Motor neuron diseases News and Research

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JPND announces call for multinational research on understanding the mechanisms of non-pharmacological interventions

The EU Joint Programme - Neurodegenerative Disease Research (JPND) initiative has announced a joint transnational call for multinational research on understanding the mechanisms of non-pharmacological interventions.

10 Jan 2022

Targeting the brain should be the focus of ALS therapy, not just spinal cord

The brain is indeed a target for treating ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered.

4 Dec 2021

Scientists identify new compound that reverses ALS neuron damage

Northwestern University scientists have identified the first compound that eliminates the ongoing degeneration of upper motor neurons that become diseased and are a key contributor to ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis), a swift and fatal neurodegenerative disease that paralyzes its victims.

23 Feb 2021

Antiepileptic drug reduces early signs of clinical dysfunction in people with ALS

The antiepileptic drug ezogabine reduced pathologic excitability of cortical and spinal motor neuron cells that are early signs of clinical dysfunction in people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), according to a study conducted by the Neurological Clinical Research Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital.

10 Dec 2020

Study reveals new biomarker for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

ALS is a fatal neurodegenerative disease causing a rapid loss of motor function, which usually results in a serious condition with early death within a few years.

9 Dec 2020

Experimental ALS drug shows potential to prolong patient survival

An experimental medication that was recently shown to slow the progression of the neurodegenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease, has now demonstrated the potential to also prolong patient survival.

16 Oct 2020

Study implicates new gene as driver of motor neuron diseases

Failures in a quality control system that protects protein-building fidelity in cells can lead to motor neuron degeneration and related diseases, according to a new study from an international team co-directed by Scripps Research molecular biologist Claudio Joazeiro, PhD.

16 Sep 2020

Experimental drug for ALS shows promising results in clinical trial

An experimental medication slows the progression of the neurodegenerative disease called Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease, according to recently released results from a clinical trial run by investigators at the Sean M. Healey & AMG Center for ALS at Massachusetts General Hospital and Amylyx Pharmaceuticals, Inc., the company that manufactures the medication.

2 Sep 2020

Study pinpoints electrophysiological mechanism behind upper motor neuron disease

Scientists from Northwestern Medicine and the University of Belgrade have pinpointed the electrophysiological mechanism behind upper motor neuron disease, unlocking the door to potential treatments for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and other neurodegenerative diseases, such as Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia and Primary Lateral Sclerosis.

21 May 2020

Living near major roads linked to higher incidence of neurological disorders

Living near major roads or highways is linked to higher incidence of dementia, Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease and multiple sclerosis (MS), suggests new research published this week in the journal Environmental Health.

23 Jan 2020

Northwestern scientists receive $3.1 million grant to investigate drug therapies for ALS

Two Northwestern University scientists have received a $3.1 million grant from the National Institute on Aging to collaborate and investigate drug therapies for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

18 Aug 2019

Promising diagnostic, prognostic tools for onset and progression of ALS

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a motor neuron disease with rampant progression and that it is typically fatal within 5 years of prognosis.

5 Apr 2019

A Preclinical Solution to Studying Neurological Diseases

At SfN 2018, Antti Nurmi explained a case study of how Charles River have used neuroimaging to study Batten's Disease.

From Charles River Laboratories, Inc. 26 Nov 2018

ADHD patients have increased risk of developing Parkinson's and other similar diseases

While about 11 percent of children (4-17 years old) nationwide have been diagnosed with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, the long-term health effects of having ADHD and of common ADHD medications remains understudied.

12 Sep 2018

Ground-breaking discovery offers new hope for treatment of Alzheimer’s, other neurological diseases

There is new hope for the treatment of Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases following a ground-breaking discovery made by an Australian-Chinese research collaboration.

10 Aug 2018

Novel discovery offers hope for treatment of Alzheimer's and other neurological diseases

There is new hope for the treatment of Alzheimer's and other neurological diseases following a ground-breaking discovery made by an Australian-Chinese research collaboration.

10 Aug 2018

UC Riverside researcher receives grants to advance cancer, ALS research

Maurizio Pellecchia, who holds the Daniel Hays Chair in Cancer Research at the University of California, Riverside, has received two grants to continue his research aimed at finding therapeutics for cancer, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and other neurodegenerative diseases.

21 Jun 2018

Study unravels how nuclear pore complexes transport mRNAs out of the nucleus

Standing guard between a cell's nucleus and its main chamber, called the cytoplasm, are thousands of behemoth protein structures called nuclear pore complexes, or NPCs.

13 Jun 2018

USC scientists uncover cellular mechanism responsible for ALS and frontotemporal dementia

Scientists have for the first time discovered a mechanism that limits the number of "cellular janitors" in the nervous system, leading to increased risk for two neurodegenerative diseases: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia, according to a Keck School of Medicine of USC study published today in Nature Medicine.

7 Feb 2018

Study shows how RNA splicing errors may trigger development of ALS, FTD

The most frequent genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD)- rare and related neurological disorders marked by progressive deterioration of motor or cognitive abilities- may be due to errors in RNA splicing, an intermediary step for translating genetic instructions into functional proteins.

14 Jun 2017