Researchers need to meet each year to advance the cause of research into ALS,” was the message of Monica Lalancette, neurologist and researcher at CHU Université Laval, and of Jean-Pierre Julien, a professor at Université Laval. The gathering of experts from around the world became a reality at the 5th Symposium on Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis. Some 100 invited guests attended a series of talks on the clinical promise of stem cells, organogenesis and genetics. “The symposium also included students,” Nicolas Dupré, neurologist at Hôpital de l’Enfant-Jésus and associate professor at Université Laval, points out. “It’s a way of encouraging them to consider a career in ALS research, rather than in another field.