News

Researchers at the NYU School of Medicine described a new strategy to preserve muscle function in a mouse model of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The finding could have implications for the treatment of alterations that occur in the early phases of ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease. The…

ALS patients who took Rilutek (riluzole) for at least three-fourths of the time they had their disease survived longer than those who took it less, an Italian study reports. Rilutek is the first ALS treatment to obtain U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval. Scientists are still not sure how it…

Researchers homed in on how a particular protein, called semaphorin 3A (Sema3A), affects the survival of motor neurons in both the brain and spinal cord in models of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Their study, “ALS-related human cortical and motor neurons survival is differentially affected by Sema3A,” appeared in the…

A rock-painting contest in Las Vegas. A fashion show in New York. A 7,000-meter race around the Washington Monument that’ll coincide with a similar #Racefor7 event in Bengaluru and Mumbai, India. From Athens to Atlanta, from San Diego to Sydney, people across the globe will mark World Rare Disease…

Fat molecules appear to play a role in the development of ALS, which means that targeting them could be a way to treat the disease, French researchers concluded in a review of studies on the topic. This is particularly true of derivations of the fat molecule cholesterol known as oxysterols, which…

Interleukin 4 reduces the severity of clinical symptoms during the early phase of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), but has no effect in halting the death of motor neuron cells as ALS progresses, an Italian mouse study shows. The study, “Interleukin 4 modulates microglia homeostasis and attenuates the early slowly…

Orangetheory fitness members across the United States and Canada plan to raise $2 million for Augie’s Quest to cure ALS, an organization supporting research into a cure for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Money raised this year will go to help advance a promising potential ALS treatment, AT-1501,…

The United States has enacted legislation to ensure permanent funding of speech-generating devices that allow people with degenerative diseases such as ALS to communicate. Both houses of Congress unanimously approved the original version of the Steve Gleason Act that was enacted in 2015 but set to expire this year. The…

The amount of RNA molecules present in the blood and central nervous system of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients seems to play a role in the onset and development of the disease, a study published in the journal Scientific Reports showed. A better understanding of the involvement of RNA molecules…

Increasing the levels of a neurotransmitter-generating brain enzyme that is in short supply in paralysis disorders restored movement in a fly model of ALS, an Italian study shows. Bolstering the Gad1 enzyme’s levels also led to the return of a pre-disease pattern of nerve cell organization, the researchers said. The…