Denna sida har översatts automatiskt och översättningens korrekthet kan inte garanteras. Vänligen se engelsk version för en källtext.

Developing New Ways to Detect Respiratory Impairment Early in ALS

21 september 2026 uppdaterad av: Jayakrishnan Nair, Thomas Jefferson University

Early Detection of Respiratory Impairments in ALS: A Novel Diagnostic Approach

The goal of this observational study is to develop new ways to detect early changes associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's disease. The study will examine whether changes in breathing, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brainstem and spinal cord, and blood markers can identify early signs of ALS before major physical changes occur.

The main questions the study aims to answer are:

  • Can changes in automatic breathing help identify early ALS-related changes?
  • Can breathing measures distinguish people with ALS from people without ALS?
  • Do people with genetic risk for ALS who show changes in breathing also have changes in the brainstem and spinal cord or higher levels of blood markers associated with nerve damage?

Participants will complete breathing and muscle function tests, an MRI scan of the brainstem and spinal cord, and blood testing. The study will include people with ALS, people with genetic risk for ALS who do not yet have symptoms, and healthy adults for comparison.

Studieöversikt

Status

Rekrytering

Betingelser

Studietyp

Observationell

Inskrivning (Beräknad)

70

Kontakter och platser

Det här avsnittet innehåller kontaktuppgifter för dem som genomför studien och information om var denna studie genomförs.

Studiekontakt

Studera Kontakt Backup

Studieorter

  • Förenta staterna
    • Pennsylvania
      • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Förenta staterna, 19107
        • Rekrytering
        • Thomas Jefferson University - Center City
        • Kontakt:
        • Kontakt:
        • Huvudutredare:
          • Jayakrishnan Nair, PhD, PT

Deltagandekriterier

Forskare letar efter personer som passar en viss beskrivning, så kallade behörighetskriterier. Några exempel på dessa kriterier är en persons allmänna hälsotillstånd eller tidigare behandlingar.

Urvalskriterier

Åldrar som är berättigade till studier

18 år och äldre (Vuxen, Äldre vuxen)

Tar emot friska volontärer

Ja

Kön som är behöriga för studier

Allt

Testmetod

Icke-sannolikhetsprov

Studera befolkning

The study population will include adults with symptomatic ALS, asymptomatic or presymptomatic individuals with genetic variants associated with ALS, and healthy age- and sex-matched controls. Participants with ALS or genetic risk for ALS will be recruited from Thomas Jefferson University and other ALS patient inventories and referral sources.

Beskrivning

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Symptomatic participants with ALS must have an ALS Functional Rating Scale-Revised (ALSFRS-R) score of 47/48 or less at the time of recruitment.
  • Asymptomatic/presymptomatic participants must have a pathogenic C9orf72 expansion of at least 25 repeats or a similar genetic abnormality known to be associated with ALS.
  • Healthy control participants must have no clinically identifiable neurological deficits based on medical history and screening. -

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Any safety concern or contraindication to MRI based on MRI safety screening.
  • Healthy control participants who do not pass the neurological screening.
  • Pregnancy.
  • Metal implants above the waist, including cardiac pacemakers or brain, neck, cervical, or thoracic implants.
  • Neurocognitive impairment.
  • Inability or unwillingness to provide informed consent.
  • Younger than 18 years of age.

Studieplan

Det här avsnittet ger detaljer om studieplanen, inklusive hur studien är utformad och vad studien mäter.

Hur är studien utformad?

Designdetaljer

  • Observationsmodeller: COHORT
  • Tidsperspektiv: PROSPECTIVE

Kohorter och interventioner

Grupp / Kohort
Symptomatic Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis

Participants with symptomatic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), including familial or sporadic ALS, who have clinical evidence of disease. This group will undergo study assessments to characterize respiratory function and biomarkers associated with ALS.
Asymptomatic/Presymptomatic ALS Gene Carriers

Participants who carry a genetic variant associated with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis but do not have clinical symptoms or functional deficits associated with ALS. This group will be evaluated for early or subclinical changes in respiratory function and other biomarkers associated with ALS.
Healthy Controls

Neurologically healthy participants without clinically identifiable neurological deficits who will serve as a comparison group for the study assessments.

Vad mäter studien?

Primära resultatmått

Resultatmått
Åtgärdsbeskrivning
Tidsram
Diagnostic Accuracy of the Automatic Breathing Impairment Risk Score (P0.1 + Chemosensitivity) for Detecting ALS-Related Respiratory Dysfunction
Tidsram: During the single study visit

A linear prediction risk score combining airway occlusion pressure at 0.1 seconds (P0.1) and chemosensitivity will be developed to distinguish symptomatic ALS participants with respiratory dysfunction from healthy controls. Diagnostic performance of the risk score will be evaluated using the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC-AUC), and an optimal cutoff will be determined. The resulting cutoff will subsequently be used to identify subclinical respiratory impairment in asymptomatic/presymptomatic ALS gene carriers.
During the single study visit

Sekundära resultatmått

Resultatmått
Åtgärdsbeskrivning
Tidsram
Fractional Anisotropy of the Brainstem and Cervical Spinal Cord
Tidsram: During the single study visit

Fractional anisotropy (FA) will be derived from diffusion tensor imaging of the brainstem and cervical spinal cord to evaluate microstructural abnormalities associated with ALS. FA will be compared among healthy controls and asymptomatic/presymptomatic ALS gene carriers who test positive or negative for automatic breathing impairment.
During the single study visit
Axial Diffusivity of the Brainstem and Cervical Spinal Cord
Tidsram: During the single study visit

