1. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
Kiara Barnes

2. The Story: Zach the zookeeper was just recently diagnosed
with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.
Only thing Zach knows is that he’s eventually going to die from this disease but has no idea what it really is.
He wanted to do more research, and this is what he found…

3. What is ALS?
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease, is a motor neuron disease that attacks the nerve cells in control of your involuntary actions. The nerve cells break down and die causing loss of physical functions and muscles.

4. Possible Causes:
Several different gene mutations can cause inherited ALS. About a dozen mutations have been found to cause familial ALS.
The chemical messenger glutamate tends to be connected with ALS. Higher levels are found in people with the disease and it is known that too much can cause nerve cells.
Proteins within the nerve cells can be mishandled causing a build up of abnormal proteins. This can eventually cause the nerve cells to begin to die.
No one has actually found the exact cause to ALS, but there are 2 types.
Most common type of ALS is sporadic and this means there is no for sure cause.
Other type of ALS is called familial which means the ALS is usually the result of a mutation in the genes.
ALS is an autosomal dominant gene.
Genes that cause ALS:
~ FUS
~ C9ORF72
~ Cu/Zn Superoxide Dismutase 1 (SOD1)
~ TDP-43
chromosome 9p21 was where the cause of familial ALS was located

5. Facts 1 to 7 out of every100,000 people get ALS
About 5,000 people are diagnosed with ALS each year
Occurs usually in ages 40 to 60
More prevalent in males before the age of 65
Sex doesn’t seem to affect who contracts the disease after the age of 65
There’s no specific race or ethnicity group that can get ALS, anyone can get this
disease. More white males and non Hispanics are more common to get ALS
Every 90 minutes, someone new gets the disease ALS in the US

6. Symptoms Difficulty walking and/or doing daily activities (tripping)
Tight and stiff muscles
fasciculation
Hand weakness or clumsiness
Weakness the legs, ankles, or feet
Slurring of speech or trouble swallowing
Difficulty holding your head up or keeping good posture
Muscle cramps and twitching in your arms, shoulders, and tongue
Muscles get weaker as the disease go on. It usually starts in the hands, feet, or limbs, then it spreads to other parts of the body and progressively advances.

7. Tests:
EMG (Electromyogram): shows electrical activity in the muscles and when an abnormality is seen, it helps to diagnose ALS
Nerve Conduction Study:
can detect nerve damage by measuring your nerves ability to send impulses to
different muscles in your body

8. Treatments
Since there is no cure to ALS, treatments have been made to try to slow down the symptoms. Riluzole is the only approved medication made for ALS and it slows the progression of the disease. Another treatment is therapy. All types of therapy can be taken such as physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, and breathing care because ALS affects all of these parts of the body.
ALS is a life- ending disease and after being diagnosed, only expected to live about 5 years.

9. Interesting Facts:
ALS ice bucket challenge is an annual event that is used to raise funds for treatment and awareness. Videos of people dumping buckets of ice water on their heads and nominating each other were uploaded to various social media cites to help spread the word about ALS.
Lou Gehrig (most common name for the disease) was a famous professional baseball player who had ALS, so they named the disease after him.

10. Sources- (URLs)