ABSTRACT
Neuroinflammation is a key event in the pathogenesis of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), although our understanding of its cause and significance is incomplete. ALS researchers have long recognized that inflammatory cells and mediators are present in the areas of degenerating motor neurons. However, a debate has centered on whether these inflammatory cells areonlyanepiphenomenonofmotorneuronal loss, or if the immune cells actively contribute to the processes that determine motor neuron survival. Recent studies have provided increasing support for the importance of neuroinflammation as a participant in the mechanisms of motor neuron injury in ALS.
