ALS Research Group-DNA Banking

Description: Collection of Data and Biomaterial for Repository Banking to Facilitate Research into the Etiology of ALS and Related Motor Neuron Diseases

Funding: The ALS Research Group (ALSRG), a collaborative group of ALS investigators, has organized a coordinated effort of ALS Care and Research Centers across the United States and Canada to collect genetic material and medical information from patients with ALS. The effort is jointly funded by the National Institutes of Health, the Muscular Dystrophy Association, and the ALS Association. Coordinating this initiative as a group effort is expected to facilitate timely recruitment by building broad investigator support.

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to collect blood samples and information for research into the causes of ALS and other diseases. In most patients, the cause of ALS is unknown. In order to study possible genetic causes, researchers need blood samples and some basic health-related medical and family history information from both patients and healthy individuals. The blood and data will be stored anonymously at the National Institute of Neurological Disorder & Stroke (NINDS) Human Genetics Repository located at Coriell Institute for Medical Research in Camden, NJ, so that investigators from across North America can have access to the material to study the causes of ALS

For further information, please contact Kate Bednarz, Clinical Research Coordinator by email at keb2114@columbia.edu or (212) 305-3632