Participation of UM's ALS/MND Lab in Project MinE leads to groundbreaking discoveries on ALS21/3/2022 Two international studies, with contribution from the University of Malta, published in the leading Nature Genetics and Science Translational Medicine journals have made groundbreaking discoveries on what causes amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) paving the way for treatments that block or delay this relentless disease.
ALS is a progressive neurological disease that destroys the nerves that interact with the body’s muscles. The disease erodes voluntary muscle movement, crippling the ability of patients to walk, talk, eat, and, eventually, breathe. Patients survive an average of three years after onset of first symptoms. Malta has one of the highest incidence rates of ALS in Europe. Researchers collaborating on Project MinE, a large international initiative aiming at defining the genetic basis of ALS, have discovered several genes that increase disease risk. More than a dozen genes were found to cause ALS because their code is disrupted from birth. However, more than 40 different genes can be switched either on or off by environment and lifestyle factors during the lifetime of a person increasing the risk of developing ALS. The studies are a monumental effort, involving thousands of ALS patients and normal subjects worldwide. Five years ago, the University of Malta set up a National ALS Registry and Biobank to identify and recruit ALS patients for this international endeavour coordinated by Professor Jan Veldink from the University of Utrecht in The Netherlands.
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