Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis historical perspective

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Editor-In-Chief: C. Michael Gibson, M.S., M.D. [1]

Overview

The word amyotrophic is present Greek in origin. A means no or negative, myo refers to muscle, and trophic means nourishment. When put together it means "no-muscle-nourishment." Lateral identifies the areas of the spinal cord where portions of the nerve cells that signal and control the muscles are located. As this area degenerates it leads to scarring or hardening (sclerosis) in the region.

Historical Perspective

• 1850 - English scientist Augustus Waller describes the appearance of shriveled nerve fibers
• 1869 - French doctor Jean-Martin Charcot first describes ALS in scientific literature
• 1881 - "On Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis" gets translated into English and published in a three-volume edition of Lectures on the Diseases of the Nervous System
• 1939 - ALS becomes a cause célèbre in the United States when baseball legend Lou Gehrig's career—and, two years later, his life—is ended by the disease.
• 1950s - ALS epidemic occurs among the Chamorro people on Guam
• 1991 - Researchers link chromosome 21 to FALS (Familial ALS)
• 1993 - SOD1 gene on chromosome 21 found to play a role in some cases of FALS
• 1996 - Rilutek® becomes the first FDA-approved drug for ALS
• 1998 - El Escorial is developed as the standard for confirming ALS
• 2001 - Alsin gene on chromosome 2 found to cause ALS2