Motor neurone disease clue found
Wednesday, 19 November 2008
Scientists have identified a molecule which could be key to understanding the cause of motor neurone disease (MND) and other neurodegenerative disorders, reports BBC.
The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences study raise the hope of new treatments being developed.
The London-based team showed the molecule, Wnt3, plays a key role in establishing connections between nerve cells and the muscles they control. These connections become progressively weaker in MND patients.
Without properly-formed connections - or synapses - the muscle cannot receive the nerve signal that tells it to contract. This results in the muscle weakness that is typical of MND.
However, scientists have not been clear how synapses are formed in normal circumstances and this has made it very difficult to pin down what goes wrong in MND.
The researchers, from University College London and King's College London, identified Wnt3 as key to the process.
It assists a second molecule, called Agrin, which co-ordinates construction of the connection - or synapse.
Lead researcher Professor Patricia Salinas said: "The work we are publishing today puts an important piece of the puzzle in place and offers up a new possibility for developing drugs to treat MND and other neurodegenerative diseases.
The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences study raise the hope of new treatments being developed.
The London-based team showed the molecule, Wnt3, plays a key role in establishing connections between nerve cells and the muscles they control. These connections become progressively weaker in MND patients.
Without properly-formed connections - or synapses - the muscle cannot receive the nerve signal that tells it to contract. This results in the muscle weakness that is typical of MND.
However, scientists have not been clear how synapses are formed in normal circumstances and this has made it very difficult to pin down what goes wrong in MND.
The researchers, from University College London and King's College London, identified Wnt3 as key to the process.
It assists a second molecule, called Agrin, which co-ordinates construction of the connection - or synapse.
Lead researcher Professor Patricia Salinas said: "The work we are publishing today puts an important piece of the puzzle in place and offers up a new possibility for developing drugs to treat MND and other neurodegenerative diseases.