News

Cell Cleaning Mechanism Has Dual Role in ALS, Study Finds

A mechanism that cells normally use to keep them healthy was found to have a dual role in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). While the process, called autophagy, delays disease progression in early stages, it contributes to ALS’s deadly spread through the spinal cord in later stages. This study, “…

In New Book, ALS Researcher Niels Birbaumer Explores Brain’s Limitless Capacity to Remodel Itself

Neuroscientist and professor Niels Birbaumer, a senior research fellow at Switzerland’s Wyss Center in Geneva, has written a new book investigating the brain’s seemingly limitless capacity  to reshape itself and overcome disease. Birbaumer has conducted research with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients who, because of their progressive motor neuron disease, have…

National Institutes of Health Awards $30 Million to Support Development of 3-D Models of Disease

The National Institutes of Health has awarded $30 million over two years to 13 researchers who are developing three-dimensional models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and other diseases. Researchers say the initiative is aimed at tackling a translational science problem: More than 60 percent of therapies prove ineffective in clinical trials of…

Human Skin Cells Successfully Converted into Motor Neurons

Scientists have discovered how adult skin cells can be converted into motor neurons without transitioning them through a stem cell state. The findings promise to help researchers better understand motor neuron diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The study, “MicroRNAs Induce a Permissive Chromatin Environment that…

Amylyx, Project ALS Collaborate on Preclinical Study to Test AMX0035 as Potential ALS Therapy

Project ALS and Amylyx Pharmaceuticals will collaborate on preclinical studies of Amylyx’s lead compound AMX0035 as a potential treatment for patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). These studies will complement Amylyx’s recently initiated Phase 2 CENTAUR clinical trial (NCT03127514), which will evaluate AMX0035 in 132 patients. Since mitochondrial…