Researchers funded by The ALS Association using state-of-the-art technology called an Organ-Chip, which essentially recreates human biology on a microchip, found that the human brain’s tiniest blood vessels can initiate spinal motor neuron development. Studies using this technology to track living tissues on a chip provide ALS researchers a unique way to study the disease processes in ALS and other neurodegenerative disorders.
A new ALS gene discovery – KIF5A - funded by The ALS Association, with money raised through the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, will help drive new discoveries and fuel the ALS treatment pipeline.
The ALS Association fights for people with ALS every day, leading cutting-edge research to discover treatments and a cure for ALS, and serving, advocating for, and empowering people with the disease to live their lives to the fullest. In honor of Throwback Thursday, let’s look back at the advances in our mission areas of Advocacy, Care Services, and Research during 2017.
Researchers from collaborative initiatives funded by The ALS Association, with money raised through the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, announced the discovery of a new ALS gene, KIF5A, which will help drive new discoveries and fuel the ALS treatment pipeline.
We recently sat down with Dr. Carlos Castañeda, assistant professor of biology and chemistry at Syracuse University. Thanks to funding from the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge, The ALS Association has funded Dr. Castañeda twice through our global research program, which supported this work.
I woke up this morning to the terrible news that Stephen Hawking died. While I never met the man, and didn’t really understand all he was saying about black holes, I learned a lot from him about what is possible for people with ALS.
The ALS Association mourns the loss of Dr. Stephen Hawking and commemorates his life and legacy. Hawking, a renowned physicist and best-selling author who famously studied black holes and whose life was depicted in the 2014 film The Theory of Everything, was diagnosed with ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, in 1963. The average life expectancy of a person living with ALS is approximately two to five years after diagnosis and only 10 percent of people survive for more than 10 years.
Research funded with donations from the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge recently uncovered evidence that promoting an increase in a specific immune cell in the brain and spinal cord of a mouse with ALS was associated with increased motor function, pointing to a potential treatment in the future.
This guest post is from Shelly Hoover, EdD, a member of the Patient & Caregiver Advisory Committee, and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Association staff, its Board of Trustees, or its chapters.
Central nervous system (CNS) disorders afflict approximately 300 million people worldwide. They often span many years and are severely debilitating. And, in addition to the personal cost to patients and families, the economic burden reaches an estimated $1.5 trillion annually in the U.S.