Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis: overview, antibodies, and disease-related markers

Explore ALS and access the tools you need to support your research.

What is Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis?

​​​Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as motor neurone disease (MND) or Lou Gehrig’s disease, is an adult-onset, progressive, neurological disease that results in the destruction of neurons which control voluntary muscles, namely those in the motor cortex, brainstem and spinal cord.

The pathological hallmark of ALS is the presence of inclusion bodies (abnormal aggregations of protein) in the cytoplasm of motor neurons. In the vast majority of cases, the main component of the inclusion bodies is TDP-43 protein, however, in those with SOD1 or FUS mutations, the main component is SOD1 protein or FUS protein, respectively1,2.

Genetic studies have implicated deficits in autophagy and/or mitophagy in the onset of the disease3.

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​​​​​​Recombinant monoclonal antibodies for ALS disease research

Get reproducible, batch-to-batch consistency using recombinant monoclonal antibodies for your ALS research. These are some of our best-selling products. 


GeneTargetabIDApplicationSpecies
C90RF72C90RF72ab221137WBMouse, Rat, Human
FUSTLS/FUSab124923WB, IHC-P, Flow Cyt, ICC/IFMouse, Rat, Human
SOD1Superoxide dismutaseab51254WB, Flow Cyt, IHC-P, ICC/IFRat, Human
VCPVCPab109240WB, IP, IHC-P, Flow Cyt, ICC/IFMouse, Rat, Human
TARDBPTDP43ab109535ICC/IF, Flow Cyt, IHC-Fr, WB, IHC-PMouse, Rat, Human

Disease-associated markers 

​To help you get ahead in your ALS research, we’ve compiled the best markers to use in conjunction with our disease-specific antibodies.

GeneTargetabIDApplicationSpecies
ISL1Islet 1ab109517IHC-Fr, ICC/IF, WB, IP, Flow CytMouse, Chicken, Human
VIM Vimentinab92547ICC/IF, WB, Flow Cyt, IHC-P, IHC-FrMouse, Rat, Human, Rhesus monkey

Other key cell and neuronal markers from Abcam 

Check out our range of neuronal markers for supporting your research.

Neural markersMarker groupRecommended product
Ki67Proliferating cell markerab16667
GFAPSchwann cell/radial glia/astrocyteab33922, ab68428
VIMRadial gliaab92547
NeuNMature neuronab177487
MAP2Mature neuronab183830
TUBB3Immature neuronab78078
MBPOligodendrocyteab218011
PSD95Mature neuronab18258
NESRadial gliaab105389
DCXImmature neuronab18723
SYPMature neuronab32127
NOTCH1Astrocyteab52627
THDopaminergic neuronab137869
S100BAstrocyteab52642
MAPTMature neuron/axonsab80579, ab32057, ab109390 (phospho S396)

References

1. Saberi, S., Stauffer, J.E., Schulte, D.J., Ravits, J. Neuropathology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and its variants. Neurol Clin. 33, 855–876 (2015).
2. Blokhuis, A.M., Groen, E.J., Koppers, M., van den Berg, L.H., Pasterkamp, R.J. Protein aggregation in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Acta Neuropathol. 125, 777–794 (2013).
3. Evans, C.S., Holzbaur, E.L.F. Autophagy and mitophagy in ALS. Neurobiol. Dis. 122, 35–40 (2019).  ​