John and ALS: Participating in an NIH Clinical Study with Dr. Nath

Read the blog post about making the video: http://irp.nih.gov/blog/post/2016/08/...

Dr. Avindra Nath is a senior NIH IRP investigator who studies the role of endogenous retroviruses in neurological diseases. Retroviral sequences occupy nearly 7-8% of the human genome, while generally remaining dormant. Dr. Nath has shown that one virus termed HERV-K is activated in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and transgenic animals that express the envelope protein of HERV-K develop ALS like symptoms. To better understand the pathophysiology of the disease, Dr. Nath’s team has recruited people diagnosed with ALS, such as Mr. John Michael, to donate samples that they can use in attempt to develop assays whereby they can measure biomarkers of HERV-K in the blood or spinal fluid. Mr. Michael visited the NIH Clinical Center to meet with Dr. Nath and contribute his information and biological samples to the study.

Learn more about participating in NIH clinical studies: https://irp.nih.gov/nih-clinical-center

And learn more about Dr. Nath's research: https://irp.nih.gov/pi/avindra-nath