IIT-H researchers find new molecule to treat ALS

There is a development worth mentioning at Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad (IIT-H). The researchers there have found a new molecule ‘AIM4’ that can be potentially used to treat a rare and debilitating neurodegenerative disease called ‘Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis’ (ALS), also known as ‘Lou Gehrig’s disease.’
ALS is a neurodegenerative disorder that severely affects voluntary movement of muscles and can lead to paralysis and death. It occurs due to changes in specific genes which may be triggered by factors such as smoking, exposure to toxins, metals and pesticides.

Click Now for – JCECE

It is interesting to note that there are no drugs available at present to cure ALS and treatment options are limited to two drugs only for management of the condition.
Read More – sssutms

The ‘ice bucket challenge,’ which went viral in the U.S. and the U.K. in 2014, created awareness about this disease among people. The disease is relatively unknown in India although Indians seem to have an earlier onset of this malady compared to people of the West and show longer lasting symptoms and disease progression.

Basant Kumar said One of the causes of ALS is the alterations in the genes that code for a critical protein called TDP-43. The gene alteration modifies the protein which results in its liquid-liquid phase separation. This phase separation in turn causes the proteins to be deposited on nerve cells, resulting in generalization.

‘We have shown that AIM4 prevents liquid-liquid phase separation of the modified protein, TDP-43-A315T. By this, AIM4 prevents aggregation of the protein and may potentially prevent the deposition on neurons.’
The research group compared the ability of AIM4 to prevent protein phase separation with that of other molecules such as Dimebon. Dimebon is an antihistamine that was studied for treatment of regenerative disorders by an American pharmaceutical company but failed clinical trials. The IIT Hyderabad Research team found that AIM4 was better than such earlier molecules in preventing protein phase separation.
Also Read – most toughest exams in world
The research team has also discovered through computational studies that AIM4 has specific binding site on this protein and binding energy calculations have shown that the bond between AIM4 and the mutant protein is energetically favorable, which makes it a promising drug for potential treatment of ALS.

This work is an important step forward in the area of therapeutics of the regenerative disease ALS as current options for ALS are minimal or even non-existent, he said.

S Vishnu Sharmaa now works with collegechalo.com in the news team. His work involves writing articles related to the education sector in India with a keen focus on higher education issues. Journalism has always been a passion for him. He has more than 10 years of enriching experience with various media organizations like Eenadu, Webdunia, News Today, Infodea. He also has a strong interest in writing about defence and railway related issues.