Since microglia play a critical role in resolving amyloid pathology and it has been previously demonstrated that microglia function can be induced by TREM2 activation, TREM2 agonism has been considered a promising novel therapeutic approach to delay or prevent the progression of Alzheimer’s disease.

Solid Biosciences Inc. has announced a nonexclusive worldwide license and collaboration agreement with Armatus Bio Inc. for the use of Solid’s proprietary capsid AAV-SLB101 for the development and commercialization of Armatus’ vectorized RNAi candidate to treat facioscapulohumeral muscular dystrophy (FSHD).

At the 2024 Alzheimer’s & Parkinson’s Diseases Conference this week, Michel Goedert from the MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge gave the Donald L. Price Memorial Plenary Lecture entitled, “Cryo-EM structures of disease filaments from human brains.” Donald Price was particularly well-known for his work on plaques and tangles in nonhuman aged primate brains and for the development of several animal models of neurodegenerative diseases.

Charcot-Marie-Tooth (CMT) disease is a common neuropathy affecting the peripheral nerves. Compared to Type I, type 2 CMT presents as a slower and more progressive disease tied to axonal dysfunction, accompanied by distal muscle weakness and atrophy, sensory loss and reduced nerve conduction velocity, among others.

The long-term use of corticosteroids for treating Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is tied to several undesired effects, compromising the patient’s quality of life; hence, the use of nonsteroidal drugs is highly desirable in the treatment of DMD. Metriopharm AG is investigating the nonsteroidal drug MP-1032 for DMD and recently presented data from studies in a model of DMD.

On March 4, 2024, several groups of scientists discussed the challenges of investigating the effects of HIV in the central nervous system (CNS) at the oral abstract session on neuropathogenesis of HIV held during the 31st Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections (CROI), in Denver. A cure for HIV will require eliminating the virus in all its reservoirs, those tissues where HIV remains latent but retains the capacity for reactivation and replication. However, despite antiretroviral therapy (ART), the virus could continue to replicate continuously at a low level in some reservoirs, including the CNS.