When you want to perform a voluntary movement, a signal moves from your brain through the motor neurons in your spinal cord and into the muscle where the movement is achieved. The area in your body where the muscles and the nerves communicate is called the neuromuscular junction (NMJ).
Elsa Tremblay, a PhD student in Dr. Richard Robitaille’s lab, and recipient of an ALS Canada Cycle of Hope Doctoral Research Award, uses animal models to investigate changes in the NMJ caused by ALS. Experimental tests reveal clear differences in the NMJs of mice with ALS that affect muscle function and fatigue. The hope is that by targeting these differences new ALS treatments can be developed. A Phase 2 clinical trial of pimozide, a medication shown to enhance communication at the NMJ in animal studies, is being funded through the ALS Canada Research Program.