We investigate cell intrinsic properties of neurons that show either extreme vulnerability or particular resilience and even regenerative properties in response to ALS. The aim is to reveal mechanisms that can be therapeutically targeted to render neurons more resistant to disease.

Towards this purpose, we have developed a highly sensitive spatial RNA sequencing method, LCM-seq, that we use to unravel the response of individual neuron to disease as these are either degenerating, persisting or regenerating in response to ALS. We modulate gene expression in vulnerable neurons, aiming to make them more similar to the resistant ones, and thus increase their survival.

In several neurodegenerative diseases, it is the long neuronal processes (axons) and their synapses (with other neurons or muscle) that first show signs of pathology and degenerate. To reveal early disease processes in axons and identify targets for disease intervention, we have developed a highly robust method (Axon-seq) to sequence the content of axons and to analyze disease-induced dysregulation of the axonal mRNA content. We are now utilizing Axon-seq to increase the understanding of axon biology in general and to unravel early disease mechanisms in ALS using neurons specified from human iPSCs where we have introduced disease-causing mutations using CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing.

We are also building organoids and neuromuscular junctions (NMJs) in vitro from human iPSCs and studying connectivity and communication between motor neurons of different vulnerability and connected cells to unravel how they communicate in health and what goes awry in disease.

Photo: Melanie Leboeuf - Human stem cell derived spinal motor neurons visualised through an Hb9-GFP reporter and staining against Lamin B (red), G3BP1 (white) and Hoechst (blue)