A Test to Identify People Likely to Develop ALS

Siblings and children of people with the rare, neurodegenerative disease amyotrophic lateral sclerosis are being offered a test in the United Kingdom at no-cost to see if they carry mutations to one of more than 40 genes that would make it likely for them to develop the condition. Sano Genetics developed the test under a grant from Innovate UK. The hope is the effort will expand the understanding of the condition while allowing people who are likely to develop the disease to make informed decisions about their lives. We spoke to Paul Wicks, vice president of neuroscience for Sano, about its test for ALS-related gene mutations, how it works, and why some healthy people might want to take advantage of it.