Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0026838 (spasticity)
 6,471 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Lesch-Nyhan syndrome (LN) is a severe X-linked disorder of males characterized by hyperuricaemia, choreoathetosis, spasticity, mental retardation and self-mutilation. The disorder is caused by a wide spectrum of mutations distributed throughout the hypoxanthine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) gene. Female carriers of LN display no clinical symptoms but are at 50% risk of passing on the affected gene to their male offspring. A couple who had a boy with LN were referred to Monash IVF for preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) because the woman had undergone tubal ligation and the couple wanted to have another child. A test was developed for the causative mutation IVS8+6 T-->G mutation based on minisequencing primer extension that also incorporated the co-analysis of an informative tetranucleotide marker in intron 3 of the HPRT gene to identify allelic dropout. All four biopsied embryos from their first IVF cycle were diagnosed as unaffected, and transfer of two embryos in the cohort with the highest morphological quality resulted in a singleton pregnancy and the birth of a healthy girl. Direct mutation detection by mini-sequencing and parallel analysis of an informative linked marker provides an alternative strategy for molecular diagnosis of point mutations that will have useful application in PGD for other single gene disorders.
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PMID:Preimplantation diagnosis of Lesch-Nyhan using mini-sequencing primer extension. 1465 97

Lesch-Nyhan syndrome (LNS) is a rare X-recessive disorder that leads to virtually complete deficiency of the purine salvage enzyme hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT). Partial HPRT deficiency results in uric acid overproduction with subsequent hyperuricemia, nephrolithiasis, renal failure and gouty arthritis. In contrast, at complete HPRT deficiency, besides overproduction of uric acid neurological problems appear including spasticity, choreoathetosis, mental retardation, and compulsive self-mutilation. The cause for the uric acid overproduction has been clarified, but the connection between the enzyme deficiency and the neurological manifestations in LNS remains unclear. A hypothesis, which explains this relation, is proposed in the paper. The hypothesis has several important points most substantial of which is the accelerated biosynthesis of semiessential amino acid histidine that against the background of accelerated purine de novo biosynthesis results in 5-aminoimidazole-4-carboxamideribotide (AICAR) and histamine accumulation. The histamine and AICAR were determined to be the compounds that cause the neurobehavioral symptoms of LNS for several reasons. First, in the basal ganglia a balance between the direct (activating) and the indirect (inhibiting) pathways arising on the basis of the antagonistic and reciprocal dopamine-adenosine interactions normally exists. This balance can tonically regulate smooth voluntary movements and the activity of the thalamus, which, in turn, processes the afferent sensorimotor signals from the whole body to the all areas of the cerebral cortex and is concerned to modulate mental development and bring sensory information into awareness. Second, histamine is known to induce a selective damage in dopaminergic neurons inhibiting the direct dopaminergic pathway, which could lead to muscular rigidity, and slowness in initiating movements as well as tremor that are characteristic of Parkinsonism in LNS. Third, AICAribosid (AICAR breakdown product) is a potent adenosine A2a receptor antagonist inhibiting the indirect dopamine-adenosinergic pathway and, therefore, could be responsible for the choreoathetosis, dystonia and ballismus found in LNS. The excitatory-inhibitory disbalance in the basal ganglia could result in inadequate modification of the thalamus activity with subsequent mental retardation and symptoms that include the patients not being aware for their own bodies that could give rise to self-mutilation. Finally, a possibility for the creation of a new animal model that could exactly match the human LNS is proposed in the paper.
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PMID:The biochemical basis of the neurobehavioral abnormalities in the Lesch-Nyhan syndrome: a hypothesis. 1519 65

