It has been shown that already at presymptomatic stages of ALS, intracellular calcium levels in spinal motoneurons are increased (Siklos et al. 1998) and CBPs are practically absent (Alexianu et al. 1994; Elliot and Snider 1995; Ince et al. 1993; Reiner et al. 1995) indicating a neuroprotective role for CBPs (Mattson et al. 1991). This evidence concerns the gene SRPX2 and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.