Stem Cell Treatment for ALS in India

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), referred to as Lou Gehrig’s disease after the baseball legend who died of the disease in 1941, is a rare and debilitating neurological disorder. It is classified as a progressive disease, meaning that the nerve cells that regulate voluntary muscle movement (gray matter) of the brain and spinal cord begin to degenerate and die. Because the nerve or motor neurons start to break down, the brain can no longer initiate and control muscle movement—like walking, swallowing, speaking, and even breathing. As a result, muscle weakness or wasting and paralysis arise, leading to death within a timeline of 2 to 5 years in many cases following diagnosis.

The disease impairs muscle movements, like walking, swallowing, and speaking, and even breathing because the lower motor neurons stop transmitting signals to the corresponding muscles. While there is no cure identified, there has been substantial research and findings about the physiology behind ALS. There are genetic mutations, such as changes in the TSC1 gene, that have a relation to the onset of ALS in some cases.