Myotonic Muscular Dystrophy (MMD)

In December 2009, MDA awarded $21 million in new research grants for neuromuscular disease research.

MDA's Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) and Medical Advisory Committee (MAC) meet each fall and spring to review applications for research grants. Applications are scored on the basis of the capabilities of the applicant, the scientific merit of the project, and the proposal's relevance to developing treatments for the diseases in MDA's program. MDA's Board of Directors then reviews the recommendations of the MAC and SAC.

A compound that has the potential to be refined and modified into a treatment for type 1 myotonic dystrophy (MMD1, or DM1) has been identified by researchers at the University of Oregon in Eugene, and the University of Rochester (N.Y.) School of Medicine and Dentistry.

A compound that has the potential to be refined and modified into a treatment for type 1 myotonic dystrophy (MMD1, or DM1) has been identified by researchers at the University of Oregon in Eugene, and the University of Rochester (N.Y.) School of Medicine and Dentistry.

The Richmond, Va., biopharmaceutical company Insmed announced July 27, 2009, that it will not supply its experimental drug Iplex to any new patients with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) for the foreseeable future, and that it intends to analyze the available data on Iplex for ALS and type 1 myotonic dystrophy (MMD1, or DM1) before deciding whether to proceed with development of the drug for either dise

Researchers at the University of Rochester (N.Y.) Wellstone Muscular Dystrophy Cooperative Research Center have identified a compound that has the potential to be developed into a treatment for type 1 myotonic dystrophy (MMD1, or DM1).

The compound, dubbed CAG25, is an "antisense oligonucleotide," a type of construct that's been used to block disease-causing genetic instructions in laboratory experiments and human trials in other diseases.

The drug Iplex, developed by the Richmond, Va., biopharmaceutical company Insmed, did not improve muscle function, strength or endurance in a phase 2 trial in type 1 myotonic dystrophy (MMD1, or DM1), the company announced June 25, 2009. (See Insmed Announces Results.)

The drug Iplex, developed by the Richmond, Va., biopharmaceutical company Insmed, did not improve muscle function, strength or endurance in a phase 2 trial in type 1 myotonic dystrophy (MMD1, or DM1), the company announced June 25, 2009. (See Insmed Announces Results.)

RICHMOND, VA., June 25, 2009 - Insmed Inc. (NASDAQ CM: INSM), a biopharmaceutical company, today announced results from its exploratory U.S. Phase II clinical trial evaluating IPLEX™ (mecasermin rinfabate) in patients with myotonic muscular dystrophy (“MMD”).  The randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled Phase II trial conducted in 13 centers across the U.S.

Scientists in the United States and Japan have identified a three-protein cluster that reseals damaged muscle-fiber membranes. The findings, published June 5, 2009, in the Journal of Biological Chemistry, could have implications for development of treatments for muscular dystrophies.

In experiments in mice, Michael Rudnicki, an MDA grantee at the Sprott Center for Stem Cell Research at Ottawa Hospital Research Institute (OHRI), and colleagues, found the WNT7a protein stimulates muscle repair by causing proliferation (an increase in number) of "satellite stem cells." They say the protein probably operates similarly in humans. The findings were published June 5, 2009, in the journal Cell Stem Cell.