Skeletal muscle as a molecular and cellular biomarker of disease progression in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis : a narrative review

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a fatal multisystemic neurodegenerative disease with motor neurons being a primary target. Although progressive weakness is a hallmark feature of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, there is considerable heterogeneity, including clinical presentation, progression, and the underlying triggers for disease initiation. Based on longitudinal studies with families harboring amyotrophic lateral sclerosis-associated gene mutations, it has become apparent that overt disease is preceded by a prodromal phase, possibly in years, where compensatory mechanisms delay symptom onset. Since 85-90% of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is sporadic, there is a strong need for identifying biomarkers that can detect this prodromal phase as motor neurons have limited capacity for regeneration. Current Food and Drug Administration-approved therapies work by slowing the degenerative process and are most effective early in the disease. Skeletal muscle, including the neuromuscular junction, manifests abnormalities at the earliest stages of the disease, before motor neuron loss, making it a promising source for identifying biomarkers of the prodromal phase. The accessibility of muscle through biopsy provides a lens into the distal motor system at earlier stages and in real time. The advent of "omics" technology has led to the identification of numerous dysregulated molecules in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis muscle, ranging from coding and non-coding RNAs to proteins and metabolites. This technology has opened the door for identifying biomarkers of disease activity and providing insight into disease mechanisms. A major challenge is correlating the myriad of dysregulated molecules with clinical or histological progression and understanding their relevance to presymptomatic phases of disease. There are two major goals of this review. The first is to summarize some of the biomarkers identified in human amyotrophic lateral sclerosis muscle that have a clinicopathological correlation with disease activity, evidence of a similar dysregulation in the SOD1G93A mouse during presymptomatic stages, and evidence of progressive change during disease progression. The second goal is to review the molecular pathways these biomarkers reflect and their potential role in mitigating or promoting disease progression, and as such, their potential as therapeutic targets in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.

Medienart:

E-Artikel

Erscheinungsjahr:

2024

Erschienen:

2024

Enthalten in:

Zur Gesamtaufnahme - volume:19

Enthalten in:

Neural regeneration research - 19(2024), 4 vom: 16. Feb., Seite 747-753

Sprache:

Englisch

Beteiligte Personen:

King, Peter H [VerfasserIn]

Links:

Volltext

Themen:

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
Biomarkers
Clinicopathological correlation
Disease progression
Journal Article
Mouse model
Muscle biomarkers
Neurogenic atrophy
Neuromuscular junction
Non-coding RNAs
Presymptomatic stages
Review
SOD1G93A
Skeletal muscle

Anmerkungen:

Date Revised 10.02.2024

published: Print

Citation Status PubMed-not-MEDLINE

doi:

10.4103/1673-5374.382226

funding:

Förderinstitution / Projekttitel:

PPN (Katalog-ID):

NLM363360158