Variations in a gene for a protein called progranulin can modify the course of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease) according to a study of 230 people with ALS and 436 without the disease in Belgium. This finding could have implications for understanding and treatment of ALS.

In a second study presented at this meeting about Nogo_A, researchers reported that detection of this protein in muscle tissue may be a way to identify ALS very early in the course of the disease, when the diagnosis is still uncertain. Further studies are necessary to determine whether Nogo-A may be a potential biomarker for ALS

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A comparison of the DNA in all genes of 276 Americans and 277 Italians with ALS and 2,130 Americans and Italians without the disease has been completed. Two genetic variants that may increase the risk for developing sporadic ALS were identified in the Italian cohort but not in the US cohort of individuals with ALS. These results may yield new clues for understanding the causes of and biochemical pathways involved in sporadic ALS.

Variations in the genes for two enzymes, known as PON1 and PON3, appear to be risk factors for ALS, according to a study of 221 Irish ALS patients and 202 healthy subject of similar age, gender and ethnic background. These PON genes, which have previously been implicated in other ALS studies, are involved in detoxification of pesticides and other chemical compounds.