Axial diffusivity will be derived from diffusion tensor imaging of the brainstem and cervical spinal cord to evaluate microstructural abnormalities associated with ALS. Measurements will be compared among healthy controls and asymptomatic/presymptomatic ALS gene carriers who test positive or negative for automatic breathing impairment.
During the single study visit
Radial Diffusivity of the Brainstem and Cervical Spinal Cord
Tidsram: During the single study visit

Radial diffusivity will be derived from diffusion tensor imaging of the brainstem and cervical spinal cord to evaluate microstructural abnormalities associated with ALS. Measurements will be compared among healthy controls and asymptomatic/presymptomatic ALS gene carriers who test positive or negative for automatic breathing impairment.
During the single study visit
Mean Diffusivity of the Brainstem and Cervical Spinal Cord
Tidsram: During the single study visit

Mean diffusivity will be derived from diffusion tensor imaging of the brainstem and cervical spinal cord to evaluate microstructural abnormalities associated with ALS. Measurements will be compared among healthy controls and asymptomatic/presymptomatic ALS gene carriers who test positive or negative for automatic breathing impairment.
During the single study visit
Plasma Neurofilament Light Chain (Nf-L) Level
Tidsram: During the single study visit

Neurofilament light chain (Nf-L) levels in plasma will be measured as a blood-based marker of neurodegeneration. Plasma Nf-L levels will be compared among healthy controls and asymptomatic/presymptomatic ALS gene carriers who test positive or negative for automatic breathing impairment to determine whether respiratory impairment is associated with greater evidence of neurodegeneration.
During the single study visit
Serum Neurofilament Light Chain (Nf-L) Level
Tidsram: During the single study visit.

Neurofilament light chain (Nf-L) levels in serum will be measured as a blood-based marker of neurodegeneration. Serum Nf-L levels will be evaluated in relation to automatic breathing impairment and compared across study groups as an additional blood-based biomarker of ALS-related neurodegeneration.
During the single study visit.

Samarbetspartners och utredare

Det är här du hittar personer och organisationer som är involverade i denna studie.

Sponsor

Thomas Jefferson University

Samarbetspartners

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS)

Publikationer och användbara länkar

Den som ansvarar för att lägga in information om studien tillhandahåller frivilligt dessa publikationer. Dessa kan handla om allt som har med studien att göra.

Allmänna publikationer

Studieavstämningsdatum

Dessa datum spårar framstegen för inlämningar av studieposter och sammanfattande resultat till ClinicalTrials.gov. Studieposter och rapporterade resultat granskas av National Library of Medicine (NLM) för att säkerställa att de uppfyller specifika kvalitetskontrollstandarder innan de publiceras på den offentliga webbplatsen.

Studera stora datum

Studiestart (Beräknad)

1 september 2026

Primärt slutförande (Beräknad)

31 mars 2028

Avslutad studie (Beräknad)

31 mars 2028

Studieregistreringsdatum

Först inskickad

21 september 2026

Först inskickad som uppfyllde QC-kriterierna

21 september 2026

Första postat (Faktisk)

28 september 2026

Uppdateringar av studier

Senaste uppdatering publicerad (Faktisk)

28 september 2026

Senaste inskickade uppdateringen som uppfyllde QC-kriterierna

21 september 2026

Senast verifierad

1 september 2026

Mer information

Termer relaterade till denna studie

Nyckelord

Ytterligare relevanta MeSH-villkor

Andra studie-ID-nummer

  • 22D.834
  • 1R21NS145175-01A1 (U.S.S. NIH-anslag/kontrakt)

Plan för individuella deltagardata (IPD)

Planerar du att dela individuella deltagardata (IPD)?

JA

IPD-planbeskrivning

De-identified individual participant data underlying the results reported in study publications will be shared. Data may include demographic and clinical data, functional respiratory measurements, brainstem and spinal cord MRI data, and blood biomarker data, including neurofilament light chain measurements. Data will be shared without direct participant identifiers and in accordance with applicable data use agreements and institutional requirements.

Tidsram för IPD-delning

Data will become available at the time of publication or by the end of the funding period, whichever occurs first. Data supporting a publication may be made available when the associated preprint is available. The duration of data preservation will be determined by the applicable repository and/or Thomas Jefferson University.

Kriterier för IPD Sharing Access

De-identified data will be available to qualified investigators for research purposes. Requests for controlled-access data will be reviewed by a data-sharing committee for scientific merit and feasibility. A Data Use Agreement will be required before transfer of controlled-access data. Investigators receiving data must agree to use the data only for research purposes, not attempt to identify individual participants, and maintain appropriate data security. Public imaging datasets may be accessed through the applicable imaging repository.

IPD-delning som stöder informationstyp

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL

Läkemedels- och apparatinformation, studiedokument

Studerar en amerikansk FDA-reglerad läkemedelsprodukt

Nej

Studerar en amerikansk FDA-reglerad produktprodukt

Nej

Denna information hämtades direkt från webbplatsen clinicaltrials.gov utan några ändringar. Om du har några önskemål om att ändra, ta bort eller uppdatera dina studieuppgifter, vänligen kontakta register@clinicaltrials.gov. Så snart en ändring har implementerats på clinicaltrials.gov, kommer denna att uppdateras automatiskt även på vår webbplats .

Prenumerera