Lesch-Nyhan syndrome (LSN, McKusick 300322) is an X-linked genetic disease due, in its typical form, to the complete absence of hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT, EC 2.4.2.8) enzyme activity. It is characterized by hyperuricaemia, leading to gout and kidney stones, accompanied by severe neurological dysfunction with self-injurious behaviour, choreoathetosis and spasticity. Based on a worldwide birth incidence estimate of about 1:380000, one or two new cases are expected every year in Italy. We performed biochemical and molecular genetic studies on 28 Italian patients from 25 families who are likely to represent most living individuals with the syndrome in the country. They all had absent HPRT activity and a typical LNS phenotype. Genetic analysis identified 24 HPRT mutations, 9 of which had not been previously reported: 74C>G (P25R), IVS2+1G>C, 194-195delTC, 329-332delCAAC insTCTs, IVS9-1G>A, 506insC, IVS8-1G>C, 606G>T (L202F), 418G>C (G140R). No mutation hotspots were identified. Only two mutations were found in more than one family, indicating the lack of any major mutation causing LNS in Italy. Three mutations arose de novo , two in the proband's mother, one in the maternal grandmother. The virtual complete absence of HPRT activity was related to deletions, nonsense, or missense mutations leading to nonconservative amino acid changes.
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PMID:Molecular basis of hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase deficiency in Italian Lesch-Nyhan patients: identification of nine novel mutations. 1550 82

Lesch-Nyhan syndrome (LNS), first described in 1964 by Lesch and Nyhan, is a rare X-linked genetic disorder involving (near) absence of the enzyme hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyl transferase (HPRT). It occurs in 1:100,000 to 380,000 live births (1, 2). The deficiency of HPRT activity leads to an excessive uric acid production resulting in neurological, renal and musculoskeletal manifestations. Death usually occurs in the second or third decade from infection or renal failure. Clinical presentation is characterized by mental retardation, choreoathetosis, spasticity, hyperuricemia and cerebral palsy. A characteristic feature of LNS is the appearance of intractable self-injurious behaviour (SIB), usually in the form of severe lip and finger biting, gouging of eyes, face scratching and head banging requiring extreme management techniques such as the application of restraints and or extraction of teeth at an early age. In this case report a unique approach of SIB in LNS is presented.
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PMID:Self-mutilation behaviour in Lesch-Nyhan syndrome. 1613 97

Lesch-Nyhan disease (LND) is a rare X-linked recessive disorder caused by virtually complete deficiency of activity of the purine salvage enzyme hypoxanthine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT; EC 2.4.2.8). Human HPRT is encoded by a single structural gene located on the long arm of the X-chromosome (Xq26). The classical LND phenotype occurs almost exclusively in males, manifested in excessive purine production and characteristic neurological manifestations, including compulsive self-mutilation, choreoathetosis, spasticity, and occasionally developmental delay. Heterozygous females are usually phenotypically normal, due to the random inactivation of the X chromosome (Lyonization mechanism). However, six females were reported to be affected with the full biochemical and clinical manifestations of LND. All these cases were heterozygous for an HPRT mutation. Absence of transcription of the normal HPRT allele was attributed in all of them to non-random inactivation of the X chromosome carrying the normal allele. Here we describe an additional LND female, who presented with acute renal failure at the age of two months, in whom absence of transcription of the two HPRT alleles occurred due to as yet undescribed mechanism in LND females: the transcription of one HPRT allele was blocked due to a de novo X chromosome-autosome translocation 46,XX,t(X:2)(q26:p25), with a breaking point encompassing the HPRT gene locus, whereas the transcription of the normal allele was inhibited due to non-random inactivation of the second X-chromosome. Cultured fibroblasts from this patient exhibited the biochemical alterations in purine nucleotide metabolism characteristic of male LND fibroblasts.
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PMID:Molecular, biochemical, and genetic characterization of a female patient with Lesch-Nyhan disease. 1634 67

