Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis News and Research

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Study finds possible direct connection between neurodegenerative diseases and the herpesvirus

A new study by researchers at University of Illinois Chicago suggests that when the protein optineurin, or OPTN, is present in cells it restricts the spread of HSV-1, the herpes simplex virus type 1.

13 Sep 2021

Research uncovers test to identify iMCD patients with superior response to FDA-approved treatment

New research has uncovered a precision medicine test using blood proteins to identify a novel patient subgroup of idiopathic multicentric Castleman disease (iMCD), a rare blood disorder, who are more likely to respond to siltuximab, the only FDA approved treatment for the disease.

2 Sep 2021

Researchers decipher genetic mechanisms governing the speed of protein synthesis

In all eukaryotic organisms, genetic material is stored in the cell nucleus in the form of DNA. In order to be used, this DNA is first transcribed into messenger RNA in the cell cytoplasm, then translated into protein with the help of ribosomes, small machines capable of decoding messenger RNA to synthesise the appropriate proteins.

31 Aug 2021

Research analyzes the role of RNA tags in Alzheimer’s disease

Understanding the role of tau protein in Alzheimer's disease (AD) has led to new ways to diagnose it as well as the creation of medicines now in clinical trials to treat it.

28 Aug 2021

CIRM approves a trio of awards for new stem cell-based projects

The governing Board of the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine has approved a trio of awards, totaling approximately $4 million, to University of California San Diego School of Medicine researchers to advance studies of new stem cell-based treatments for multiple types of cancer and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

25 Aug 2021

Atomic-level imaging of infectious prions reveals new therapeutic targets for untreatable diseases

The highest-ever resolution imaging of an infectious prion provides the first atomic-level data of how these abnormal proteins are assembled to cause fatal neurodegenerative diseases in people and animals-; and how they can be potentially targeted by new therapies.

24 Aug 2021

Scientists identify the main components driving amyloid beta-associated synapse degeneration

Healthy adult brains are endowed with a vast number of synapses, structures that relay signals across nerve cells to enable communications, information processing and storage throughout the nervous system.

18 Aug 2021

Researchers develop new method to quantify protein droplets involved in neurodegenerative diseases

Some proteins in cells can separate into small droplets like oil droplets in water, but faults in this process may underlie neurodegenerative diseases in the brains of older people. Now, Rutgers researchers have developed a new method to quantify protein droplets involved in these diseases.

13 Aug 2021

Temple researchers receive $1.25M NIH grant to advance understanding of neurodegenerative diseases

Like wear and tear that causes electrical systems to short circuit, neurons in the human nervous system are susceptible to degenerative processes that disrupt the flow of information.

12 Aug 2021

Innovative therapeutic platform for blood-to-brain delivery of antisense oligonucleotide therapy

Antisense oligonucleotide (ASO) therapy has the potential to ameliorate many neurodegenerative diseases at the genetic level to suppress the production of harmful proteins or non-coding RNAs.

12 Aug 2021

Restoring cholesterol levels could be a new therapeutic approach for diseases linked to TDP-43 protein

Researchers in Singapore have discovered that brain cells cannot maintain the cholesterol-rich myelin sheath that protects and insulates neurons in the absence of a protein called TDP-43.

4 Aug 2021

Novel robotic neck brace may help doctors to analyze neck mobility in cancer patients

A new robotic neck brace from researchers at Columbia Engineering and their colleagues at Columbia's Department of Otolaryngology may help doctors analyze the impact of cancer treatments on the neck mobility of patients and guide their recovery.

19 Jul 2021

Dying patients with rare diseases struggle to get experimental therapies

At 15, Autumn Fuernisen is dying. She was diagnosed at age 11 with a rare degenerative brain disorder that has no known cure or way to slow it down: juvenile-onset Huntington's disease.

14 Jul 2021

Optimizing the operation of MRI scanners to visualize finer details of the brain

Experts in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at the DZNE are optimizing the operation of MRI scanners as part of an international research effort to enable visualization of finer details of the human brain.

12 Jul 2021

Non-toxic derivative of tetanus neurotoxin may help treat depression, neurodegenerative diseases

Depression has been treated traditionally with inhibitors of serotonin reuptake in the central nervous system.

9 Jul 2021

Researchers identify potential new treatment targets for Alzheimer's disease

A research team at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has identified potential new treatment targets for Alzheimer's disease, as well as existing drugs that have therapeutic potential against these targets.

8 Jul 2021

Reduced function of key gene may affect communication between motor neurons and muscles in ALS

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALS, attacks nerve cells known as motor neurons in the brain and spinal cord, gradually leading to paralysis.

30 Jun 2021

Differences in human and mouse brain cells have implications for research into neurological disorders

A UCLA-led study comparing brain cells known as astrocytes in humans and mice found that mouse astrocytes are more resilient to oxidative stress, a damaging imbalance that is a mechanism behind many neurological disorders.

25 Jun 2021

Scientists use new technology to optimize drug development for brain diseases

Dr. Hayder Amin and Dr. Caghan Kizil from the DZNE's Dresden site aim to speed up developing drugs against brain diseases through cutting-edge technology.

24 Jun 2021

Biomarker of chronic cellular stress is associated with Huntington's disease, shows study

A new University of California, Irvine-led study finds that the persistence of a marker of chronic cellular stress, previously associated with neurodegenerative diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD), also takes place in the brains of Huntington's disease (HD) patients.