The global MND research community is once again preparing for one of the most anticipated events of the year—the 36th International Symposium on ALS/MND. This annual gathering is the largest scientific and medical conference dedicated solely to ALS/MND, offering an international platform to share work, exchange ideas, and spark new collaborations. Throughout November, we’ll be publishing a series of blog posts to highlight some of the exciting research being presented at this year’s Symposium.
Every year, the International Symposium on ALS/MND features a lineup of plenary speakers who are leading experts in their fields. This year, we’re excited to welcome 23 plenary speakers, each bringing their unique expertise to the global stage. Over the coming weeks, we’ll be shining a spotlight on each of these speakers and offering a glimpse into what they’ll be discussing at the Symposium.
This year, the Symposium will be held in San Diego, USA, from 5–7 December, with a virtual attendance option available. Virtual delegates will be able to join select sessions live and access all sessions on demand after the event—just like in-person attendees. We’re proud to once again bring this important event to the community and look forward to welcoming researchers, healthcare professionals and people from the wider MND community. Haven’t registered yet? There’s still time!
MND affect cells in the brain and spinal cord, including motor neurons, which connect the brain to the muscles. This makes it challenging to study the disease in people with MND, because researchers cannot take biopsies of cells from brains or spinal cords in the same way that can be done for some other diseases. Therefore, researchers must find other ways of studying MND, such as using cell models in the lab to help to understand disease biology at a microscopic level. Researchers can also monitor biological changes in people with MND through non-invasive techniques such as imaging, to help understand the biology of MND in the context of a real person. At this year’s symposium, a selection of our plenary speakers will be talking about their work on cell models and MND biology to help understand MND and get us closer to finding more effective treatments for all types of MND.
Day 1, Session 1: Opening Session
Creating mini brains to model MND
This year’s International Symposium on ALS/MND once again begins with the Stephen Hawking Memorial Lecture, which plays such an important role in generating new ideas and collaborations for MND research. The researcher delivering this lecture works outside of the MND field and shares their work with MND researchers in the hope that it helps to spark new ideas for MND research. The work of the speaker could help MND researchers to think outside the box and look at new ways to approach the challenges of the field.
This year’s lecture will be delivered by Professor Alysson Muotri, who is based at the University of California and has a research background in neuroscience and stem cell biology. His research focuses on modelling human diseases in brain organoids. Brain organoids are a type of model of human brains used in the lab. They are 3D models, around the size of a grain of sand, that include different types of brain cells. The cells form connections with one another in a similar way to the connections in the human brain, which makes them really useful for modelling and understanding brain development. However, brain organoid models are not able to mimic the process of ageing, which is an important part of neurodegenerative diseases such as MND.
Professor Muotri’s research explores a phenomenon called Space-induced neural senescence (SINS), which can speed up the process of ageing in brain organoid models. In his talk, Professor Muotri will discuss the opportunities that this phenomenon brings to the study of neurodegenerative diseases. This will provide MND researchers with an opportunity to learn about using brain organoids to model MND, which is not something previously thought possible. Being able to model MND in a 3D brain model could help us to understand important parts of MND, which might lead us closer to the development of effective treatments.
Day 1, Session 4A: Cell and Organelle Analyses
Using AI to uncover changes to brain cells in MND
In order to find new effective treatments for MND, we need to understand more about the biology behind the disease. This means gaining a deeper understanding of exactly what changes within brain cells during MND and how these changes cause damage, and ultimately, death of motor neurons.
Professor Eran Hornstein and his team, from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, study the underlying biological mechanisms that change in brain cells in MND. They use cell models and computer based methods, including machine learning and AI to understand more about the changes that happen to genes and molecules (building blocks of cells) during the disease.
In his talk Professor Hornstein will discuss his recent work to develop a new AI technique called ‘organellomics’. This technique can be used to study the location, behaviour and structure of the machinery inside cells (called organelles). This new AI technique will analyse 25 different organelles in healthy cells and in MND models to compare changes. Using this AI method to quickly detect differences, researchers will be able to assess how changes in these organelles may lead to changes in the health of brain cells in MND and this could reveal new targets for the development of potential therapies.
Day 1, session 4B: Clinical electrophysiology and imaging
Exploring how motor neurons and muscles adapt to changes in MND
Motor neurons carry signals from the brain to the muscles, and these signals tell the muscles to move. In MND, motor neurons stop working properly, so these signals cannot pass to the muscles. MND is often diagnosed following the onset of symptoms, but symptoms generally appear at a stage where at least half of the motor neurons have already stopped working properly and died. This may suggest that there are adaptive changes that happen within the muscles that help to keep the muscles working normally, even when some of the motor neurons stop working. Although these adaptations may delay symptoms of MND, they may actually be damaging the motor neurons even more and contributing to the progression of MND.
Professor Rob Brownstone, a physiologist based at the University College London Queen Square Institute of Neurology in the U.K, is going to deliver a talk about motor neuron physiology in MND. Professor Brownstone will discuss how motor neuron and muscle circuits adapt in MND, and how these adaptations may actually contribute to the disease. As a physiologist, his research is focused on how muscles and nerves behave in real-world conditions. His talk will shine a light on the importance of collaboration between physiologists, who study how the body functions as a whole, and biologists, who dive deeper into the molecular and cellular mechanisms of disease at a microscopic level. This collaboration is essential in order to fully understand MND, and to be able to find more effective treatments for everyone with MND.
Day 1, Session 2A: Modelling MND with Stem Cells
Exploring how stem cells can be used to study MND in the laboratory
Across a two-hour session on the first day, an expert panel will explore the past, present and future of stem cells in MND research. With a focus on the use of stem cells for modelling MND, Dr Claire Clelland from the University of California will deliver a talk on induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs).”. iPSCs are cells taken from people with MND that get ‘reprogrammed’ in the lab and turned into a different type of cell, such as a motor neuron. When the cells are taken from people with MND and turned into other cells, the cells behave in a way that is specific to MND. The behaviour of the cells can be compared to cells taken from people without MND, known as controls. In her talk, Dr Clelland will discuss her research, which uses iPSCs from people with MND. Her research is focused on finding new gene therapies for MND and other neurodegenerative diseases, and she will share an update on this work in her talk.
This talk will be followed by a talk from Dr Jimena Andersen from Emroy University,on organoid models of disease. As explained above, organoid models are 3D models of a particular tissue or organ, like the brain, and they can be made using iPSCs. In the lab, Dr Andersen’s research combines stem-cell derived organoid systems from the brain, spinal cord and muscle, to model the communication pathway from the brain to the muscle. The models use iPSCs from people with MND, which allows the model system to be studied in the context of people with MND. Dr Andersen’s lab is interested in identifying processes and mechanisms in the development of the brain-to-muscle communication pathway that might predispose someone to MND.
Both talks will demonstrate the huge progress that is being made towards modelling MND as accurately as possible. They will discuss the future possibilities that this will enable, such as sub-grouping people with different types of MND, as determined by biological characteristics and biomarkers. More accurate grouping of MND sub-types may help to develop more targeted therapies specific to different types of MND. The speakers will then be joining Prof Clive Svendsen, Prof Merit Cudkowicz and Dr Jonathan Glass for an expert discussion all about modelling and treating MND with stem cells.
Stay informed
You can find out more about the International Symposium on ALS/MND on the website and view the programme for this year’s event.
