$25,000 Grant from ALS Association Supports HudsonAlpha Research Study in Collaboration with the ALS Care Clinic at Crestwood Medical Center

6/17/2025

With renewed support from the ALS Association and Crestwood Medical Center, HudsonAlpha researchers move closer to earlier ALS diagnosis and better patient outcomes through a biomarker discovery

An ongoing research collaboration between scientists at HudsonAlpha Institute for Biotechnology and Crestwood Medical Center’s ALS Clinic Certified Treatment Center of Excellence continues to make major strides in the fight against amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). This work has been renewed for another year through a generous $25,000 grant from the ALS Association as awarded to the ALS Clinic for their work as a certified center of excellence, moving research closer to transforming ALS diagnosis and care.

This renewed funding supports a research pipeline that allows Crestwood’s ALS Clinic, Alabama’s first ALS Association Certified Treatment Center of Excellence, to enroll local patients in HudsonAlpha’s ALS biomarker study. This collaboration offers patients an opportunity to directly contribute to the advancement of ALS research by providing critically needed biological samples for study. The grant also provides essential resources to support the processing, sequencing, and analysis of these precious samples in HudsonAlpha’s cutting-edge research labs.

Over the last year, HudsonAlpha scientists validated a blood-based biomarker that is strongly linked to ALS, specifically to muscle atrophy, one of the disease’s most defining symptoms. Although this biomarker had previously been identified by other leading research institutions, the HudsonAlpha team confirmed its definitive association with ALS and went a step further to show that the biomarker can distinguish ALS from similar neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson’s. This validation marks a major step toward the development of reliable diagnostic tools.

“Sample collection is often the hardest part of most biomarker studies. Partnering with Crestwood’s ALS Clinic has allowed us to accelerate sample collection and focus our efforts on sequencing and analysis, helping us generate meaningful data more quickly,” said Benjamin Henderson, PhD, Senior Scientist at HudsonAlpha. “This work is contributing to a deeper understanding of ALS disease biology and holds a lot of promise as a baseline biomarker, which is something the field has been missing. This biomarker could help identify patients earlier, and aid in the development and evaluation of new treatments.”

The research team is currently writing a peer-reviewed publication to share HudsonAlpha’s findings with the broader scientific community. These findings could dramatically improve the diagnostic process, allowing clinicians to accurately diagnose patients earlier.

“Currently, there is not a cure for ALS, but just as importantly, there aren’t reliable tests to diagnose ALS,” said Sherry Kolodziejczak MS OTR/L FAOTA, Director of the Crestwood ALS Care Clinic. “As an ALS Association Certified Treatment Center of Excellence, being involved in research is a huge priority for us, so we’re excited to be able to work with HudsonAlpha to improve testing for this devastating disease. Together, we’re going to figure it out.”

Most ALS patients wait an average of two years for a diagnosis, even though average life expectancy ranges from just two to five years after receiving a diagnosis. An earlier diagnosis offers patients the chance for better treatment planning, improved quality of life, more time with loved ones, and the potential to enroll in clinical trials for emerging therapies.

“The big thing to understand about ALS care is that there is still much that we don’t know about the disease,” said Dr. David White, Medical Director of Crestwood’s ALS Care Clinic. “In fact, there’s more that we don’t know than what we do know. This research moves forward our understanding of genetic implications on diagnosis and disease management, which are stepping stones to prolonging patients’ time with their loved ones, improving patients’ quality of life, and ultimately finding a cure.”

The collaboration continues to demonstrate how community-based research partnerships can accelerate progress in even the most complex diseases.

“Our mission at Crestwood is to provide care for the community in which we live, always keeping our community in mind,” said Justin Serrano, CEO of Crestwood Medical Center. “There aren’t a lot of options for ALS treatment, so it’s especially meaningful to be able to provide such excellent care to our area’s ALS patients. Collaborating with an institute like HudsonAlpha allows us to get better every day, improve care for patients in our community, and improve our global knowledge base about this disease from right here in Huntsville.”

Patients involved in the study are also voicing their support. “I’m happy to be a part of this study to help improve treatment and care for ALS patients,” said Johnnie, a study participant receiving care at the Crestwood ALS Care Clinic.

Thanks to renewed support from the ALS Association and the commitment of both HudsonAlpha and Crestwood Medical Center, the future of ALS research and patient care is moving forward with new momentum.

As a nonprofit organization, HudsonAlpha relies on philanthropic support to fuel genomics research aimed at improving diagnosis and treatments for neurodegenerative diseases like ALS, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and other dementias.

You can support HudsonAlpha’s cutting-edge work on neurodegenerative diseases through donations to the Memory and Mobility Program.

Written by Lillie Mermoud, HudsonAlpha
Permission to distribute by HudsonAlpha

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