genomic changes in single neurons from the brains of Alzheimer's patients, pointing to an unexpected factor that may underpin the most common form of the disease.

5 Feb 2015

Biogen Idec, Columbia University Medical Center form $30 million genomics research alliance

Biogen Idec and Columbia University Medical Center have formed a $30 million strategic alliance to conduct genetics discovery research on the underlying causes of disease and to identify new treatment approaches. As part of this agreement, a sequencing and analysis facility and shared postdoctoral program will be established at Columbia to support collaborative genetics studies.

11 Jan 2015

American Migraine Foundation plans to create Migraine Patient Registry and Biorepository

Migraine affects 36 million Americans, can have a major impact on patients' quality of life, and even on their relationships. The World Health Organization estimates that migraine is the third most prevalent medical disorder in the world, the 4th most disabling among women and the 7th most disabling overall.

8 Jan 2015

BrainStorm's phase 2a ALS study meets primary endpoint

BrainStorm Cell Therapeutics Inc., a leading developer of adult stem cell technologies for neurodegenerative diseases, today announced positive final results from its phase 2a clinical trial of NurOwn™ in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients, which enrolled 14 subjects at Hadassah Medical Center in Jerusalem.

6 Jan 2015

New findings may lay groundwork of novel treatment for people with Huntington's disease

By adjusting the levels of a key signaling protein, researchers improved motor function and brain abnormalities in experimental animals with a form of Huntington's disease, a severe neurodegenerative disorder.

5 Jan 2015

Researchers gain new insight into how motor neurons in the brain die during ALS

Researchers look to understand the causes of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), in the hope of finding new ways to treat the disease. A new study published online today (December 17th) in the Cell Press journal Neuron shows that a common gene mutation in ALS generates a deadly protein that may cause the damage in the brain that leads to ALS.

17 Dec 2014

UT Southwestern biophysicist named recipient of 2015 Edith and Peter O'Donnell Award in Science

The Academy of Medicine, Engineering and Science of Texas has selected Dr. Yuh Min Chook, Professor of Pharmacology and of Biophysics at UT Southwestern Medical Center, as the recipient of the 2015 Edith and Peter O'Donnell Award in Science.

10 Dec 2014

Researchers reveal that genetic mutations may cause more cases of ALS

Genetic mutations may cause more cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) than scientists previously had realized, according to researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. The scientists also showed that the number of mutated genes influences the age when the fatal paralyzing disorder first appears.

7 Dec 2014