In amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, also known as motor neuron disease, or MND), like in many other neurodegenerative disorders, neuronal damage and death are the most striking signs of disease. However, our research, along with the work of others, has demonstrated that glia play an active role in neuronal death in ALS. We use various in vitro cell models, including genetically reprogrammed human progenitor cells (iNPCs), induced neural progenitor cells (iPSCs) and stem cells, to investigate the cross-talk between glial cells from patients affected by ALS with neurons to understand the causes of ALS as well as try to develop novel therapies for the patients.
Ferraiuolo Lab 