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May 10, 2005
New Study Could Settle the Exercise Question…and
More
“Should I exercise or will it hurt me?”
That’s one of a new ALS patient’s first questions,
says neurologist Nicholas Maragakis, who hopes to see
if that intuitive way to stave off weakness really works.
Surprisingly, he says, the effect of exercise on ALS patients isn’t
well-documented. “There’ve been studies before,” Maragakis
adds, “but they haven’t followed patients for a significant
time, nor have they been particularly thorough.” Most of what’s
published consists of patient case reports. In addition, vague ideas left
from the polio era—that activity hastens muscle weakness—still
linger, as does the controversial idea that being athletic makes you vulnerable
to ALS.
So Maragakis plans clinical trials of patients who can still
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| Maragakis tests grip strength in an ALS
mouse model. |
move their limbs, who have a high breathing capacity and who score well
on formal ALS scales of function. First will come a small study to see
if exercise is safe and then a larger one to find if it postpones muscle
weakness. Patients will try either aerobic/endurance or weight-training
exercise in contrast to the stretching and range-of-motion regimens that
are presently suggested. “We want to see if there’s benefit
of one type of exercise over another,” he says.
As for the biology that might be involved, that will have to wait for
the trial results. But exercise is known to increase an insulinlike growth
factor (IGF-1) that helps maintain cells and encourages their development.
“Potentially, a number of pathways could be affected,” Maragakis
adds, “including those in the central nervous system. Mouse models
suggest that exercise is both safe and potentially of benefit.”
The study is under consideration for an NIH grant.
>>more Recent
News
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| Recent news from the Robert Packard Center
for ALS Research: |
| Packard Center Welcomes Its First Dedicated Science Director - July 30, 3008 |
| In ALS, It’s Not the Number of Ailing Astrocytes That Counts - June 12, 2008 |
| Leaky Blood Vessels Add To ALS Damage, Could Offer New Repair Site - June 10, 2008 |
| William H. Adams Foundation Pumps New Energy, Funds into Search for ALS Cure - May 6, 2008 |
| Tell-Tale Protein Clumping in ALS is Less Complex Than Expected - April 10, 2008 |
ALS Mouse Study Highlights Astrocytes' Strong Potential as Therapy Target - February 7, 2008 |
| Exciting New Human ALS Trial: Lithium and Riluzole - February 7, 2008 |
| ALS Treatment: A Matter of Cleaning House? - December 19, 2007 |
New Study Brings What Goes Wrong in Inherited ALS into Focus - September 18, 2007 |
| New ALS Protein Could Be a Keystone - August 9, 2007 |
| Muscles More Than Passive Victims in ALS, Study Suggests - June 29, 2007 |
| Saer and O’Neill Named Packard Center Board Co-Chairs - June 28, 2007 |
Self-Attack? Self-Repair? First Real Look at Gene Activity in ALS Models Sparks Thirst for Answers - May 3, 2007 |
| Model of Accelerated Familial ALS Sheds Light on Disease Process - April 6, 2007 |
| Early News From First Large Search for Sporadic ALS Genes - February 20, 2007 |
| Human Stem Cell Transplants Mature Into Neurons and Make Contacts in Rat Spinal Cord - February 14, 2007 |
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