News

A new research collaboration was recently formed between Biogen Idec, the ALS Association and Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) to study the differences and similarities in ALS’ disease progress and how an patient’s genes can influence its clinical manifestations. The joint research initiative, titled, “Genomic Translation for ALS Clinical care” (GTAC), will entail…

Presymptomatic patients suffering with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) ingest more calories per day but have lower body-mass index (BMI) in comparison to those without ALS. These are the results of a study from researchers in the Netherlands, published by the JAMA Neurology journal, which also assessed ALS disease risk and its connections…

In a recent study entitled “ALS-Linked P56S-VAPB Mutation Impairs the Formation of Multinuclear Myotube in C2C12 Cells” researchers investigated the role of a mutation associated with ALS type-8 (ALS8)  – P56S-VAPB mutation – on skeletal muscle cells homeostasis and muscle formation. The study was published in the…

People who participated in last year’s Ice Bucket Challenge have helped to make a difference in the lives of ALS patients that live in the area of St. Louis. The ALS Association was able to double their donations, which increased the associations’ support for ALS patient care, education,…

A study led by researchers at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) recently published in the journal Neuron revealed new insights into why mutations in the SOD1 gene lead to the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). The study is entitled “…

A research team at Colombia University led by Lars Brichta and Paul Greengard identified two proteins responsible for neuronal cell loss in Parkinson’s disease (PD). The study entitled “Identification of neurodegenerative factors using translatome–regulatory network analysis” appeared on 27 July, 2015 in the journal…

The ALS Therapy Development Institute has just signed a research partnership with Chaperone Therapeutics, Inc., a company that specializes in treatments that address protein misfolding and neuronal cell loss, the underlying causes of neurodegenerative disease. The new partners will be working on potential treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), in order to facilitate preclinical development…

Researchers at the University of Massachusetts Medical School in the United States and the Babraham Institute in the United Kingdom recently revealed a new fly model to study motor neuron degeneration. The study was published in the journal Current Biology and is entitled “…

One of the country’s most accomplished professors of neurosurgery, neural and behavioral sciences and pediatrics at Penn State College of Medicine, James Connor, has just received a three-year grant worth $240,000 from the ALS Society to support his work on a nutrition-based solution that can be given via pain-medication delivery…

In a recent study published in Neurology, Neurosurgery & Psychiatry, a team of researchers found that men working as funeral directors may be at an increased risk for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. According to the authors this might be related to the high probability of exposure to…