=====
Important Research Breakthrough
==========
>From : JulesHoff@aol.com
Date : Sun, 5 Nov 2000 12:02:43 EST
Subject: IMPORTANT RESEARCH BREAKTHROUGH

Julianne Hoffenberg
Co-Founder, Project A.L.S.

Project A.L.S.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Patricia Harrington, 212-581-0407
: Nina Capelli, 212-627-2568

TRANSPLANTED NEURAL STEM CELLS RESTORE MOVEMENT IN PARALYZED MICE

Project A.L.S.-Funded Experiments Are History's First Involving Stem
Cell Replacement in ALS

(New York, November 5, 2000) Project A.L.S. and Johns Hopkins University
announced today that after being transplanted with neural stem cells,
paralyzed mice with an ALS-like syndrome regained movement. The results
were presented at the annual meeting of The Society for Neuroscience in
New Orleans, and at Project A.L.S. headquarters in New York. Project
A.L.S. is the non-profit organization that has forged and fully funded
Neural Stem Cell Replacement in ALS, a collaborative investigation uniting
many of the world's leading neuroscientists, stem cell biologists, and
molecular biologists. The data are a result of this collaboration.

Johns Hopkins researchers injected the neural stem cells into the cerebral
spinal fluid of the rodents, which had been paralyzed as a result of
Sindbis, an animal virus. Sindbis virus approximates ALS (amyotrophic
lateral sclerosis) in that it selectively destroys motor neurons, the cells
responsible for movement and breathing. Normally, Sindbis virus destroys
motor function permanently. But, in the case of this investigation, over
fifty percent of Sindbis rodents transplanted with neural stem cells
regained motor function within eight weeks of the procedure.

The data give further encouragement to scientists that neural stem cells,
undifferentiated cells possessing the ability to transform into a range
of healthy new cells, represent potential treatments and cures for
millions with Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's, spinal muscular
atrophy, stroke and spinal cord injury.

Johns Hopkins neuroscientist, Douglas Kerr, M.D., Ph.D., the principal
investigator on the Sindbis experiments said, "This work was driven by the
people at Project A.L.S. with their diligence and support. It is rare for
a private organization to dramatically reshape the way research is
pursued. But that has happened here." Other investigators directly
involved with the Sindbis work were Jeffrey D. Rothstein, M.D., Ph.D. and
John Gearhart, Ph.D. of Johns Hopkins University, and Evan Y. Snyder, M.D.,
Ph.D. of Children's Hospital, Boston.

In 1999, Project A.L.S. set out to unite the world's leading stem cell
biologists with ALS researchers--groups that had not worked together
before--and charged them with the task of replacing damaged spinal motor
neurons with stem cells. As a result, research teams from participating
institutions including Johns Hopkins University, Children's Hospital,
Boston, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Massachusetts General Hospital,
Cornell University, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Columbia
University, have worked together to move stem cell replacement forward
exponentially.

Jenifer Estess, the 38-year-old president of Project A.L.S. who is living
with the disease said, "This is the kind of breakthrough we've been
working toward. Our scientists are our partners in this fight--we knew
they were applying best efforts to stem cell replacement in ALS. Project
A.L.S. is thrilled that the mice are walking again. Now it's time to
give people the same option. I am confident we'll get there."

Project A.L.S. was founded in 1998, by Ms. Estess, her family and friends.
Today, Project A.L.S. funds and motivates investigations including Neural
Stem Cell Replacement in ALS, Genetics, Genomics & ALS, Rescue of
Respiratory Motor Neurons, High Throughput Drug Screening, and Accelerated
Drug Testing, among others.

ALS is a fatal neuromuscular disease that destroys motor neurons, which
control walking talking and breathing. To date, there is not one
effective treatment for the disease, which was first described over 150
years ago. The life expectancy for someone with ALS is two to five years.
Project A.L.S. applies significant funding to leading scientists, many
of whom have not worked on ALS before, in the name of understanding the
pathways of the ALS and putting effective treatments in place as quickly
as possible.