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Funded Grants

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Cytosolic DNA sensing in ALS-related neuroinflammation

Project Overview

Recently, Dr. Honglin Luo, in collaboration with Dr. Neil Cashman, discovered that mutations in the ALS-linked SOD1 gene result in activation of a specific neuroinflammatory pathway called cGAS-STING. Neuroinflammation is thought to play an important role in the progression of ALS and activation of this specific pathway has been identified in laboratory animal models of two other prominent causes of ALS, C9ORF72 and TDP-43.

With this grant, Drs. Luo and Cashman will further investigate how the cGAS-STING pathway is affected in SOD1-linked ALS using mice that have ALS mutations and either the cGAS or STING genes removed. This will help to determine if these pathways are critical to the motor neuron degeneration in SOD1 mice. They will also investigate the roles of cGAS and STING in the laboratory using cells expressing mutant forms of two other ALS-linked proteins, TDP-43 and FUS.

Ultimately this work will advance our understanding of the role of the cGAS-STING pathway in ALS disease progression and may reveal a promising new target for future therapies.

Principal Investigator

Honglin Luo , University of British Columbia

Team Members

Neil Cashman, University of British Columbia

Partners and Donors

ALS Canada

Project Ongoing

Cytosolic DNA sensing in ALS-related neuroinflammation

  • Program Type

    Team grants

  • Area of research

    Neurodegeneration

  • Disease Area

    ALS

  • Competition

    ALS Canada - Brain Canada Discovery Grants

  • Province

    British Columbia

  • Start Date

    2021

  • Total Grant Amount

    $125,000

  • Health Canada Contribution

    $62,500

Contact Us

1200 McGill College Avenue
Suite 1600, Montreal, Quebec
H3B 4G7

+1 (514) 989-2989 info@braincanada.ca

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