Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0022716 (Menkes)
 1,057 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Wilson's disease and Menkes disease are inherited genetic disorders of copper metabolism. Each disease results from the absence or dysfunction of homologous copper-transporting ATPases present in the trans-Golgi network of cells. The Wilson ATPase transports copper into the hepatocyte secretory pathway for incorporation into ceruloplasmin and excretion into the bile. Thus, patients with Wilson's disease of the autosomal recessive trait present with signs and symptoms arising from impaired biliary copper excretion. The Menkes ATPase transports copper across the placenta, gastrointestinal tract, and blood-brain barrier, and the clinical features of this X-linked disease arise from copper deficiency. Despite striking differences in the clinical presentation of these two diseases, the respective ATPases function in precisely the same fashion within the cell. The different clinical features of each disease are the results of the tissue specific expression of these ATPases. In Wilson's disease, impaired biliary copper excretion leads to accumulation of this metal in the liver. When the capacity for hepatic storage is exceeded, cell death ensues, with copper release into the plasma resulting in hemolysis and deposition of copper in extrahepatic tissues. Affected patients usually present in the first or second decade of life with chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis or acute liver failure. Copper accumulation in the cornea results in Kayser-Fleischer rings. Neuropsychiatric symptoms are more common in adults and include dystonia, tremor, personality changes, and cognitive impairment as a results of copper accumulation in the basal ganglia and other brain regions. The diagnosis of Wilson's disease is confirmed by decreased serum ceruloplasmin, increased urinary copper, and elevated hepatic copper concentration. A large number of different mutations occur in the genes of patients with Wilson disease. Copper chelation drugs and zinc are effective in most cases. New treatment guidelines now advise physicians to start patients on zinc.
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PMID:[Genetic disorders of copper transport--diagnosis and new treatment for the patients of Wilson's disease]. 1577 21

We have developed an easy and specific enzyme-linked immunoassay (ELISA) for the simultaneous determination of serum metallothinein-1 (MT-1) and 2 (MT-2) in both humans and experimental animals. A competitive ELISA was established using a specific polyclonal antibody against rat MT-2. The antibody used for this ELISA had exhibited the same cross-reactivity with MT in humans and experimental animals. The NH2 terminal peptide of MT containing acetylated methionine was shown to be the epitope of this antibody. The reactivity of this ELISA system with the liver, kidney and brain in MT1/2 knock-out mice was significantly low, but was normal in an MT-3 knock-out mouse. The lowest detection limit of this ELISA was 0.6ng/ml and the spiked MT-1was fully recovered from the plasma. We investigated the normal range of MT1/2 (25-75%tile) in 200 healthy human serum and found it to be 27-48ng/ml, and this was compared with the serum levels in various liver diseases. The serum MT1/2 levels in chronic hepatitis C (HCV) patients were significantly lower than healthy controls and also other liver diseases. In the chronic hepatitis cases, the MT1/I2 levels increased gradually, followed by the progression of the disease to liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. In particular, we found significantly elevated MT1/2 plasma levels in Wilson's disease patients, levels which were very similar to those in the Long-Evans Cinnamon (LEC) rat (model animal of Wilson's disease). Furthermore, a significantly elevated MT1/2 level was found in patients with Menkes disease, an inborn error of copper metabolism such as Wilson's disease.
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PMID:Determination of the serum metallothionein (MT)1/2 concentration in patients with Wilson's disease and Menkes disease. 2517 14

Copper is an essential trace element, but can become toxic when present in abundance. The severe effects of copper-metabolism imbalance are illustrated by the inherited disorders Wilson disease and Menkes disease. The Labrador retriever dog breed is a novel non-rodent model for copper-storage disorders carrying mutations in genes known to be involved in copper transport. Besides disease initiation and progression of copper accumulation, the molecular mechanisms and pathways involved in progression towards copper-associated chronic hepatitis still remain unclear. Using expression levels of targeted candidate genes as well as transcriptome micro-arrays in liver tissue of Labrador retrievers in different stages of copper-associated hepatitis, pathways involved in progression of the disease were studied. At the initial phase of increased hepatic copper levels, transcriptomic alterations in livers mainly revealed enrichment for cell adhesion, developmental, inflammatory, and cytoskeleton pathways. Upregulation of targeted MT1A and COMMD1 mRNA shows the liver's first response to rising intrahepatic copper concentrations. In livers with copper-associated hepatitis mainly an activation of inflammatory pathways is detected. Once the hepatitis is in the chronic stage, transcriptional differences are found in cell adhesion adaptations and cytoskeleton remodelling. In view of the high similarities in copper-associated hepatopathies between men and dog extrapolation of these dog data into human biomedicine seems feasible.
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PMID:Gene expression patterns in the progression of canine copper-associated chronic hepatitis. 2845 46