一个遗传性脊髓小脑型共济失调大家系的致病基因分析

目的探讨一个遗传性脊髓小脑型共济失调（SCA）大家系的遗传特点和基因突变分析。方法对一个遗传性脊髓小脑型共济失调（SCA）大家系进行家系调查,绘制系谱图,抽取家系成员外周血,采用聚合酶链反应和毛细管电泳对致病基因进行分析检测。结果该家系的遗传性脊髓小脑型共济失调（SCA）为常染色体显性遗传,6代45人中有15人为SCA患者,4人为携带致病基因的无症状患者。患者ATX3基因的CAG三核苷酸重复65-73次。结论该家系为常染色体显性遗传的SCA3型（SCA/MJD）,患者基因突变检测分析显示异常扩增的CAG突变数与发病年龄呈明显的负相关。基因突变检测在疾病诊断和早期发现无症状患者方面有重要作用,从遗传生殖角度阻断该病的遗传有重要意义。     

Genetic testing in spinocerebellar ataxia in Taiwan: expansions of trinucleotide repeats in SCA8 and SCA17 are associated with typical Parkinson's disease

DNA tests in normal subjects and patients with ataxia and Parkinson's disease (PD) were carried out to assess the frequency of spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) and to document the distribution of SCA mutations underlying ethnic Chinese in Taiwan. MJD/SCA3 (46%) was the most common autosomal dominant SCA in the Taiwanese cohort, followed by SCA6 (18%) and SCA1 (3%). No expansions of SCA types 2, 10, 12, or dentatorubropallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA) were detected. The clinical phenotypes of these affected SCA patients were very heterogeneous. All of them showed clinical symptoms of cerebellar ataxia, with or without other associated features. The frequencies of large normal alleles are closely associated with the prevalence of SCA1, SCA2, MJD/SCA3, SCA6, and DRPLA among Taiwanese, Japanese, and Caucasians. Interestingly, abnormal expansions of SCA8 and SCA17 genes were detected in patients with PD. The clinical presentation for these patients is typical of idiopathic PD with the following characteristics: late onset of disease, resting tremor in the limbs, rigidity, bradykinesia, and a good response to levodopa. This study appears to be the first report describing the PD phenotype in association with an expanded allele in the TATA-binding protein gene and suggests that SCA8 may also be a cause of typical PD.     

Frequency analysis of autosomal dominant cerebellar ataxias in Japanese patients and clinical characterization of spinocerebellar ataxia type 6

Using a molecular diagnostic approach, we investigated 101 kindreds with autosomal dominant cerebellar ataxias (ADCAs) from the central Honshu island of Japan, including spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1), spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 (SCA2), Machado–Joseph disease (MJD), dentatorubral and pallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA) and spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (SCA6). In our unselected series, MJD was the most common type of ADCA, accounting for 33.7% followed by DRPLA (19.8%), SCA2 (5.9%) and SCA6 (5.9%). No SCA1 mutations were identified. We analysed the clinical features of six molecular confirmed SCA6 kindreds: in each family, there was an expanded allele in the α1A-voltage dependent calcium channel comprising between 23 and 25 CAG repeats. The mean age at onset of symptoms was 43±13 years. The clinical features consisted predominantly of cerebellar ataxia, dysarthria and horizontal nystagmus, which was generally consistent with ADCA type 3. However several new clinical features were found in some patients: dramatic anticipation, rapid disease progression, severe ataxia associated with action tremor or action myoclonus, and very early onset, which are not described as the classical features of ADCA type 3.     

一个遗传性共济失调7型家系的基因突变分析

目的 研究1个遗传性共济失调7型回族家系的临床表现与基因突变特点.方法 应用聚合酶链反应、分子克隆及测序等方法对1个临床诊断为遗传性共济失调的回族家系进行SCA7基因检测,对异常片段进行分子克隆测序.结果 证实该家系为遗传性共济失调7型家系,视网膜退行性变为其相对独特的临床表现.先证者父亲异常片段CAG重复为46次;先证者异常片段CAG重复次数为54次,发病年龄较父代提前22年.结论 报告1个遗传性共济失调7型回族家系,该亚型明显的遗传早现及病程进展与CAG重复次数的不稳定扩增相关.     

Lack of mutations in spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 and 3 genes in a Taiwanese (ethnic Chinese) cohort of familial and early-onset parkinsonism.

