The Effects Of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ( Als )

I. Introduction Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a late onset neurological disorder characterized by motor neuron degeneration in brain stem, spinal cord and primary motor cortex. There is no single gene strictly associated with all ALS cases, the disease is thought to be caused by the interaction of many genetic factors as well as environmental influences. Most of ALS patients have no family history of this disease, familiar form accounts for only 5 to 10% and seems to be dominant in most cases. The dominance and high heritability of familiar ALS (FALS) led to identification of several high-risk alleles of few genes (among those, SOD1, FUS, TARDEP, C9ORF72 are the most frequent) There are 3 main neuropathological findings associated with ALS. First is degeneration of the corticospinal tract that connects axons from primary motor cortex to the motor neurons and extensive degeneration of lower motor neurons. This is connected to the second characteristics, which is loss of Bertz cells that are found in primary motor cortex and connect to the motor neurons. The third characteristics is hypertrophy of glial cells that either lose their original neuroprotective abilities or gain neurotoxic effects. ALS usually starts in one part of a body (either a limb or bulbar region) and then slowly spreads to the rest of the body by non-cell autonomous or prion-like propagation. A presence of protein aggregates in the affected neurons was observed, but the nature of these aggregatesShow MoreRelatedSpeech Amyotrophic Lateral Disease : Is A Chronic And Terminal Disease That Affects The Lower And Upper Motor Neurons1725 Words   |  7 PagesThis research paper is being written to address Amyotrophic lateral disease (ALS), which is a chronic and terminal disease that affects the lower and upper motor neurons (Srivastava, 2014). ALS is usually fatal within a few years of inception and affects 2-5 per 100,000 people annually worldwide (Donnelly, Grima, Sattler, 2014). This disease usually affects the patient physically and emotionally and as well as their support system. As of this year, no cure has been developed for this disease. TheRead MoreHenry Louis Gehrig was a popular German-American b aseball player. He was most known for several1400 Words   |  6 PagesGehrig was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis when he was 36. Sadly, within two years he had succumbed to the disease. Lou Gehrig was well known in his lifetime as a great baseball player but in his death he has been most noted for his diagnosis of ASL. Before the public announcement of the reasons for his retirement, many Americans had not heard of the disease. Because of this, his name is a trademark of its discovery. Theoretically, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ASL) is a disorder thatRead MoreAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis - 11013 Words   |  5 Pagesgenetic disorder called Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a genetic disorder that occurs in the nervous system. Each word in ALS briefly describes what the disorder is. Amyotrophic has two parts to it. The prefix â€Å"amyo† means muscular atrophy. Atrophy means to waste away, typically due to the degeneration of cells. The suffix â€Å"trophic† means that it is relating to feeding and nutrition. So to sum it up, amyotrophic means that the musclesRead MoreOrgan Lateral Sclerosis : A Disease That Affects The Nervous System1578 Words   |  7 PagesAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis is a disease that affects the Nervous system as well as the Muscular System as well, this disease is defined as a progressive neurodegenerative disease that affects the nerve cells in the brain and the spinal cord. A-myo-trophic is a Greek term when translated it means â€Å"No muscle Nourishment†. This lack of nourishment causes a reaction within the muscles leading to their eventual break down, otherwise known as â€Å"atrophies† which is a simple term meaning that the muscleRead MoreAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis - Muscular Atrophy: an Annotated Bibliography1388 Words   |  6 PagesAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis - Muscular Atrophy: An Annotated Bibliography Abramovitz, Melissa. Lou Gehrigs Disease p17-61. Treatment for ALS or Lou Gehrigs disease has found that Vitamin E and the drug known as Riluzole can help the progression of the disease. When taking the medication Riluzole it has shown to prolong survival in patients by two to three months and it has also delayed the use for breathing support. 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This increase is the result of improvements in technology and techniques that have clarified some of the unknown mechanisms associated with disease. For example, innovations in genetic sequencing have allowed researchers to analyze the geneticRead MoreSymptoms And Treatment Of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Essay1181 Words   |  5 PagesAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as ALS or sometimes called Lou Gehrig’s Disease, is a progressive neurological disease affecting the nerves that control voluntary muscle movement. It is the most common type of motor neuron disease. The body isn’t able to operate as it normally does due to the muscles weakening overtime. As the disease progresses, it starts to damage nerves of other vital areas of the body. When the body isn’t able to breath the way it should causing respiratory failureRead MoreEssay about Amy otrophic Lateral Sclerosis2209 Words   |  9 PagesAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ABSTRACT At this time, Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis(ALS) is a very confusing and elusive disorder. While the clinical presentation and diagnosis of ALS dates back to the early 1900’s, with Charcot being the first to scientifically report and document his findings, there simply has not been definitive evidence since that time for the etiology for ALS. This fundamental problem has befuddled the most qualified researchers and its ensuing answer has eluded theRead More Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (lou Gherigs Disease) Essay458 Words   |  2 Pages Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (Lou Gherigs Disease) nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;nbsp;Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis is a deadly disease of the nervous system. Also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, ALS at this time affects 25,000 people in the U.S. today. One in 50,000 people will be affected in any one year. The average age for diagnosis of ALS is between 30 and 70, although there have been cases of teenagers contracting it.The average life span after diagnosis are three to 10 years, although 20 percent