A member of the research group speaks about the new medicine in the city of Yamagata on Dec. 24, 2021. (Mainichi/Genta Fujimura)

       YAMAGATA -- A team of researchers including members of Yamagata University in northern Japan has announced it has developed a new medicine effective in the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), an intractable disease that gradually causes muscles over the entire body to weaken.

       The drug is said to be effective in inhibiting the abnormal aggregation of protein that is the cause of the disease -- a property that existing drugs don't have. Attention is focused on whether the medicine can provide new hope for people with the condition.

       ALS is marked by the abnormal aggregation of a protein that infiltrates nerves that affect muscles in the body. The new medicine suppresses the aggregation, or clumping together, of proteins, which researchers hope will delay the progression of the disease.

       Researchers had initially aimed to develop a fundamental remedy for Alzheimer's disease, with a drug inhibiting the abnormal aggregation of amyloid beta and tau proteins, which is seen in Alzheimer's disease and other conditions. This was picked up by Takeo Kato, chief of the ALS treatment research center at Yamagata National Hospital, which belongs to Japan's National Hospital Organization.

       "It was known that there was an abnormal aggregation of proteins with ALS, too. I thought the treatment could be effective in inhibiting a quite different type of protein," he said.

       The research group then conducted an experiment on mice that were genetically manipulated to develop ALS. They found that the ones that were given the new medicine were able to continue walking for longer, and that the decline in their motor functions was delayed. The aggregation of proteins was found to be inhibited in the mice that were given the new medicine.

       Existing medicines have been able to delay the progression of ALS, but there have not been any medicines that suppress abnormal aggregation of the protein associated with the condition.

       Kato commented, "I wanted to do something about this illness, so I have continued my research. I hope this becomes a big source of hope for patients."

       Experiments to confirm the safety of the drug, targeting animals and humans, will be conducted in the future, and researchers hope to put it into practical use in about six years.

       (Japanese original by Genta Fujimura, Yamagata Bureau)

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