Could the Body’s Own Defense Against ALS Actually Drive Disease Progression?

Columbia scientists have discovered that one of the body’s natural defenses against amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) — a cellular ‘clean-up process’ called autophagy — suppresses disease progression early on, but in later stages advances the disease’s deadly spread through the spinal cord. These findings in mice provide a window into ALS’s earliest stages, as well as new insights into its complexity, namely the differing roles that autophagy plays in its progression. In addition, this study can help scientists search for ways to detect and even treat the disease before the onset of devastating symptoms that gradually rob patients of movement, speech and life. Read the full article