Bridging the gap between dementia and motor neuron disease

Lobes of the brain

Speaker: Rita Sattler, The Barrow Neurological Institute

Recently, a mutation in the C9orf72 (C9) gene has been identified in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). This discovery strengthened the already known, yet largely neglected symptomatic and genetic overlap between a uniformly fatal motor neuron disease and the second-most common early-onset form of dementia. Using patient-derived human-induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs), patient autopsy tissue and novel mouse models, we study C9-mediated disease mechanisms to explain the development of cognitive impairment and motor neuron loss triggered by the same mutation.

Janet Neisewander
ASU School of Life Sciences
http://sols.asu.edu
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Computing Commons room 120