Animal Study Links Inactivation of the Autophagy Gene ATG7 to the Onset of ALS, FTD

Inactivation of ATG7, one of the genes that controls autophagy — a process in which cells degrade or recycle components that are damaged or no longer needed — is linked to the onset of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), a study says. Results from…

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is characterized by specific changes in brain activity and connectivity, which are associated with motor and cognitive symptoms, an international research team has found. Therefore, measuring the impairment of motor and cognitive networks can be a novel ALS biomarker to evaluate disease progression in clinical trials,…

Noninvasive ventilation (NIV) can be ineffective in preventing episodes of upper airway obstruction in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients, likely because of unstable breathing control and poorly working bulbar motor neurons — those needed for swallowing, speaking and chewing — in these people, a study suggests.

Screening newborns for genetic diseases with treatments that can prevent crippling or deadly progression, especially for rare disorders, has a ways to go in the United States. No state today tests for all 35 disorders recommended under a federal screening panel, and even in those that come close, rare…

Six years ago, my husband, Todd, still had use of his weakened right arm and was able to walk, but he had been falling more frequently. After one fall, we had to call my cousin because Todd wasn’t able to get himself off the floor and I didn’t have enough…

Diet is a major factor when it comes to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Quality of diet, proper macronutrient and micronutrient balance, and absorption all require great attention.  At the core, however, is maintaining a healthy body weight, which is essential…

Oklahoma suffers more tornadoes than any other state, has the highest per-capita rate of women in U.S. prisons, ranks second in the number of teen births per 100,000 teenage girls, and has the nation’s third-highest rate of uninsured residents — with 13.9% of all Oklahomans lacking health coverage. As if…

More than 50% of the cases of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) disease are linked with a genetic cause, and first-degree relatives of an ALS member — especially daughters of ALS mothers — show the highest risk to inherit it, according to an Irish population-based study. The study “Lifetime Risk…

New research has identified the RPS25 gene as a key player that allows the production of mutated C9orf72 protein — one that is prone to aggregation, or clumps. The gene that codes for this protein is one of the most commonly mutated genes underlying amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the…

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted orphan drug status to Apic Bio‘s APB-102, an investigational gene therapy aiming to treat familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) associated with mutations in the superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) gene. “This orphan drug designation represents an important…