What Causes And Increases The Risk Of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis?

Exposure To Toxins Or Infectious Agents

Scientists are currently learning more about how exposure to toxins or infectious agents might influence the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. So far, researchers believe exposure to toxins or infectious agents may increase oxidative stress, a factor strongly linked to the development of ALS in laboratory studies. In addition, research has shown military personnel who served in the Gulf War during the early 1990s, where they were likely exposed to heavy metals and highly toxic substances, have a much higher rate of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis than military members deployed elsewhere. A study conducted between 2011 and 2014 examined 156 patients who were recently diagnosed with this disease. Blood samples were provided by all of the participants, and the researchers tested the samples for more than one hundred persistent environmental pollutants, including organochlorine pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls, and brominated flame retardants. Published in 2016, the study results showed patients who had been exposed to one or more of these pollutants were later diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis at a much higher rate than those who had not been exposed. The authors suggest patients may be able to modify their risk for this condition by avoiding pesticide exposure.

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Viruses

Evidence suggests there could be an association between viruses and the development of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Scientists believe viruses could trigger this disease by manipulating a variety of dysfunctional pathways in the body. A study published in 2018 investigated a possible link between enteroviruses, including polio and coxsackievirus, and this condition. The researchers noted patients who have had polio have a higher chance of ALS, and they noted thirteen percent of patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis also have frontotemporal dementia. Both of these diseases share some of the same disease mechanisms, and researchers have identified enteroviruses as a known risk factor for the development of frontotemporal dementia. Therefore, they believe it is likely that this virus is correlated in some way with ALS, and additional studies are being done with the hope of obtaining conclusive evidence. An additional study showed a type of retrovirus called HERV-K, a part of everyone's DNA that is normally dormant, becomes fully active in certain patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. Research is currently being done to attempt to provide stronger data on the possible link between viruses and this condition, and several other virus types are also being investigated.

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