The driving cells of ALS

ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) is a disease that affects motor neurons in the body causing deterioration of muscles. This video explores the role of motor neurons and other cells which may be involved in the onset and progression of ALS.

This video was made by McMaster Demystifying Medicine students Prabhnoor Ghuman, Julie Fayez, Aditya Sikand, Kopica Thayaparan

Copyright McMaster University 2018

References:

Frey, D., Schneider, C., Xu, L., Borg, J., Spooren, W., & Caroni, P. (2000). Early and selective loss of neuromuscular synapse subtypes with low sprouting competence in motoneuron diseases. The Journal of Neuroscience : The Official Journal of the Society for Neuroscience, 20(7), 2534–42. https://doi.org/10.1523/JNEUROSCI.20-07-02534.2000

Kang, S. H., Li, Y., Fukaya, M., Lorenzini, I., Cleveland, D. W., Ostrow, L. W., … Bergles, D. E. (2013). Degeneration and impaired regeneration of gray matter oligodendrocytes in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Nature Neuroscience, 16(5), 571–579. https://doi.org/10.1038/nn.3357

Liao, B., Zhao, W., Beers, D. R., Henkel, J. S., & Appel, S. H. (2012). Transformation from a neuroprotective to a neurotoxic microglial phenotype in a mouse model of ALS. Experimental Neurology, 237(1), 147–152. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.expneurol.2012.06.011

Papadeas, S. T., Kraig, S. E., O’Banion, C., Lepore, A. C., & Maragakis, N. J. (2011). Astrocytes carrying the superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1G93A) mutation induce wild-type motor neuron degeneration in vivo. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 108(43), 17803–8. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1103141108

Philips, T., Bento-Abreu, A., Nonneman, A., Haeck, W., Staats, K., Geelen, V., … Robberecht, W. (2013). Oligodendrocyte dysfunction in the pathogenesis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Brain, 136(2), 471–482. https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/aws339

Snaidero, N., & Simons, M. (2014). Myelination at a glance. Journal of Cell Science, 127(Pt 14), 2999–3004. https://doi.org/10.1242/jcs.151043

Sofroniew, M. V, & Vinters, H. V. (2010). Astrocytes: biology and pathology. Acta Neuropathologica, 119(1), 7–35. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00401-009-0619-8

Yang, I., Han, S. J., Kaur, G., Crane, C., & Parsa, A. T. (2010). The role of microglia in central nervous system immunity and glioma immunology. Journal of Clinical Neuroscience : Official Journal of the Neurosurgical Society of Australasia, 17(1), 6–10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jocn.2009.05.006