Alpers, Mitochondria and Metabolism
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News
- Medicinal oil reduces debilitating epileptic seizures associated with Glut 1 deficiency, trial shows (8/11/2014) – For the trial participants who suffer from the disease called Glut1 deficiency (G1D), seizure frequency declined significantly. Most showed a rapid increase in brain metabolism and improved neuropsychological performance, findings that suggested the oil derived from castor beans called triheptanoin, ameliorated the brain glucose-depletion associated with this genetic disorder, which is often undiagnosed.
- Breakthrough DNA Study Opens Door to New Treatments for Mitochondrial Diseases (8/8/2013) – Please read the last sentence. Could this be a key to POLG mutations and “healthy” mtDNA replication? A groundbreaking cellular genetics study led by Carlos T. Moraes, Ph.D., professor of neurology and cell biology, opens the door to potential new treatments for mitochondrial diseases that affect the nerves, muscles and vital organs. In the new study, published in the August 4 edition of Nature Medicine, Moraes outlines how the research team was able to eliminate a mutant form of mitochondrial DNA in the cells of two patients with hereditary genetic disorders. Found throughout the human body, except in red blood cells, mitochondria are energy-producing organelles that convert food molecules into the chemical energy currency that cells use to power their functions. “Many patients with mitochondrial diseases have both normal and mutated mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA),” said Moraes. “We found a way to destroy the mutated one without affecting the normal mtDNA.”
- Hypothermia for pediatric refractory status epilepticus (8/1/2013) – Refractory status epilepticus (RSE) is often a major first symptom of Alpers Syndrome. Sadly, onset of RSE is a precursor of things to come. According to the research, “this is the largest pediatric case series reporting treatment of RSE with mild hypothermia. Hypothermia decreased seizure burden during and after pediatric RSE and may prevent RSE relapse.” This recent research using hypothermia (core body cooling) to control RSE has proven effective. Could it be used in Alpers cases to perhaps control RSE?
- Genome Research Benefits Growing and Getting Cheaper (6/16/2013) – “Ten years ago it would’ve taken a factory full of machines the size of fridge-freezers costing millions of dollars. Now you’re talking about doing DNA sequencing on a chip,” Life Technologies President Peter Silvester told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe,” showing one little bigger than a Scrabble tile. “The cost is coming down dramatically, and our goal is really to democratize sequencing.”
- Targeted Exome Sequencing of Suspected Mitochondrial Disorders (4/17/2013) – If a patient presents with something that could possibly be mito-related all the known possibilities may be checked at once, very cost and time-effective.
- Phase III Trial of Coenzyme Q10 in Mitochondrial Disease (9/1/2012) – Very promising for Alpers kids, the central hypothesis is that oral CoQ10 is a safe and effective treatment for children with inborn errors of mitochondrial energy metabolism due to defects in specific respiratory chain (RC) complexes or mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) mutations, and that this beneficial action is reflected in improved motor and neurobehavioral function and in quality of life.
