. Familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is associated with a mutation in D-amino acid oxidase. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2010 Apr 20;107(16):7556-61. PubMed.

Recommends

Please login to recommend the paper.

Comments

  1. Regarding the statement in this news story "De Belleroche also pointed out that a DAO mutant mouse might be a useful model for ALS research, which sorely needs new models," I'd like to note that it is unlikely that loss of DAO alone will be sufficient for disease. A line of DAO mutant mice, essentially devoid of DAO activity, has been around almost 30 years (Konno and Yakumura, 1983) without any ALS-like symptoms reported in the first year of life. Here is a quote from that paper:

    "No apparent difference was detected between DAO+ and DAO- mice. The DAO- mice grew and behaved normally. They were fertile and produced as many offspring as the DAO+ animals did. Besides, the unilaterally nephrectomized DAO- mice lived more than 1 year without any impairment of health. ... [T]he discovery of the DAO- mice suggests that the enzyme is not essential, at least for the growth and reproduction of the mouse under laboratory conditions."
     

    References:

    . Mouse mutant deficient in D-amino acid oxidase activity. Genetics. 1983 Feb;103(2):277-85. PubMed.

    View all comments by Steve Barger

Make a Comment

To make a comment you must login or register.