Recent reports suggest that CAG triplet expansions of spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 and 3 (SCA2 and SCA3) genes are the cause of typical levodopa-responsive Parkinson's disease (PD) in familial cases, several of which were ethnic Chinese. To investigate the role of SCA2 and SCA3 mutations in Chinese familial and early-onset PD patients, we analyzed CAG triplet repeat expansions of SCA2 and SCA3 genes in a cohort of 73 Taiwanese/Ethnic Chinese familial and early-onset PD patients [mean age at onset 42.70 +/- 7.17 years (mean +/- SD)]. Thirteen of them (17.8%) had positive family history. All patients received comprehensive clinical evaluation including a thorough neurological examination, laboratory tests, and neuroimaging studies to exclude secondary causes and atypical parkinsonism. The CAG repeat length in these genes was determined using polymerase chain reaction polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. SCA2 gene CAG repeats ranged from 15 to 26 repeats with a median of 20, and SCA3 gene CAG repeats ranged from 15 to 40 with a median of 15. No long pathogenic repeats were found in either SCA2 or SCA3, although borderline CAG repeat number was detected in the SCA3 gene of four patients. Thus, mutations of SCA2 or SCA3 did not play a major role in familial or early-onset PD in our study cohort. PD patients without autosomal dominant family history or obvious cerebellar ataxia should not be candidates for routine screening of SCA2 or SCA3 mutations for cost-effectiveness.     

Screening for proteins with polyglutamine expansions in autosomal dominant cerebellar ataxias

Expansion of trinucleotide CAG repeats coding for polyglutamine has been implicated in five neurodegenerative disorders, including spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) 1 and SCA3 or Machado-Joseph disease (SCA3/MJD), two forms of type I autosomal dominant cerebellar ataxias (ADCA). Using the 1C2 antibody which specifically recognizes large polyglutamine tracts, particularly those that are expanded, we recently reported the detection of proteins with pathological glutamine expansions in lymphoblasts from another form of ADCA type I, SCA2, as well as from patients presenting with the distinct phenotype of ADCA type II. We now have screened a large series of patients with ADCA or isolated cases with cerebellar ataxia, for the presence of proteins with polyglutamine expansions. A 150 kDa SCA2 protein was detected in 16 out of 40 families with ADCA type I. This corresponds to 24% of all ADCA type I families, which is much more frequent than SCA1 in this series of patients (13%). The signal intensity of the SCA2 protein was negatively correlated to age at onset, as expected for an expanded and unstable trinucleotide repeat mutation. The disease segregated with markers closely linked to the SCA2 locus in all identified SCA2 families. In addition, a specific 130 kDa protein, which segregated with the disease, was detected in lymphoblasts of patients from nine families with ADCA type II. It was also visualized in the cerebral cortex of one of the patients, demonstrating its translation in the nervous system. Finally, no new disease-related proteins containing expanded polyglutamine tracts could be detected in lymphoblasts from the remaining patients with ADCA or isolated cases with cerebellar ataxia.      

Childhood-onset ataxia: testing for large CAG-repeats in SCA2 and SCA7

Infantile- and juvenile-onset spinal cerebellar ataxia (SCA) is associated with expansion of 130 to more than 200 CAG-repeats in the SCA2 and SCA7 genes. Routine clinical assays for SCA2 and SCA7, which use polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and denaturing PAGE (polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis), will not reliably detect such large expansions. An assay based on separation of PCR products on an agarose gel, blotting, and hybridization with a (CAG)6 oligonucleotide probe was used to test DNA from individuals more than 10 years of age who had a possible diagnosis of SCA. Among 25 cases, the PCR-blot assay confirmed the presence of SCA2 expansions between 230 and 500 repeats in four unrelated individuals, but did not detect any cases of extreme expansion in the SCA7 gene. The PCR-blot assay provides reliable detection of extreme expansion mutations. Routine incorporation of this assay in clinical laboratories may reveal that infantile-juvenile forms of SCA2 and SCA7 are more prevalent than previously recognized.     

