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Old 10-25-2007, 09:25 PM #1
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BobbyB BobbyB is offline
In Remembrance
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: North Carolina
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15 yr Member
BobbyB BobbyB is offline
In Remembrance
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Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: North Carolina
Posts: 4,609
15 yr Member
Ribbon Research Could Lead to Understanding of Motor Neuron Degeneration

Research Could Lead to Understanding of Motor Neuron Degeneration
In an effort to leverage funds and increase the ALS profile among young researchers, the Tim E. No?l Fellowship in ALS Research was created in 2006 using money from the Tim No?l Endowment Fund. Sherif Elbasiouny is the 2007 recipient.

Elbasiouny believes ALS research is expanding but notes that attracting new and young investigators to the field is a challenge. He cites collaboration between well-established researchers and increased funding as two critical factors in the search for a cure or effective treatment for ALS.

Elbasiouny was inspired to pursue studies in rehabilitation engineering after witnessing the joy of a young amputee and his parents when the boy received his prosthesis. His interest in ALS research is an extension of his doctoral work, where he developed electrical stimulation-based techniques to suppress the level of spasticity (uncontrolled sustained contractions of muscles) after spinal cord injury.

“My desire to help ALS patients is my real motivation,” he says.

Elbasiouny obtained his PhD in biomedical engineering with a focus on rehabilitation neuroscience from the University of Alberta in 2007. He will embark on post-doctoral study at Northwestern University in the department of physiology under Dr. Charles Heckman. Elbasiouny’s project is entitled “Ionic mechanisms underlying motoneuron degeneration in ALS.”

When a substance over-stimulates nerve cells, it creates a toxic effect called excitotoxicity, which may contribute to the degeneration of motor neurons in people with ALS. The voltage-gated channels of the motor neuron are thought to be a main cause of excitotoxicity. Voltage-gated sodium channels help generate electrical excitability, while voltage-gated calcium channels regulate muscle excitation and contraction. A component of the total sodium current, the Na persistent inward current (Na PIC), is elevated in the motor neurons of mice genetically modified to carry the mutant SOD1 enzyme, which is linked to an inherited form of ALS. When the calcium persistent inward current (Ca PIC) isn’t buffered properly, the Na PIC current increases cell excitability, which could contribute to motor neuron degeneration in ALS.

“We expect to obtain a better understanding of how ionic currents contribute to motor neuron degeneration in ALS and what drug or electrical therapies could be used to help regulate their level of activation,” says Elbasiouny. “The outcome of this work could lead to the development of new, effective therapies that would slow the progression of the disease and prolong life in ALS patients.”

The main goals of the project are to investigate the ionic mechanisms causing the increased excitability of spinal motor neurons in ALS and to assess how drugs, electrical stimulation and neuromodulators (substances transmitted by a neuron that affect the activity of other neurons) affect motor neuron survival. Elbasiouny will use computer models to try to verify Na PIC and Ca PIC as contributing factors in motor neuron excitability, and determine if these two ionic currents affect motor neuron cells before the onset of ALS symptoms.

Candidates for the Tim E. No?l Fellowship in ALS Research are eligible for $55,000 in annual funding for up to three years. The fellowship is supported by the Tim No?l Endowment Fund. The fellowship is awarded through the CIHR INMHA fellowship competition. A peer review process determines the scientific merit of applications for funding.

About Tim E. No?l
Tim E. No?l was the deputy governor of the Bank of Canada. Diagnosed with ALS in 1999, No?l continued working with the aid of his wheelchair and ventilator. He succumbed to ALS in July 2001. The funds from the endowment fund come from the golf tournaments organized by Noël’s friends, who were inspired by his courageous battle with ALS. The Fund will continue to support a post-doctoral research fellowship in Tim's honor.

http://www.als.ca/_news/4339.aspx
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