ALS or Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis affects the nervous system and slowly eradicates all the Motor Neurons in the body. The worst part is, since it is a progressive disease, the situation of a person who has been diagnosed with ALS becomes worse with the passage of time.
Although ALS or the Lou Gehrig’s disease is not a new concept, still there are many people who are unaware of ALS or have no idea what causes it. Here is a guide that describes the different types of ALS that has been found in most cases and what causes this devastating disease.
What Are The Types of ALS?
ALS can be defined as a paralyzing neurodegenerative disorder that has no effective treatment present in the world. However, scientists and medical experts are conducting deep-rooted research and studies for many years, and they have successfully drawn the two main types of ALS found in the patients who suffer from this disease.
● Familial ALS: This type of ALS runs in families and happens due to some alterations to a gene. Children inherit this specific gene from their parents. Currently, there are five to ten percent of ALS patients who have been diagnosed with this type. If one parent carries the gene for ALS, each of their children will likely to have a 50% chance of inheriting the gene and suffering from the disease.
● Sporadic ALS: Found in almost 95% people who suffer from ALS, the sporadic type are the most commonly diagnosed ALS form, which means it occurs sometimes without a particular cause.
What Are the Causes of ALS?
Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is caused by the degeneration of motor neurons that affects the patient’s memory and decision-making capabilities. Medical professionals around the world still have not been able to derive the exact roots of ALS; especially how the motor neurons are compelled to die with ALS is a question that remains unanswered. Over twelve variants of gene changes have been connected with ALS. Take a look at some of the possibilities that scientists are looking out for:
● Environmental Changes: Many research works are being done on the environment, which possibly could have something to do with ALS. Scientists are backing up this claim by looking whether people who come into contact with particular germs or chemicals have increased chances of ALS or not.
● Glutamate: This neurotransmitter sends chemical signals to and from the brain and nerves. During ALS, glutamate creates spaces in around the nerve cells and may put them down.
● Immune System Disorder: Your body’s immune system act as a barrier against bacteria, viruses, and other foreign invaders. Microglia is the main immune cell present in the brain that destroys damaged cells and germs. With ALS, microglia is likely to eliminate the healthy motor neurons.
There are other causes including mitochondria problems and oxidative stress that might lead to the death of motor neurons during ALS. However, new symptoms keep arising every day which is making it more difficult to find the exact cause of ALS.
Final Thoughts
As the motor neurons control all the voluntary movements of the body, their death certainly leads no contraction of muscles in the body. Scientists are trying everything to figure out the actual cause of ALS in order to work further on a cure for this deadly disease.
Author Bio - Daniel Mattei is a Professional writer. He has written many articles on Health. In this article he has mentioned about Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is caused by the degeneration of .
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