Molecular genetic analysis of a new form of spinocerebellar ataxia in a Chinese Han family

The pathological changes of spinocerebellar ataxias (SCAs), mainly include the degeneration of the cerebellum, spinal cord and brainstem. To investigate the genotype of a three-generation Chinese Han pedigree with an autosomal dominant SCA for clinical diagnosis and genetic counseling, direct mutation test and linkage analysis were performed. SCA1–8, SCA10–14, SCA17, SCA27 and dentatorubral-pallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA) were excluded by mutation analysis while SCA15/16/29, SCA18, SCA19/22, SCA20, SCA21, SCA23, SCA25, SCA26, SCA28 and SCA30 were excluded by linkage analysis. Therefore, we excluded all of the previously identified SCA-associated genes and loci. Interestingly, one patient (III-13) had a novel mutation of the pleckstrin homology domain containing, family G (with RhoGef domain) member 4 gene (PLEKHG4), and another patient (II-7) had a novel mutation of the β-III spectrin gene (SPTBN2) (Genbank accession numbers FJ905766 and FJ811850, respectively). However, mutations of the PLEKHG4 gene and the SPTBN2 gene are not the causes of SCAs in this family. We conclude that this autosomal dominant cerebellar ataxia family is likely a new genotype of SCAs.     

Prevalence and ethnic differences of autosomal-dominant cerebellar ataxia in Singapore

We report the prevalence and ethnic differences of autosomal-dominant cerebellar ataxia (ADCA) in Singapore. Amongst 204 patients with ataxia who underwent genetic testing for dentatorubral-pallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA) and for spinocerebellar ataxias (SCA) 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, 10 and 12, 58 (28.4%) patients from 36 families tested positive. SCA 3 was identified in 31 (53.4%) patients from 15 families, SCA 2 in 17 (29.3%) patients from 12 families and SCA 1 in four (6.9%) patients from four families. Other SCA subtypes were rare. SCA 2 was the only subtype identified amongst ethnic Malay and ethnic Indian families. The estimated prevalence of ADCA in Singaporean families was at least 1 : 27,000. Based on the history and ancestry of Singaporeans, our study supported a founder effect for specific SCA subtypes and the association of ethnicity-specific SCA subtypes. Our findings suggest that SCA 2 is relatively common amongst the Malay race and that priority testing for SCA 3 and SCA 2 for ethnic Chinese, and SCA 2 for ethnic Malay, may be cost effective and relevant for the region.     

Clinical characteristics of combined cases of spinocerebellar ataxia types 6 and 31

This study reports the first family in which spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (SCA6) and spinocerebellar ataxia type 31 (SCA31) mutations were seen. An index patient first presented to our hospital due to gait and speech disturbances. Subsequent clinical investigation of this patient and her family members revealed consistent pure cerebellar ataxia transmitted in an autosomal-dominant manner. Genetic examination unexpectedly demonstrated that two of the five affected individuals had expansions of SCA6 and SCA31, while two others had SCA31 alone and the remaining had SCA6. Clinical manifestations were more severe in individuals with combined mutations relative to those with single mutation, suggesting that the SCA6 and SCA31 mutations have a cumulative pathogenic effect.     

Genetics of the SCA6 gene in a large family segregating an autosomal dominant "pure" cerebellar ataxia

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 6 (SCA6) is an autosomal dominant cerebellar degeneration caused by the expansion of a CAG trinucleotide repeat in the CACNA1A gene. Mutations in patients are characterised by expanded alleles of between 21 and 30 repeat units and by extreme gonadal stability when transmitted from parents to children. We have investigated the SCA6 mutation in a large Spanish kindred in which previously reported spinocerebellar SCA genes and loci had been excluded. We observed a 23 CAG repeat expanded allele in the 13 clinically affected subjects and in three out of 10 presymptomatic at risk subjects. Transmission of the mutant allele was stable in six parent to child pairs and in 29 meioses through the pedigree. Linkage analysis with the SCA6-CAG polymorphism and marker D19S221 confirmed the location of SCA6 on chromosome 19p13. The molecular findings in this large family confirm the expansion of the CAG repeat in the CACNA1A gene as the cause of SCA6 and the high meiotic stability of the repeat.     

