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Human Motor Neurones

Reading Time: 2 minutes Dr Jakub Scaber is a Medical Research Council (MRC)/  MND Association Lady Edith Wolfson Clinical Research Fellow who works in Professor Kevin Talbot’s Laboratory at the Oxford University. Like Prof Chandran’s research, Dr Scaber’s fellowship is also investigating stem-cell derived motor neurones, here he blogs about his research. This is an image of motor neurons. But not just…

Switching the light on for MND

Reading Time: 4 minutes MND Association-funded researcher, Prof Linda Greensmith, based at University College London, together with her collaborator Dr Ivo Lieberam from Kings College London, have introduced stem cell-derived motor neurones into mice. Published in the prestigious journal Science on 4 April 2014, her research has also demonstrated that muscle function can be controlled by light. Modelling MND…

Stem cells and growth factors: from bench to bedside

Reading Time: 4 minutes After a brilliant first day at ENCALS, which included a talk by Dr Johannes Brettschneider, the second day began with a talk by Thierry Latran Speaker Prof Clive Svendsen (Director of the Cedars-Sinai Regenerative Medicine Institute) arriving directly from attending at the Anne Rowling Regenerative Neurology Symposium. Prof Svendsen gave a riveting talk to over…

MND stem cell study identifies TDP-43 astrocytes as not toxic to motor neurones

Reading Time: 3 minutes Funded by the MND Association, international researchers have used stem cell technology to learn more about the relationship between motor neurones and their support cells. These findings highlight the potential of stem cell technology as a tool to create new human ‘in a dish’ cellular models of disease to learn more about the causes of…

The clinical trials session

Reading Time: 3 minutes A very much ‘must report on’ session of the 23rd International Symposium on ALS/MND was the clinical trials and trial design session. There are many reasons that make this an interesting session – perhaps the most eagerly anticipated were the presentations on the NP001 study and the results of the stem cell safety trial: NP001…

Changing fashions of MND models

Reading Time: 3 minutes Models of MND are important both to understand the causes of MND and to quickly, efficiently and accurately screen and develop new treatments for it. A number of key developments both in terms of technological know-how and new understanding of genetics of MND have led to the development of new models discussed at on the…