Global asset management company Affiliated Managers Group (AMG) has announced a $20 million matching gift to establish the Healey Center at Massachusetts General Hospital, the goal of which is to accelerate the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) treatments. With this gift, which will fund over time,…

Depression and anxiety in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients, even at low levels, are linked and should be addressed together, a study reports. Moreover, according to the study, support to caregivers is essential as the patient-caregiver relationship is of key importance in coping with ALS. The study, “Death…

A natural compound found in certain fruits and vegetables, called resveratrol, may help boost the ability of mesenchymal stem cells taken from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients to transform into mature nerve cells, researchers in Korea report. This finding, detailed in a study published in the Journal of Tissue…

Anelixis Therapeutics has begun dosing patients in the first human trial of its amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) treatment candidate, AT-1501, the company announced. The trial is currently enrolling both healthy volunteers and eight ALS patients to test AT-1501’s safety and tolerability. Researchers will also examine how the agent behaves…

An experimental gene therapy based on RNA interference (RNAi) shows potential to treat patients with familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) caused by mutations in the superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) gene, according to results of a preclinical study in nonhuman primates. The study, “Safe and effective superoxide…

Cytokinetics has completed patient enrollment in its Phase 2 trial to evaluate the safety and potential of reldesemtiv to improve muscle function in patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), the company announced. The trial (NCT03160898), called FORTITUDE-ALS, includes about 450 ALS patients in the U.S., Canada, Europe,…

The amount of time it takes to diagnose amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and the use of Rilutek (riluzole) to treat it vary significantly across Canada, according to a new nationwide analysis of a patient registry. These findings highlight the need for future studies to identify the factors that contribute…

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) or frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) patients with the C9ORF72 mutation are at an unusually high risk of malignant skin cancer and should be monitored for it, a study suggests. The study, “Increased risk of melanoma in C9ORF72…

Loss of C9orf72, a protein whose corresponding gene is among those most often mutated in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), causes an imbalance in the metabolism of fats (lipids) in motor neurons, a new study shows. These findings suggest that an imbalance in energy and lipid metabolism…

Health conditions that may lead to a faster metabolism, or higher metabolic rate, may contribute to the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), a large-scale, population-based study suggests. The study, “Finding diseases associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis: a total population-based case–control study,” was published in the…