橄榄桥脑小脑萎缩一家系的临床和遗传学研究

目的 对一个常染色体显性遗传橄榄桥脑小脑萎缩(olivopontocerebellar atrophy,OPCA)家系进行临床诊断,探讨其临床特点并明确其基因诊断.方法 完成家系调查,对包括先证者在内的家系成员进行神经科体检,行头部核磁共振(magnetic resonance imaging,MRI)等辅助检查,并进行基因诊断.结果 该家系呈常染色体显性遗传,其中两例成员有明显异常临床表现,家族史调查显示另有9例有相似临床表现的成员已去世,头部MRI示小脑、脑干以及桥脑萎缩明显.结合家族史、临床表现以及MRI检查结果,其诊断符合橄榄桥脑小脑萎缩.对所有家系成员进行致病基因分析发现,脊髓小脑共济失调2型(spinocerebellar ataxia type 2,SCA2)、3型(SCA3)、7型(SCA7)、12型(SCA12)以及齿状核红核苍白球丘脑下部核萎缩(dentatorubral-pallidoluy-sian atrophy,DRPLA)致病基因检测均正常.10例健康对照SCA1目的片段CAG重复数为29～37,而2例患者异常等位基因CAG重复数分别为53和67,5例无症状家系成员中,1例CAG重复数为57,确诊为症状前患者,另外4例CAG重复数在29～37之间,排除患病可能.结论 该家系为CAG动态突变引起的橄榄桥脑小脑萎缩,临床特征存在异质性,基因诊断符合SCA1.     

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 17 in Indian patients: two rare cases of homozygous expansions

We screened a cohort of 181 patients with features of primary progressive ataxia and chorea for spinocerebellar ataxias 17 (SCA17) mutation after excluding other known SCAs, Huntington's disease (HD), dentatorubral-pallidoluysian atrophy (DRPLA), and non-genetic causes. This study included patients with known family history of SCA, those with sporadic onset and cases of uncertain family history. Two unrelated patients with Huntington's disease-like phenotype and cerebellar signs are described with homozygous expansions of 47 and 48 CAG/CAA repeats. A family member with early signs of ataxia was found to carry 37 and 48 repeats. There were fewer CAA interruptions in the repeat sequences of patients than in the controls. The normal repeat range in controls was 21-42, with 91% of the alleles located between 33 and 39 repeats. This is the first report of rare homozygous SCA17 mutation in Indian patients presenting with HD-like phenotype.     

脊髓小脑共济失调患者CAG病理重复次数检测

目的 研究中国汉族人群脊髓小脑性共济失调(spinocerebellar ataxia,SCA)1、2、3、6、7、12、17亚型致病基因的CAG三核苷酸病理重复次数范围.方法 应用聚合酶链反应、琼脂糖凝胶电泳、T载体克隆重组DNA技术并结合直接测序等技术对559例临床诊断为SCA的患者(363例常染色体显性遗传先证者,196例散发患者)进行SCA1、SCA2、SCA3/马查多-约瑟夫病(Machado-Joseph disease,MJD)、SCA6、SCA7、SCA12和SCA17致病基因CAG三核苷酸病理重复次数突变分析.结果 在559例SCA患者中,共检测出SCA1患者23例,CAG病理重复次数范围39～60次,平均(51.09±4.88)次;SCA2患者32例,CAG病理重复次数范围36～51次,平均(40.34±4.40)次;SCA3/MJD患者305例,CAG病理重复次数范围49～86次,平均(73.84±5.07)次;SCA6患者9例,CAG病理重复次数范围23～29次,平均(25.56±1.94)次;SCA7患者27例,CAG病理重复次数范围38～71次,平均(58.22±10.90)次;SCA12患者3例,CAG病理重复次数范围51～52次,平均(51.33±0.58)次;SCA17患者2例,CAG病理重复次数范围53～55次,平均(54.00±1.41)次.结论 SCA1的39次CAG病理重复、SCA3/MJD的49次CAG病理重复和SCA12的51次CAG病理重复为国内或国外报道的最小CAG病理重复次数;SCA3/MJD的86次CAG病理重复为国内外报道的最大CAG病理重复次数;SCA17为国内首次发现的SCA亚型;首次建立中国汉族人群不同SCA亚型CAG三核苷酸病理重复次数范围标准.     

Genetic and clinical analysis in a Chinese parkinsonism-predominant spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 family

Parkinson's disease is a degenerative central nervous system disorder that often impairs motor skills, speech and other functions. We discovered a large Chinese family showing primarily parkinsonism symptoms with autosomal dominant inheritance. Six affected individuals in the family showed typical parkinsonism symptoms, including pill-rolling tremor. Two other affected individuals showed cerebellar ataxia symptoms. A whole-genome scan using the 50K single nucleotide polymorphism array with three different linkage methods detected two positive regions on chromosome 12q24.1 and 5q13.3. The ATXN2 gene, responsible for spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 (SCA2) was located precisely in the center of the positive region on chromosome 12. Further analysis of SCA2 revealed heterozygous pathological CAG expansions in the family. The affected individuals' symptoms were typical of parkinsonism, but complex. Inverse correlation between CAG repeat size and age of onset is not obvious in this pedigree. This parkinsonism-predominant SCA2 family shared the same disease gene locus with other 'standard' SCA2 families, but it is possible that variations in one or more modifier genes might account for the parkinsonism-predominant SCA2 predisposition observed in this pedigree.     

