Established in 2005 to integrate and coordinate new and on-going research and clinical activities by investigators and clinicians in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) and other motor neuron diseases, the Center for ALS Research, directed by Robert Bowser, PhD, includes a multidisciplinary clinic for patient care and numerous basic science laboratories searching for causes and treatments of ALS. The Center for ALS Research also administers the Stephen Tuttle ALS Tissue Donation Program, providing a resource for human tissue samples for ALS and control subjects for use in research activities both within the University of Pittsburgh and throughout the country. 
_________________________________________________________________________________
Research
Current research emphasizes the basic mechanisms and cell biology of disease. Various University faculty utilize molecular biology and genetics, cell biology, and various animal models to investigate motor neuron diseases. Studies include:
neuron cell death.
Clinical
The medical director of the Center for ALS Research is David Lacomis, MD. The clinical research component of the center includes the identification and validation of protein biomarkers for the diagnosis of ALS, as well as the search for protein biomarkers of ALS disease progression. The MDA-ALS clinic provides accurate clinical diagnosis and continued treatment of ALS patients through a multidisciplinary approach and patients are followed longitudinally and recruited to participate in various clinical studies. Currently, there are three clinical research studies and two experimental clinical trials ongoing for ALS, with additional clinical trials planned for 2008.
