UMass Medical School is making groundbreaking basic and clinical advances on both the inherited and genetic basis of neurodegenerative and neuromuscular diseases such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

The Jake Kennedy ALS fund at UMass Medical School is bringing further awareness to the promising work of one of the world’s leading ALS researchers, Dr. Robert Brown.There is no known cure yet for ALS, but UMMS and other ALS research institutions have made substantial and rapid progress in the last few years.

However, nearly half of these cases still have an unknown genetic origin and Dr. Brown and his team of researchers, including Zack Kennedy, are working on a way to inactivate these troublesome genes. The Jake Kennedy ALS fund will help raise the necessary funds to aid scientists and Dr. Brown in their ongoing work toward a cure for ALS.