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 in seven Korean families: CAG trinucleotide expansion and clinical characteristics

Studies on spinocerebellar ataxias (SCA) have been hampered by a lack of disease markers. Clinical and pathological heterogeneity also made the classification unreliable. Linkage studies established that there are multiple subtypes of SCA. Five types are found to have unstable CAG expansion; the diagnosis can be established by molecular genetic study. Therefore, we systemically screened degenerative ataxia patients for these five SCA types, and identified eight patients with SCA2 (seven from six families and one sporadic case). This paper presents the clinical information on the seven patients, whose clinical information was available in detail. CAG repeat expansion in the patients ranged from 38 to 47 (normal control, 19 to 27). The onset ages ranged from 16 to 41 with 27.1 years as the mean, which correlated inversely with repeat lengths. All patients presented dysarthria and gait ataxia. Upper limb dysmetria or dysdiadochokinesia appeared later but progressed, causing severe disability. Slow saccade (4 patients in 7) and decreased DTR (4 in 7) were common. MRIs showed severe atrophy of the brainstem and cerebellum in all patients. We conclude that SCA2 is the most frequent type in Korea and carries rather pure cerebellar syndrome, slow saccade, and hyporeflexia.     

Screening for FMR-1 premutations in 122 older Flemish males presenting with ataxia

Recently, Hagerman et al described the occurrence of a late-onset neurological disorder in five male carriers of the fragile-X (FMR-1) premutation. The major characteristics of this disorder, designated the Fragile-X Tremor Ataxia Syndrome (FXTAS), are progressive intention tremor, cerebellar ataxia and cognitive decline. Most cases of FXTAS published thus far were ascertained through families with a known fragile-X proband. Since cerebellar ataxia is one of the main cardinal features, we performed FMR-1 premutation screening in 122 male patients, older than 50 years, who were referred to us for testing of the spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA 1, 2, 3, 6, 7) genes and who were found to be negative. In this group of patients, we found five patients with an FMR-1 premutation. In four of them, a definite diagnosis of FXTAS could be made, based on the proposed diagnostic clinical and radiological criteria for FXTAS. In light of these figures, we recommend that FMR-1 analysis should be included in the molecular diagnostic work-up in the group of male ataxia patients older than 50 years.     

Analysis of spinocerebellar ataxia types 1, 2, 3, and 6, dentatorubral-pallidoluysian atrophy, and Friedreich''s ataxia genes in spinocerebellar ataxia patients in the UK.

Accurate clinical diagnosis of the spinocerebellar ataxias (SCAs) can be difficult because of overlap in phenotype with other disorders and variation in clinical manifestations. Six SCA loci have been mapped and four disease causing genes identified, in addition to the causative gene for Friedreich's ataxia (FA). All of the identified mutations are expansions of trinucleotide repeat tracts. The SCA2 and SCA6 genes were published recently. The extent of the normal CAG size ranges at these loci and the relative frequencies of the known causes of SCA in the UK are not known. This study first investigated the normal size ranges of the SCA2 and SCA6 loci by genotyping control populations of West African and South African subjects, since African populations generally show the greatest allelic diversity. We found one allele larger than the previously determined normal range for SCA2, and our results at the SCA6 locus agreed with the previously reported normal range. The second component of the study assessed the relative frequencies of the SCA1, 2, 3, and 6, DRPLA, and FA trinucleotide repeat mutations in 146 patients presenting with SCA-like symptoms referred to genetic diagnostic laboratories in the UK. We detected mutations in 14% of patients referred with a diagnosis of autosomal dominant SCA, and in 15% of patients referred with spinocerebellar ataxia where we did not have sufficient family history data available to allow categorisation as familial or sporadic cases. Friedreich's ataxia accounted for 3% of the latter category of cases in our sample, but the most common causes of SCA were SCA2 and SCA6.