Latest Motor neuron disease Stories

The Central Valley Walk to Defeat ALS is an annual community event that creates the hope and action needed to conquer Lou Gehrig’s disease, and raise funds to sustain patient care and support cutting-edge research by the world’s best and brightest scientists. Join the fight against Lou Gehrig’s disease on Saturday September 10 at Kearney Park in Fresno! During the Walk, participants honor the strength and courage of people with ALS and their families and remember those...

Although several genes have been linked to amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), it is still unknown how they cause this progressive neurodegenerative disease.In a new study, Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers have demonstrated that two ALS-associated genes work in tandem to support the long-term survival of motor neurons. The findings were published in the September 1 online edition of the Journal of Clinical Investigation. "Any therapy based on this discovery is...

WOONSOCKET, R.I., Sept. 1, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- A former NFL player, a country music star and two men from Chagrin Falls, Ohio, who have been friends since childhood, will gather at Fenway Park this evening with a common goal. They will celebrate the success of CVS/pharmacy's 10th annual in-store fundraising campaign to support the fight against amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) - which this year raised more than $4.3 million - and they will unite in communicating their continued...

TUCSON, Ariz., Aug. 23, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Muscular Dystrophy Association today announced funding, totaling $13.7 million, for 40 new research initiatives targeting nearly two dozen progressive neuromuscular diseases. Among these are 13 new initiatives targeting Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), nine new projects focused on ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis or Lou Gehrig's disease), as well as efforts on spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), facioscapulohumeral muscular...

Researchers from the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine may have pinpointed the cause of Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), according to BBC News reports on Sunday. ALS, which the BBC referred to as "the most common form of motor neuron disease," could be the result of "a breakdown of a recycling system in cells." The Northwestern researchers "found the flaw in the way nerve cells in the brain recycle protein building blocks, which means cells cannot repair themselves...

Sigma-1 receptor offers potential therapeutic targetResearchers from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia have identified a mutation on the SIGMAR1 gene associated with the development of juvenile amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Study findings published today in Annals of Neurology, a journal of the American Neurological Association and the Child Neurology Society, show the gene variant affects Sigma-1 receptors which are involved in motor neuron function and disease development.ALS, also...

For decades, scientists have studied a laboratory mouse model that develops signs of the paralyzing disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) as they age. In a new study appearing in Nature Biotechnology, investigators at Nationwide Children's Hospital have developed a new model of ALS, one that mimics sporadic ALS, which represents about 90 percent of all cases.ALS, commonly known as Lou Gehrig's disease, is characterized by the death of motor neurons, which are muscle-controlling nerve...

'Biggest increase anyone has seen' in the production of essential compound for deadly childhood diseaseResearchers in Ottawa report new hope for the treatment of infants born with serious genetic disorder.Over 1000 children in Canada are affected with Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA), a genetic disorder that causes muscle weakness and loss of motor control. In its most severe form survival of children with SMA beyond 5 years is rare. Although the disorder is caused by the loss of a specific...

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is the most frequently inherited cause of infant mortality. Two independent research groups "” one led by Alex MacKenzie, at Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, Ottawa; and one led by Umrao R. Monani, at Columbia University Medical Center, New York, and Cathleen M. Lutz, at The Jackson Laboratory, Bar Harbor "” have now generated new data in mouse models of severe SMA that provide hope that a therapeutic providing meaningful benefit to...

NASHVILLE, Tenn., June 29, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The Olive Branch Fund: A Thisbe and Noah Scott Legacy, an organization dedicated to combating pediatric motor neuron diseases, today announced its first funding award to Kevin Eggan, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology at Harvard University. The award will support Dr. Eggan's ongoing research investigating the neuromuscular system and the diseases that affect it. Dr. Eggan is a leading researcher in...