The objective of this study is to better understand the relationship between neuroradiologic and clinical characteristics in holoprosencephaly (HPE) using the multivariate analysis called factor analysis. HPE is a brain malformation characterized by incomplete cleavage of the cerebral hemispheres and deep gray structures. We performed evaluations on 89 children with HPE that included their history, developmental assessment, and physical examination. Ten clinical variables included in factor analysis were the grade of spasticity, dystonia, choreoathetosis, hypotonia, mobility, upper extremity/hand function, expressive language, feeding/swallowing difficulty, endocrinopathies, and temperature dysregulation. Five neuroimaging variables graded by pediatric neuroradiologists were the grade of HPE (from least to most severe: lobar, semilobar, and alobar) and the degree of non-separation of caudate, lentiform, thalamic, and hypothalamic nuclei. Factor analysis using principle component extraction and varimax rotation was utilized. Four significant factors were identified: (1) neuroimaging/developmental factor, (2) motor factor, (3) hypothalamic/oromotor factor, and (4) hypotonia factor. These four factors accounted for 65.2% of the variance. In this factor analysis of HPE patients, we were able to reduce the large number of clinical and radiological variables into four factors. These factors and the constructs underlying them provide structure to the data and provide key parameters for future studies involving neurodevelopmental outcomes in HPE.
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PMID:Factor analysis of neuroanatomical and clinical characteristics of holoprosencephaly. 1650 93

Deficiency of hypoxanthine-guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) activity is an inborn error of purine metabolism associated with uric acid overproduction and a continuum spectrum of neurological manifestations depending on the degree of the enzymatic deficiency. The prevalence is estimated at 1/380,000 live births in Canada, and 1/235,000 live births in Spain. Uric acid overproduction is present inall HPRT-deficient patients and is associated with lithiasis and gout. Neurological manifestations include severe action dystonia, choreoathetosis, ballismus, cognitive and attention deficit, and self-injurious behaviour. The most severe forms are known as Lesch-Nyhan syndrome (patients are normal at birth and diagnosis can be accomplished when psychomotor delay becomes apparent). Partial HPRT-deficient patients present these symptoms with a different intensity, and in the least severe forms symptoms may be unapparent. Megaloblastic anaemia is also associated with the disease. Inheritance of HPRT deficiency is X-linked recessive, thus males are generally affected and heterozygous female are carriers (usually asymptomatic). Human HPRT is encoded by a single structural gene on the long arm of the X chromosome at Xq26. To date, more than 300 disease-associated mutations in the HPRT1 gene have been identified. The diagnosis is based on clinical and biochemical findings (hyperuricemia and hyperuricosuria associated with psychomotor delay), and enzymatic (HPRT activity determination in haemolysate, intact erythrocytes or fibroblasts) and molecular tests. Molecular diagnosis allows faster and more accurate carrier and prenatal diagnosis. Prenatal diagnosis can be performed with amniotic cells obtained by amniocentesis at about 15-18 weeks' gestation, or chorionic villus cells obtained at about 10-12 weeks' gestation. Uric acid overproduction can be managed by allopurinol treatment. Doses must be carefully adjusted to avoid xanthine lithiasis. The lack of precise understanding of the neurological dysfunction has precluded development of useful therapies. Spasticity, when present, and dystonia can be managed with benzodiazepines and gamma-aminobutyric acid inhibitors such as baclofen. Physical rehabilitation, including management of dysarthria and dysphagia, special devices to enable hand control, appropriate walking aids, and a programme of posture management to prevent deformities are recommended. Self-injurious behaviour must be managed by a combination of physical restraints, behavioural and pharmaceutical treatments.
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PMID:Hypoxanthine-guanine phosophoribosyltransferase (HPRT) deficiency: Lesch-Nyhan syndrome. 1806 74

