News

Two non-profit organizations, ALS Association and Prize4Life, have joined forces to launch a new challenge grant program called The ALS Assistive Technology Challenge. Inaugurated with an initial investment of close to $500,000, the new program intends to support research projects focused on new communication technology solutions for patients who suffer from…

The finding and validation of specific disease biomarkers are an unmet medical need for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) early diagnosis, patient care and monitoring. Neurofilaments, proteins that provide cytoskeletal support to neurons, are front and center in this scientific quest. Several studies have investigated the role of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) neurofilaments in…

University of Toronto (UT) researchers have uncovered the main genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), a discovery that will lead to the development of new efficacious treatments. The work entitled, “Isoform-specific antibodies reveal distinct subcellular localizations of C9orf72 in amyotrophic lateral…

The ALS Association, a nonprofit organization of global research and support for people with ALS and the Clinical Research in ALS and related disorders for Therapeutic development (CReATe) consortium, recently announced that two new amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) research projects have been selected for funding. The studies will advance the discovery…

In a newly published paper in the Science Translation Medicine journal entitled “Human endogenous retrovirus-K induces motor neuron disease“, researchers from the National Institutes of Health found ancient viral genes left in the human genome might awaken to harm neurons and contribute to the development…

Cloud-based drug design and development company, Cloud Pharmaceuticals, Inc., recently announced it has partnered with THERAMetrics holding AG to collaborate on breakthrough treatments for orphan central nervous system (CNS) diseases, such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). ALS results in the progressive loss of structure and function of neurons, ultimately leading to their death. Symptoms depend on patients…

Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital may have unlocked the key to understanding amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and other similar diseases of the nervous system. The study, titled “Phase Separation by Low Complexity Domains Promotes Stress Granule Assembly and Drives Pathological Fibrillization,” appeared in the September…

A new study published in the journal Neuron, conducted by Helene Tran, Ph.D. and Fen-Biao Gao, Ph.D., from the University of Massachusetts Medical School, provides insights in the pathogenic consequences of the most common genetic mutation causing ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis). ALS is an incurable and rapidly…

The ALS Association, the nation’s leading non-profit organization dedicated to addressing Lou Gehrig’s disease in both research initiatives and patient support services, recently announced the launch of new partnerships with several hospitals and academic institutions in a renewed effort to expand the accumulation of biofluids from patients with ALS, for the research…

The Northeast ALS Consortium (NEALS) Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) recently issued Synapse Biomedical Inc. a notice to suspend amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patient enrolment for a randomized control trial of diaphragm pacing.  The suspension of new enrolment was not due to safety concerns, but as a response to the slow rate of patient…