News

Younger cycad seeds can contain more toxins than older seeds, and their widespread consumption by people on occupied Guam during World War II could be the environmental origin of the rare sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) cluster found there, according to a recent study. Guam residents emerged from their wartime…

A Phase 1 clinical trial of a gene-based therapy for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is now recruiting patients in one of its European centers. The Clinical Research Facility at St James’s Hospital Dublin, in Ireland, has enrolled its first patient and is one of four European centers to participate…

Amylyx’s experimental oral treatment AMX0035 safely and effectively slows functional decline in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients with rapidly progressing disease, according to full data from the CENTAUR Phase 2/3 trial. Only changes in upper limb strength were significantly different from those seen in placebo-treated patients, the data show. Meanwhile,…

The Phase 3 clinical trial testing an oral suspension formulation of edaravone for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has resumed dosing and patient recruitment, its developer, Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma America (MTPA), announced. The trial (NCT04165824) was launched in November, but was paused in March due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The study,…

Same But Different, a U.K. nonprofit that uses the arts to bring communities together, is holding a calendar photography competition to raise awareness for rare diseases. Under the theme “A Glimmer of Hope,” the competition is a means to “visually express the hope that exists for people affected by…

Mutations in the gene C9orf72, a common genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), cause immune cells to have an abnormally potent inflammatory response when certain receptors are are activated, a new study suggests. The findings could explain why people with ALS are more likely to develop some autoimmune…

The European Commission has granted orphan drug designation to ILB, Tikomed‘s investigational treatment for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). In the EU, this designation is based on a positive opinion issued by the Committee for Orphan Medicinal Products (COMP), a part of the European…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has granted Prosetin orphan drug designation for the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Orphan drug designation grants financial incentives to companies developing medications for rare diseases, which might not be profitable enough to pursue without government assistance. While a Phase…

Pharnext’s investigational oral combination therapy PXT864 prevents degeneration of motor neurons and their point of contact with muscle cells, as well as the buildup of toxic TDP-43 protein aggregates — all hallmarks of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) — in cellular models of the disease. The data…

Accessing and understanding insurance coverage, and paying for medical treatments and services top the list of stressors that burden people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in the United States, a survey of patients and caregivers reports. Ten percent of its 444 respondents — in 1 in every 10 —…