Scientists Discover Faster Protein Aggregation
Means Faster Disease Progression in ALS
A team of researchers have discovered that ALS progresses faster in patients whose gene mutations cause faster clumping of the SOD1 protein, linked to approximately 2 percent of all ALS cases. Aggregation – or clumping – of the SOD1 protein is believed to be a crucial step in the disease process.
>> Read full article about disease progression in ALS
International Group of Scientists and Drug Company Representatives Meet to Discuss Treatments for ALS
In April, The ALS Association convened a meeting of its Drug Company Working Group, bringing together more than 50 ALS researchers, clinicians, representatives of the pharmaceutical and biotech industries and the federal government, all of whom are working to create treatments for ALS.
>> Read full article about the Drug Company Working Group
Study: Protective Gene Prolongs Life
A new genetic discovery may help researchers understand factors that improve survival in people who have amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. The discovery, made as a result of a study funded in part by The ALS Association, also strengthens the theory that changes in cellular transport contribute to the death of motor neurons, the cells that die in ALS.
>> Read full details
Upcoming Meeting:
Frontotemporal Dementia and ALS: 3rd International Workshop
June 21 - Thursday June 25, 2009
http://www.ftdalsconference.ca/
New Gene Mutation Discovery by ALS Association
Consortium is Major Research Breakthrough
In one of the most significant breakthroughs in the recent history of ALS research, a consortium of scientists organized and funded by The ALS Association has discovered a new gene, ALS6, responsible for about 5 percent of the cases of inherited ALS. The discovery will provide important clues to the causes of inherited ALS, which accounts for 10 percent of all cases, and sporadic ALS, which occurs in individuals with no family history of the disease and accounts for the other 90 percent of cases diagnosed.
>> Read full details
See our Research News Archive
for a full list of ALS research news items.
