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Feeding mouse models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) the bacterial product butyrate improved their gut health, delayed the onset of movement symptoms, and increased the animals’ life span, according to a study. The study reporting the findings, “Target Intestinal Microbiota to Alleviate Disease Progression in Amyotrophic Lateral…

Patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) have intact eye muscle movement, even at more advanced stages of the disease, according to new research. However, the reason remains unknown. Researchers say that discovering how this happens may help in the design of novel treatments to fight the loss of muscle activity in…

The amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) drug Rilutek (riluzole) prevents neuronal cell death in part by acting on mitochondria, suggesting that treatment approaches that target the way mitochondria signal within cells may be a viable approach to treating ALS. The study, “Riluzole But Not Melatonin Ameliorates Acute Motor…

Flex Pharma said it plans to prioritize developing its clinical programs in neurological diseases, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), multiple sclerosis (MS), and peripheral neuropathies like Charcot-Marie Tooth (CMT). One or two proof-of-concept, Phase 2 clinical trials are planned for this year in the United States to evaluate the company’s transient receptor…

Preventing the TDP-43 protein from entering mitochondria may be a treatment option for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), according to a new report. But while blocking the abnormal process is possible in mice, the compound used is not suitable for humans. To overcome this, researchers are using multiple approaches in their…

Surgery to insert a feeding tube directly into the stomach of late-stage amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients can be made safer by adapting procedures now in place for high-risk patients, identified with the help of a tool for stratifying patients according to risk. The study, ”A risk stratifying tool to…

Cognitively healthy amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients have brain damage that mirrors their subtype of the disease, researchers have learned, and patients with bulbar-onset ALS have more widespread brain tissue loss — a finding that could explain why the patients fare worse than others. In their study, “Relationship between…

Researchers have gained new insight into a cell’s mechanism to get rid of faulty molecules that would otherwise contribute to the development of several neurological diseases, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The discovery of this “quality control” mechanism may help in the development of new therapies to prevent neuronal damage…

The European Union’s Joint Programme — Neurodegenerative Disease Research (JPND) invites researchers in 20 countries to work together in conducting and analyzing projects into various neurodegenerative diseases, so that they might identify common links and underlying mechanisms. Such “pathway ” analyses, the JPND said in a release, “could lead…

High levels of 25-hydroxycholesterol, a cholesterol-related molecule, may trigger neuronal death and accelerate amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) progression, according to a new study. The finding could lead to new ALS therapies that target the molecule. The study, “25-Hydroxycholesterol Is Involved In The Pathogenesis Of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis,” was published in the…