NEW YORK, Jan 10 (Reuters Health) -- A small study suggests that a virus
may play a role in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease,
a progressive, fatal neurological disease.
European researchers found evidence that ALS patients are more likely to
have a particular virus in their spinal cords than people without the
neurological condition.
The finding suggests that the virus may play a role in the development of
the disease, although more research is needed to confirm the study results. If
true, the discovery may one day lead to treatment for the disease, whose cause
is still unknown.
ALS, which is caused by a destruction of motor neurons, results in
weakness and muscle atrophy and usually causes death in 2 to 5 years, most often
because of respiratory failure.
In the new study, Dr. Martina Berger from Centre National de Reference
pour les Enterovirus in Lyon, France, and colleagues looked for traces of
enteroviruses (a family of viruses that includes the poliovirus) in the spinal
cord tissue of 17 patients who died of ALS and 29 people who died of other
causes.
Previous studies have given inconsistent results when seeking the presence
of viral particles or products in fluid or cells taken from the spinal cord, the
authors explain.
Using a more sensitive test, Berger and colleagues were able to detect
enteroviruses in 88% of ALS cases. In contrast, the virus was detected in only
3% of patients who died of other causes, according to the report in the January
issue of Neurology.
Genetic analysis suggested that the virus most closely resembled
echovirus-7 and echovirus-6. Echovirus-7 is known to cause meningitis,
infections of the protective covering of the brain.
"Many researchers have suspected a viral link to ALS, but in this study we
were able to identify a virus known for nerve damage in the exact areas of the
nervous system that are affected by this disease," said Berger, who is now at
the University of California, Irvine (UCI), in a statement issued by UCI. "We
think this knowledge will help us finally uncover what causes this disease and
may someday lead us to developing a treatment."
"We need to identify the ways this virus causes damage to nerve cells in
order to determine how it may play a role in the development of ALS," Berger
added. "If this research is successful, we may be able to design new classes of
drugs that could be effective against this tragic disease."
