Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0016719 (Friedreich's ataxia)
 2,098 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

A pure selenium deficiency is harmful to the heart and causes a fatal dilated congestive cardiomyopathy in animals (white muscle disease) and in man (Keshan disease). Both of these syndromes are selenium-responsive. A deficiency of the micronutrient has also been reported in patients with Friedreich's ataxia and there are histological similarities between Friedreich's cardiomyopathy and Keshan disease. A low selenium status results in reduced selenium-dependent glutathione peroxidase activity. This essential antioxidant enzyme protects membrances from oxidative deterioration, a function it shares in common with vitamin E. As iron-induced mitochondrial lipid peroxidation is central to the pathology of Friedreich's ataxia, the administration of selenium supplements should normalize the antioxidant activity of myocardial glutathione peroxidase and slow the progression of the life-shortening cardiomyopathy associated with this illness.
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PMID:Rationale for clinical trials of selenium as an antioxidant for the treatment of the cardiomyopathy of Friedreich's ataxia. 1181 88

Oxygen radicals regulate many physiological processes, such as signaling, proliferation, and apoptosis, and thus play a pivotal role in pathophysiology and disease development. There are at least two thioredoxin reductase/thioredoxin/peroxiredoxin systems participating in the cellular defense against oxygen radicals. At present, relatively little is known about the contribution of individual enzymes to the redox metabolism in different cell types. To begin to address this question, we generated and characterized mice lacking functional mitochondrial thioredoxin reductase (TrxR2). Ubiquitous Cre-mediated inactivation of TrxR2 is associated with embryonic death at embryonic day 13. TrxR2(TrxR2(-/-)minus;/TrxR2(-/-)minus;) embryos are smaller and severely anemic and show increased apoptosis in the liver. The size of hematopoietic colonies cultured ex vivo is dramatically reduced. TrxR2-deficient embryonic fibroblasts are highly sensitive to endogenous oxygen radicals when glutathione synthesis is inhibited. Besides the defect in hematopoiesis, the ventricular heart wall of TrxR2(TrxR2(-/-)minus;/TrxR2(-/-)minus;) embryos is thinned and proliferation of cardiomyocytes is decreased. Cardiac tissue-restricted ablation of TrxR2 results in fatal dilated cardiomyopathy, a condition reminiscent of that in Keshan disease and Friedreich's ataxia. We conclude that TrxR2 plays a pivotal role in both hematopoiesis and heart function.
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PMID:Essential role for mitochondrial thioredoxin reductase in hematopoiesis, heart development, and heart function. 1548 10

Vitamin E (alpha-and gamma-tocopherol) may slow the progression of a number of major degenerative diseases of the nervous system that appear to be significantly worsened by oxidative stress. The effects of vitamin E on excitoxicity in cultured neurones is considered, together with ataxia due to vitamin E deficiency (AVED) arising from abetalipoproteinaemia, cholestatic liver disease, cystic fibrosis, short bowel syndrome, total parenteral nutrition, diabetic peripheral neuropathy and familial isolated vitamin E (FIVE) deficiency. Selenium deficiency in Keshan disease is also described in relation to the cardiomyopathy seen in Friedreich's ataxia. Evidence for any beneficial effects of vitamin E upon the course of Friedreich's ataxia, tardive dyskinesia, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (motor neurone disease), Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and Huntington's disease is examined. The application of vitamin E derivatives as protective agents in posttraumatic injury to the nervous system (stroke, head and spinal cord injury and haemorrhage) is discussed.
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PMID:Vitamin E Status and Neurodegenerative Disease. 2740 31