- DNA Blueprint for Fetus Built Using Tests of Parents (6/6/2012)
- Avocado oil protects against free radicals in mitochondria (4/23/2012)
Many studies of antioxidants in vegetables and fruits, such as carrots and tomatoes, have been completed with few encouraging results, says Christian Cortes-Rojo, a researcher at Universidad Michoacana de San Nicolas de Hidalgo in Morelia, Michoacan, Mexico. “The problem is that the antioxidants in those substances are unable to enter mitochondria. So free radicals go on damaging mitochondria, causing energy production to stop and the cell to collapse and die. An analogy would be that, during an oil spill, if we cleaned only the spilled oil instead of fixing the perforation where oil is escaping, then the oil would go on spilling, and fish would die anyway.” Cortes-Rojo revealed the first research results showing the protective effects of avocado oil against free radicals in mitochondria, presenting his group’s work at the annual meeting of the American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, held in conjunction with the Experimental Biology 2012 conference in San Diego. - Stem Cell Scientists Discover a Way to Correct Mutations in Human Mitochondria by RNA Targeting (3/12/2012)
- Cost of Gene Sequencing Falls, Raising Hopes for Medical Advances (3/7/2012)
- Berlin to host the most important meeting on mitochondria: Mitochondria Engineering (2/20/2012)
- Oxford Strikes First in DNA Sequencing Nanopore Wars (2/17/2012)
- CLARITY Challenge on Genomic Data (1/26/2012)
- MitoExome sequencing highlights promise, challenges of genetic diagnostics (1/25/2012)
- Expansion of genome research will benefit two Boston-area research centers (12/6/2011)
- Genomics draws closer to the clinic (9/8/2010)
- FDA Grants EPI-743 for patients diagnosed with inherited respiratory chain diseases of the mitochondria (6/8/2011)
- Mitochondrial mapmakers
- Targeting Mitochondria is a special interest group/conference that is doing some exciting research in mitochondrial diseases
Alpers News
- Wednesday, January 1, 2025Alpers-Huttenlocher Syndrome
2023 Aug 14. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2025 Jan–.ABSTRACTAlpers-Huttenlocher syndrome (AHS) is an autosomal recessive disease caused by a mutation in the … - Thursday, February 22, 2024The NAD(+) Precursor Nicotinamide Riboside Rescues Mitochondrial Defects and Neuronal Loss in iPSC derived Cortical Organoid of Alpers' Disease
Int J Biol Sci. 2024 Jan 25;20(4):1194-1217. doi: 10.7150/ijbs.91624. eCollection 2024.ABSTRACTAlpers’ syndrome is an early-onset neurodegenerative disorder usually caused by biallelic pathogenic vari … - Wednesday, May 31, 2023Astrocytic pathology in Alpers' syndrome
Acta Neuropathol Commun. 2023 May 31;11(1):86. doi: 10.1186/s40478-023-01579-w.ABSTRACTRefractory epilepsy is the main neurological manifestation of Alpers’ syndrome, a severe childhood-onset mitochon … - Tuesday, July 5, 2022Delineating selective vulnerability of inhibitory interneurons in Alpers' syndrome
Neuropathol Appl Neurobiol. 2022 Oct;48(6):e12833. doi: 10.1111/nan.12833. Epub 2022 Jul 19.ABSTRACTAIMS: Alpers’ syndrome is a severe neurodegenerative disease typically caused by bi-allelic variants … - Tuesday, November 23, 2021Nerve-Wracking Eye Puzzle: A Rare Case of Alpers-Huttenlocher Syndrome
J Neuroophthalmol. 2023 Mar 1;43(1):e6-e8. doi: 10.1097/WNO.0000000000001341. Epub 2021 Oct 29.NO ABSTRACTPMID:34812764 | DOI:10.1097/WNO.0000000000001341 … - Monday, October 25, 2021Clinical Attributes and Electroencephalogram Analysis of Patients With Varying Alpers' Syndrome Genotypes
Front Pharmacol. 2021 Oct 6;12:669516. doi: 10.3389/fphar.2021.669516. eCollection 2021.ABSTRACTAlpers’ syndrome is an early inceptive neurodegenerative disorder with a poor prognosis, characterized b …
News from Miracles for Mito
News from United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation
News from Targeting Mitochondria
- Tuesday, January 27, 2026Sugar first, mitochondria later: how brain immune cells respond to injury
When the brain is injured, its immune cells don’t wait around. New research reveals that microglia, the brain’s resident immune cells, launch their first response using sugar-based energy, long before … - Wednesday, January 21, 2026Exercise May Help the Brain Heal After Stroke
New research shows movement can send energy to damaged brain cells, opening new doors for therapy Exercise has long been known to help people recover after stroke. Now scientists have found a possible … - Monday, January 12, 2026Concluding Remarks of WMS 2025
The 16th World Congress on Targeting Mitochondria marked a defining moment for the mitochondrial community. Over three days in Berlin, the discussions made one thing clear: mitochondria are no longer … - Sunday, January 11, 2026WMS 2025 Awards – Celebrating Scientific Excellence in Mitochondrial Medicine
At Targeting Mitochondria 2025, the World Mitochondria Society honored three outstanding scientific contributions that perfectly reflect the spirit of WMS: bold ideas, rigorous science, and a dynamic …
News from The Broad Stem Cell Research Center at UCLA
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