Unveiling microglia's role in ALS: from molecular mechanisms to therapeutic targets

Cintia Roodveldt

Andalusian Center for Molecular Biology and Regenerative Medicine (CABIMER), Universidad de Sevilla, Spain

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a severe and incurable disease that affects the nervous system and count on very with limited treatment options. Recent discoveries have shown that the microglia, the immune cells from the brain, might play a crucial role in the progression of neurodegenerative diseases like ALS. This project seeks to identify key regulators of these microglial responses and explore their potential as therapeutic targets.

The research team, composed of experts in neurodegenerative diseases, immune responses, and bioinformatics, will use advanced techniques to study microglia in both animal models and human cells. They will investigate how the suppression of a specific quinase affects ALS progression. They will also investigate other important regulators that could serve as new therapeutic targets, expecting to yield significant insights into the molecular mechanisms of ALS and identify potential new treatments.

By integrating data from various sources together with their combined knowledge in neurodegenerative diseases, immune signalling, and computational biology, they will reach a comprehensive understanding of microglial responses in ALS, which could lead to the development of new therapies targeting these immune cells and offering hope for better management of the disease.

• Abraham Acevedo, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria de Canarias, Hospital Universitario de Canarias, Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Spain

• Daniel Rico, Andalusian Center for Molecular Biology and Regenerative Medicine (CABIMER), Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), Sevilla, Spain

Discovery and Multidimensional Characterization of Novel Microglia Regulators in ALS

€770,000.00