ALS research suggests stem cells be 'aged' to speed progress toward finding treatments
ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease , affects more than 12,000 people in the U.S., according to the National Institutes of Health. It typically strikes between the ages of 40 and 70, according to the ALS Association. There are no effective treatments, and most patients suffer paralysis and die within five years of diagnosis. To understand ALS, researchers at the Cedars-Sinai Board of Governors Regenerative Medicine Institute are creating induced p luripotent stem cells (iPSCs) derived from patients' skin cells. By altering several genes in patients' cells, the investigators can return these cells to their embryonic, or stem-cell, state. These specially engineered stem cells reproduce indefinitely in laboratory dishes, where their abnormalities and processes can be examined in detail. In the case of ALS, these cells are used to grow spinal motor neurons and study them. A multi-center team led by Clive Svendsen, PhD, and Ritchie Ho, PhD, has found that iPSC versio...