CNN reports $1 million of the money raised went toward Project MinE at the University of Massachusetts Medical School where researchers stepped closer to treatment for the now incurable disease.
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Thousands in Hampshire were among those posting footage of themselves drenched with freezing cold water for the viral social media trend which swept the globe in summer 2014. You remember, you were there.
Money raised by the viral charity campaign, where people poured a bucket of ice water over their head, has helped researchers discover a new gene associated with ALS. There’s power in virality after all. It says understanding the gene’s role will help in developing new target therapy for ALS.
The first came a year ago, when researchers at Johns Hopkins University were able to discover why the protein TDP-43 forms clumps in the brains of people affected by ALS. Many people with the disease die within two to five years of being diagnosed. The campaign was wildly successful and attracted donations from the likes of Oprah, LeBron James, Bill Gates and many other celebrities.
A social media sensation created to fund research for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) has proven even more relevant today than at its viral peak.
And now the scientists have made a groundbreaking discovery thanks to the money raised, finding a common gene that contributes to the progressive disease.
“The ALS Ice Bucket Challenge enabled The ALS Association to invest in Project MinE’s work …”, Lucie Bruijn, Ph.D., M.B.A., said in the release.
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A good sport Enduring the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge recently on the steps at Bryan Memorial Town Hall in Washington is town assessor Delisse Locher. Researchers at John Hopkins University discovered how a brain protein linked to ALS worked.
