By MALCOLM RITTER
AP Science Writer
May 5, 2002, 12:02 PM EDT
An ordinary antibiotic slowed the progression of Lou
Gehrig's disease in mice, suggesting a potential new
approach for treating people, researchers report.
The disease, formally known as amyotrophic lateral
sclerosis or ALS, attacks nerve cells that control
movement. As these cells degenerate, an affected person
becomes progressively paralyzed. Most cases appear
between the ages of 40 and 70, and death follows an
average of four years after symptoms appear.
The antibiotic, minocycline, was shown recently to
prolong the lives of mice with a version of Huntington's
disease, another neurodegenerative disorder. It is now
being tested against Huntington's in people.
Minocycline has been used as an antibiotic for 30 years
in people and has a good track record for safety, even
when taken for long periods, said Dr. Robert Friedlander
of Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, senior author
of the new study.
The work is reported in the May 2 issue of the journal
Nature. Researchers studied mice with a version of ALS
created by genetic mutations.
Daily injections of minocycline delayed appearance of the
disease and prolonged life. Treated mice lived about 137
days, compared to 126 days for untreated mice.
The drug's effect has nothing to do with its antibiotic
ability. Rather, researchers found that minocycline
treatment reduces production of a protein within nerve
cells that can lead to cell death. That discovery should
help in finding more powerful and effective drugs, they
said.
Friedlander said he believed minocycline or similarly
actings drugs will eventually form part of a cocktail of
medications used to treat ALS.
Minocycline looks promising as a potential ALS treatment,
the Muscular Dystrophy Association said in a statement.
While there had been prior evidence it might be
effective, the new findings provide more direct support
for the idea, said Sharon Hesterlee, the MDA's director
of research development.
The research was funded by Project A.L.S., the MDA, other
groups and the federal government.
Copyright © 2002, The Associated Press