News

A new system that contains a gene-modulating therapy attached to an antibody that enables crossing into the nervous system improved survival outcomes in a mouse model of severe spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a new study reports. The study, “Antibody-oligonucleotide conjugate achieves central nervous system delivery in…

The one-time gene therapy Zolgensma (onasemnogene abeparvovec-xioi) was safe and effective in a baby girl with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) type 1 who was previously on Evrysdi (risdiplam) for about three months, a case study reports. This likely represents the first report of safety and efficacy outcomes of…

Disease-modifying therapies (DMTs) used for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) may contribute to the development of therapies for age-related progressive loss of muscle mass and strength, or sarcopenia, new research suggests. The survival muscle neuron (SMN) protein, whose deficiency causes SMA, was found at progressively lower levels with aging in…

Disease subtype, low body fat content, and shallow breathing and low blood oxygen levels during sleep are risk factors for recurrent lung infections and lung failure among children with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), a study concluded. The risk of these lung complications was about five times higher in children…

PerkinElmer‘s EONIS system has been approved in the U.S. to be used by certified laboratories to simultaneously test newborns for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) and severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID). The approval by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) makes EONIS the first authorized test to be…

Most people with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) are unaware of their SMN2 copy number, and in a few cases, their type of SMA, according to a survey of Cure SMA members. Caregivers also may not know the number, the survey reported. Because an SMN2 copy number can determine…

A combination of in vitro fertilization and preimplantation genetic testing helped a couple in Indonesia — both carriers of mutations causing spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) — become parents of a healthy newborn, a case study reported. Their first daughter was diagnosed with SMA at 7 months, and she died of disease-related complications…

Researchers have developed and validated four new cell lines derived from four patients with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) with lower extremity predominance (SMA-LED) that can be used as a tool in studies of this rare form of spinal muscular atrophy. With the characteristics of the patient it was…

Up to 4.5 years of Spinraza (nusinersen) treatment led to meaningful improvements in motor function in adolescents and adults with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), according to a medical records analysis. “[Spinraza] was effective in long-term follow-up,” researchers wrote. Noting a dearth of data on Spinraza’s long-term effectiveness among…

Spinraza (nusinersen) continues to show sustained efficacy in improving motor function in infants and toddlers with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), according to newly released interim data from the SHINE study. The greatest benefits were among children who began being treated with Spinraza before they were 10 months old.