International experts to gather for ALS symposium in Chicago

The 2024 Les Turner Symposium on ALS will be held on Monday, Nov. 4 in Chicago. Hosted by the Les Turner ALS Foundation and the Les Turner ALS Center at Northwestern Medicine, this event will assemble internationally-renowned ALS researchers, clinicians, advocates, and people living with ALS to discuss the latest research and perspectives on the disease. 

The keynote address, Advances in ALS Clinical Trial Outcome Measures, will be delivered by Angela Genge, MD, FRCP(C). Dr. Genge is widely recognized for her work in clinical trial design and development for rare neurological conditions. Since 1998, she has served as director of the ALS Global Center of Excellence and ALS Clinic at the Montreal Neurological Institute and Hospital. During her twenty-year tenure as executive director of the Institute's clinical research unit, over 100 clinical trials were conducted from Phase 1 to Phase 4, making it the most active neuroscience unit in Canada. 

Dr. Genge has been a pioneer in bringing ALS clinical trials to Canada. Over her long career, she has played an important role in clinical trial design, with a recent focus on the role of biomarkers in ALS therapeutic development. Beyond that, she is an amazing clinician dedicated to her patients and an outstanding mentor to junior faculty interested in ALS clinical research." 

Senda Ajroud-Driss, MD, Director, Lois Insolia ALS Clinic at the Les Turner ALS Center, Northwestern Medicine

She will be joined by researchers from London's UCL Queen Square Institute of Neurology and the Francis Crick Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Brain Science Institute, and Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. They will explore new research on critical topics in ALS, including: 

• Targeting the Ubiquitin-Proteasome System in Neurodegenerative Diseases by Robert Kalb, MD, Joan and Paul Rubschlager Professor of Neurology, Chief of Neuromuscular Disease; Director, Les Turner ALS Center at Northwestern Medicine 

• Immune System Alteration in ALS by David Gate, PhD, Director, Abrams Research Center on Neurogenomics, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine 

• Cell Type-Specific Alterations of Cortical Excitability in a Model of Familial ALS by Marco Martina, MD, MSc, PhD, Professor of Neuroscience and Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine 

• TDP-43 Pathology in the ALS Motor Cortex by Hande Ozdinler, PhD, Associate Professor of Neurology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine 

• RNA-Based Regulation of TDP-43 Nuclear Localization by Lindsey Hayes, MD, PhD, Associate Professor of Neurology, Johns Hopkins Medicine 

• Cryptic Splicing: From Foe to Friend in Tackling Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis by Pietro Fratta, MD, PhD, Professor of Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience, University College London 

In the afternoon, the Clinical Conversations Panel will unite clinicians and specialists in social work with people who have lived experiences of ALS. Together, they will share perspectives on care, research, and community support. Attendees will also have the opportunity to network over breakfast and lunch and enjoy the mid-day poster session. 

There is no cost to attend the symposium or watch the presentations online. For more information and to register, visit lesturnerals.org/symposium.