"Must view" LHON talks
Organised by lhoncanada.ca, see here Dr Alfredo Sadun's 2019 LHON 101 in Vancouver, Canada
Spoiler alert. Progress continues in understanding the disease course, mechanisms and triggers. Anti oxidant and gene therapy after disease onset generally so far is only mildy effective in central vision restoration. Treatment is best started early and run long. He describes dramatic evidence of recovery after resumption of hormone replacement in one post menopausal woman carrier.
The United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation has organized a symposium delivered by the world's leading researchers on mitochondrial disease and optic neuropathy. None other than Douglas Wallace himself, the discoverer of the mitochondrial genetics of LHON, entertainingly reveals mitochondrial biochemistry, genetics and metabolism as well as the new and extremely important LHON mouse research model. Delightful! For more detail, see his 2010 paper: Mitochondrial Energetics and Therapeutics for an outline and critique of metabolic therapies for mitochondrial diseases to date and a discussion of the revival of ketogenic diets and a more systemic approach as potential therapy. His paper describes a firm theoretical base to explain anecdotal successes in mitochondrial disease therapy. Fascinating. Though cybrid trials of ketogenic diets are complete, we still wait for animal trials and human insulin resistance surveys and human diet trials. Dr Alfredo Sadun makes an invaluable and accessible contribution regarding the state of the art of clinical aspects of LHON. Dr Valerio Carelli discusses therapeutic options in LHON. He expertly reviews and explains methods of reducing reactive oxygen species and methods of increasing axonal mitochondria.
The United Mitochondrial Disease Foundation June 2016 symposium in Seattle included another LHON conference organised by Lissa Poincenot. Excellent presentations of treatment research and panel sessions on coping with LHON are posted on Youtube. In the second talk, Dr. Alfredo Sadun and an expert panel of Dr Valerio Carelli, Dr Patrick Yu-Wai-Man, Dr. Chiara La Morgia, and Dr. Rustum Karanjia bring us up to date. [click on expert names for lists of their published research.]