Should the ALS community keep an eye on APEX, N.C. and surrounding areas for the next several year for an increase in ALS? If ALS is triggered by chlorine, pesticides, herbicides, sulfur or fertilize theoretically this is a hot zone and there should be an increase in diagnosed ALS.

Any thoughts to this reasoning?

10-06-2006 9:44 AM
By WILLIAM L. HOLMES, Associated Press Writer

APEX, N.C. -- As many as 17,000 people were urged to flee homes on the outskirts of Raleigh early Friday as flames shot from a burning hazardous waste plant and a chlorine cloud rose high over the area.

No employees were believed to have been inside the EQ Industrial Services plant when the fire started late Thursday and a series of explosions began rocking the property.

Eighteen people, many of them law enforcement officers, were taken to emergency rooms with respiratory problems, hospital officials said.

EQ Industrial Services handles a wide array of industrial waste, from paints to solvents, and houses chemicals such as chlorine, pesticides, herbicides, sulfur and fertilizer.

Longtime no see my friend,how have you been ?
I agree if I were an ALS researcher.. I'd certainly keep an eye on this spot...Lisa aka linda5

Hi Lisa,

I'm hanging in there. Wish my progression would slowdown but, every PALS wishes the same!! How has life been treating you? As always, I believe there's a simplistic link in all PALS! Unfortunately, finding this link continues to plauge our ALS community.

I believe PALS have a common genetic error in our DNA profiles & we've been exposed to a common chemical element. This is my simplistic laymens theory hence, my interest in this potential hot spot.


Jeff

you are probably not far off...
Public release date: 5-Jul-2006
]

Contact: Elizabeth Crown
e-crown@northwestern.edu
312-503-8928
Northwestern University

Variations in detoxifying genes linked to Lou Gehrig's disease
Genetic variations in three enzymes that detoxify insecticides and nerve gas agents as well as metabolize cholesterol-lowering statin drugs may be a risk factor for developing sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease), and possibly responsible for a reported twofold increased risk of ALS in Gulf War veterans.
These findings, from a study led Teepu Siddique, M.D., and colleagues at Northwestern University, open the door to investigating gene-environment interactions as a cause of ALS and other illnesses and to the development of molecular targets for specific treatments. The study was published in the August 22 online issue (available now) of the journal Neurology.

Siddique is Les Turner ALS Foundation/Herbert C. Wenske Professor, Davee Department of Neurology and Clinical Neurosciences, professor of cell and molecular biology and director of the Neuromuscular Disorders Program at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine.

ALS is a complex neurodegenerative disorder of the motor neurons that results in muscle weakness, difficulty speaking, swallowing and breathing and eventual total paralysis and death generally within five years.

In 1993 Siddique and collaborators determined that mutations in a gene known as SOD1 account for 20 percent of familial, or inherited, ALS (2 percent of all cases of ALS). However, the cause of sporadic ALS is still unknown.

In earlier research Siddique and other researchers hypothesized that sporadic ALS is modulated by variations in multiple genes interacting with each other and environmental exposures.

The genes for human paraoxanases (PON 1, PON 2 and PON 3), which are located on chromosome 7q21.3, code for the production of detoxifying enzymes involved in the metabolism of a variety of drugs, organophosphate insecticides, such as parathion, diazinon and chlorpyrifos, and nerve gas agents such as sarin.

Previous research described a possible twofold increased risk for developing ALS in veterans of the Gulf War, indicating a war-related environmental exposure to organophosphates and sarin in genetically susceptible individuals as a possible cause. PON gene cluster variants have previously been associated with other neurodegenerative and vascular disorders, including Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, coronary artery disease and stroke.

Although the Northwestern DNA study samples were not analyzed for inclusion of Gulf War veterans, Siddique and co-researchers found significant evidence that gene variations (polymorphisms) on the chromosome region encompassing PON2-PON3 were strongly associated with sporadic ALS.

"Thus, single nucleotide polymorphism genotyping in the intergenic regions of the PON gene cluster, and replication, gene expression, gene-gene interaction and PON serum/enzymatic studies may help elucidate the complexity of PON cluster association with ALS," Siddique said.

Siddique hopes to study DNA samples from Gulf War veterans with increased incidence of sporadic ALS and has applied for their DNA from the Veterans Administration collection.


###
Collaborating with Siddique on this research were Mohammad Saeed, M.D.; Nailah Siddique; Wu-Yen Hung; Elena Usacheva; Erdong Liu, M.D.; Robert L. Sufit, M.D.; Scott L. Heller, M.D., Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine; Jonathan L. Haines, Vanderbilt University Medical Center; and Margaret Pericak-Vance, Duke University Medical Center.

Hi Jeff...I wish your ALS would slow down too...and I believe your theory is a good one..
I myself have always wondered if ALS was like some type of very severe allergy that brought upon a cascade of events that cause the syndrome..something that is different about PALS in their dNA that makes them vulnerable to chemicals that are not toxic to others...
Anyway..glad you are hanging in there..do you post frequently at ALS TdF? ..I haven't rejoined there yet..but if you happen to run into FORD PERFECT/ JIM and Wayne..send them hello from me in the meantime..as I know alot of the scientific minded guys post there..
I ran into Harry at Old braintalk..It was good to see him as well..
I've met a few new people..but I have some catching up to do...bouncing between both forums for now..eventually I plan to drop over at TDF too...just don't know how much I can contribute there as you guys are way smarter than I..Lisa

PS>>>Olsen nice to meet you...

Great Smokies has a test to check the detoxifying genes in the Liver.
Wally has problems with several of them. My observations over the years bear out the test results.

Great Smokies have changed their name to Genova Diagnostics

FYI ... For members who would like more info on Great Smokies / Genova Diagnostics the following is their website address: http://www.gsdl.com

Thanks, Jeff. Genova was the name on the test results in 2002. I thought perhaps that was a division of GS that was doing genetic testing--didn't realize the whole thing changed names.

Wally's Mom