Adrenoleukodystrophy

Adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) is a degenerative disorder of the sheath covering nerve fibers, known as myelin. A type of leukodystrophy, the victims of ALD are typically male, as the disease is usually inherited in a sex-linked manner on the X chromosome. Leukodystrophies are disorders that affect the growth and/or development of myelin, a complex fatty neural tissue that insulates many nerves of the central and peripheral nervous systems. Without myelin nerves are unable to conduct an impulse, leading to increasing disability as myelin destruction increases and intensifies. Leukodystrophies are different from demyelinating disorders such as multiple sclerosis, in which myelin is formed normally, but is lost by immunologic dysfunction or other reasons.

Famous patients

Lorenzo Odone is probably the most famous patient with ALD. With the limited research available, his father Augusto sparked the invention of Lorenzo's oil, which is the first agent to have shown therapeutic benefit in ALD. The quest for a treatment for Lorenzo was depicted in the film Lorenzo's Oil, and is the subject of the Phil Collins song Lorenzo (on his 1996 Dance into the Light).

Related Topics:
Lorenzo Odone - Lorenzo's oil - Phil Collins - Dance into the Light

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