Hypoxic-ischemic brain injury is a very important neurological problem of the perinatal period and a major cause of chronic disability later in childhood. The subsequent neurological deficits are a variety of motor defects-especially spasticity but also choreoathetosis, dystonia and ataxia, often grouped together as "cerebral palsy," mental retardation, and seizures. The gestational age determines the neuropathology of the brain injury. One of the patterns of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, typically affecting full-term infants, consists of parasagittal lesions and ulegyria. The aim of this study is to describe the magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features and discuss the "suggested" pathogenetic mechanisms of this pattern, which affects the cortex and the white matter in a mainly parasagittal distribution; in this type of brain injury, the damage usually involves the deeper sulcal portion while sparing the apex, thus resulting in the so-called mushroom gyri characteristic ulegyric pattern. We discuss the MRI findings of parasagittal lesions and ulegyria in the brain examinations of 14 patients with a clinical history of perinatal hypoxia/anoxia presenting with mental retardation, seizures, and cerebral palsy. Differential diagnosis from polymicrogyria is discussed.
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PMID:Parasagittal lesions and ulegyria in hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy: neuroimaging findings and review of the pathogenesis. 1816 May 53

Impaired glucose transport across the blood brain barrier results in glucose transporter type 1 (GLUT-1) deficiency syndrome, first described in 1991. It is characterized by infantile seizures refractory to anticonvulsive treatments, microcephaly, delays in mental and motor development, spasticity, ataxia, dysarthria and other paroxysmal neurologic phenomena, often occurring prior to meals. Affected infants are normal at birth following an uneventful pregnancy and delivery. Seizures usually begin between the age of one and four months and can be preceded by apneic episodes or abnormal eyes movements. Patients with atypical presentations such as mental retardation and intermittent ataxia without seizures, or movement disorders characterized by choreoathetosis and dystonia, have also been described. Glucose is the principal fuel source for the brain and GLUT-1 is the only vehicle by which glucose enters the brain. In case of GLUT-1 deficiency, the risk of clinical manifestations is increased in infancy and childhood, when the brain glucose demand is maximal. The hallmark of the disease is a low glucose concentration in the cerebrospinal fluid in a presence of normoglycemia (cerebrospinal fluid/blood glucose ratio less than 0.4). The GLUT-1 defect can be confirmed by molecular analysis of the SCL2A1 gene or in erythrocytes by glucose uptake studies and GLUT-1 immunoreactivity. Several heterozygous mutations, with a majority of de novo mutations, resulting in GLUT-1 haploinsufficiency, have been described. Cases with an autosomal dominant transmission have been established and adults can exhibit symptoms of this deficiency. Ketogenic diet is an effective treatment of epileptic manifestations as ketone bodies serve as an alternative fuel for the developing brain. However, this diet is not effective on cognitive impairment and other treatments are being evaluated. The physiopathology of this disorder is partially unclear and its understanding could explain the clinical heterogeneity of GLUT-1 deficiency patients and lead to new treatments. This probably under-diagnosed deficiency should be suspected in children with unexplained neurological disorders including epilepsy, mental retardation and movement disorders and confirmed by a lumbar puncture and the direct sequencing of GLUT-1.
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PMID:[Glucose transporter type 1 (GLUT-1) deficiency]. 1880 65

Three brothers, born to parents who were first cousins, were referred for progressive diffuse dystonia. Initial physical examinations revealed minor dysmorphic features, e.g., bifrontal narrowing, downslanting palpebral fissures, low-set ears, upturned nostrils, and microretrognathia, as well as neurodevelopmental delay. Absence of eye contact and head control, diffuse dystonia, hypokinesia, choreoathetosis, tremor, increased deep tendon reflexes, diffuse muscle atrophy, and spasticity were evident during neurologic evaluations. After laboratory investigations, imaging studies, and the exclusion of other causes of childhood dystonia, the children were diagnosed with Segawa syndrome. A molecular analysis of the tyrosine hydroxylase gene revealed a novel P492R (1475 C>G) mutation, further confirming the clinical diagnosis. After 1-month therapy with 2 mg/kg/day l-dopa, no changes in signs were evident. Selegiline was added, which greatly improved the clinical picture. Segawa syndrome in three brothers resulted from a novel mutation in the tyrosine hydroxylase gene. Treatment with a combination of l-dopa and selegiline led to favorable outcomes.
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PMID:Marked improvement in Segawa syndrome after L-dopa and selegiline treatment. 2039 90


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