Diagnostics company to accelerate search for sporadic ALS therapies

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 12, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The ALS Network, formerly ALS Golden West, has awarded a $100,000 grant through its global research program to Amprion, a global leader advancing diagnosis of neurodegenerative disorders through seed amplification testing. The San Diego-based diagnostics company seeks to understand the cause of sporadic ALS and actively assists in the development of potential therapies by supporting clinical and laboratory research.

Led by Richard Smith, MD, State Director of the Center for Neurologic Study and Russ Liebovitz, MD, PhD, co-founder of Amprion, the project has already convened leading physicians and scientists who published a landmark paper in the European Journal of Neurology earlier this year. The study found that approximately 15% of patients with a sporadic form of the disease had Lewy Body co-pathology as measured by Seed Amplification Assay (SAA), a test developed by Amprion that detects aggregates associated with misfolded alpha-synuclein which has been shown to correlate with Lewy Body pathology at autopsy.

“Dr. Smith and the Amprion team have already unearthed a subgroup of ALS patients in which misfolded alpha-synuclein is detected and likely contributes to disease symptoms and possibly progression, ” Lebovitz said. “The ALS Network’s grant will fund additional work as we seek to correlate the contribution of a-synuclein to clinical features such as rapid progression, Parkinson’s symptoms, sleep disorders, or cognitive decline.”

According to Smith, “a confirmatory study would be a compelling basis for developing a treatment strategy for this variant of ALS.”

Additional work spearheaded by Amprion will include the development of laboratory tests for the detection of other misfolding proteins associated with ALS pathology. Noteworthy will be the inclusion of neurologists who will determine if the clinical features of ALS are different in patients where a-synuclein and other misfolded proteins are found.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a fatal, neurodegenerative illness that affects nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. People with ALS lose the ability to move, speak, swallow, and, eventually, to breathe. People who have served in any branch of the military are diagnosed with ALS nearly twice as often as the general population. Currently, there are no known cures for ALS.

The ALS Network’s multifaceted research program and partnering scientists seek to yield significant results in a disease category historically void of positive outcomes. The ALS Network’s Scientific Advisory Committee, composed of world-renowned researchers, scientists, and healthcare industry leaders reviews and selects the most promising projects and moonshot efforts for funding.

“Our research model is an ambitious venture propelled by an ever-increasing sense of urgency,” said Sheri Strahl, MPH, MBA, president and CEO of the ALS Network. “We seek to move promising science forward quickly with a relentless focus on improving and saving lives. Amprion’s work will help accelerate the discovery of therapies for ALS and other motor neuron diseases.”

 Contact: Vanessa Martin
[email protected] 

Eric Beikmann
310-560-4726

SOURCE ALS Network