The ALS Association Presents Essey Award to Clive Svendsen   Dr. Clive Svendsen The ALS Association joins the American Academy of Neurology in presenting The 2010 Sheila Essey Award for ALS Research to Dr. Clive Svendsen, a global leader for stem cell research.  Dr. Svendsen has been instrumental in bringing stem cell approaches to the clinic Dr. Svendsen is currently the Director of the Cedars-Sinai Regenerative Medicine Institute in California.  Initially focusing largely on Parkinson’s disease, Dr. Svendsen received funding through The ALS Association to establish stem cell approaches for the treatment of ALS.  Several of his published studies describe detailed and elegant work using modified neural stem cells to release powerful trophic factors such as glial-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) to surrounding motor neurons.  These studies were performed in transgenic rats expressing mutant G93A Superoxide Dismutase 1 (SOD1), a rat model of ALS.  These studies revealed that even though motor neurons releasing GDNF could survive and protect dying motor neurons after transplantation, the rats did not show functional improvement.  Further studies from his group injecting GDNF releasing cells into the muscles rather than spinal cord did increase function in this ALS model system and highlighted the importance of maintaining appropriate connections at the neuromuscular junction.  However, as the cause of sporadic ALS remains a mystery, either approach may have beneficial effects in the disease itself.   Read full story