1/75. Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) with mitochondrial ND4 gene mutation (11778) in a Thai patient.Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) is a maternally transmitted disease, characterized by bilateral optic atrophy predominantly in healthy young males. This disorder has shown to be associated with dna mutation in mitochondrial genome of the patients. We report here a young man who came to the hospital with subacute visual loss in one eye, followed by the other eye within two months. His echocardiogram was normal. A G-->A base substitution at nucleotide position 11,778 which changes a conserved arginine to histidine at amino acid position 340 of ND4, a protein subunit of respiratory chain enzyme complex I in oxidative phosphorylation system, was detected in his leucocyte mitochondrial genome.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
2/75. A multiple sclerosis-like illness in a man harboring the mtDNA 14484 mutation.In most cases of Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) the only clinical manifestation is visual loss. A multiple sclerosis-like illness has been infrequently reported in association with LHON. Most patients are women harboring the mtDNA 11778 mutation. We present a young man with clinical and paraclinical evidence of a demyelinating process with profound bilateral visual loss who harbored the mtDNA 14484 mutation associated with LHON.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.2keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
3/75. Acquired mitochondrial impairment as a cause of optic nerve disease.BACKGROUND: blindness from an optic neuropathy recently occurred as an epidemic affecting 50,000 patients in cuba (CEON) and had clinical features reminiscent of both tobacco-alcohol amblyopia (TAA) and Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (Leber's; LHON). Selective damage to the papillomacular bundle was characteristic, and many patients also developed a peripheral neuropathy. Identified risk factors included vitamin deficiencies as well as exposure to methanol and cyanide. In all 3 syndromes, there is evidence that singular or combined insults to mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation are associated with a clinically characteristic optic neuropathy. PURPOSE: First, to test the hypothesis that a common pathophysiologic mechanism involving impairment of mitochondria function and, consequently, axonal transport underlies both genetic optic nerve diseases such as Leber's and acquired toxic and nutritional deficiency optic neuropathies. According to this hypothesis, ATP depletion below a certain threshold leads to a blockage of orthograde axonal transport of mitochondria, which, in turn, leads to total ATP depletion and subsequent cell death. Second, to address several related questions, including (1) How does impaired energy production lead to optic neuropathy, particularly since it seems to relatively spare other metabolically active tissues, such as liver and heart? (2) Within the nervous system, why is the optic nerve, and most particularly the papillomacular bundle, so highly sensitive? Although there have been previous publications on the clinical features of the Cuban epidemic of blindness, the present hypothesis and the subsequent questions have not been previously addressed. methods: patients in cuba with epidemic optic neuropathy were personally evaluated through a comprehensive neuro-ophthalmologic examination. In addition, serum, lymphocytes for dna analysis, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), sural nerves, and eyes with attached optic nerves were obtained from Cuban patients, as well as from Leber's patients, for study. Finally, we developed an animal model to match the low serum folic acid and high serum formate levels found in the CEON patients, by administering to rats low doses of methanol after several months of a folic acid-deficient diet. Optic nerves and other tissues obtained from these rats were analyzed and compared with those from the Cuban patients. RESULTS: patients from the Cuban epidemic of optic neuropathy with clinical evidence of a selective loss of the papillomacular bundle did much better once their nutritional status was corrected and exposure to toxins ceased. patients with CEON often demonstrated low levels of folic acid and high levels of formate in their blood. Histopathologic studies demonstrated losses of the longest fibers (in the sural nerve) and those of smallest caliber (papillomacular bundle) in the optic nerve, with intra-axonal accumulations just anterior to the lamina cribrosa. Our animal model duplicated the serologic changes (low folic acid, high formate) as well as these histopathologic changes. Furthermore, ultrastructural examination of rat tissues demonstrated mitochondrial changes that further matched those seen on ultrastructural examination of tissues from patients with Leber's. CONCLUSION: mitochondria can be impaired either genetically (as in Leber's) or through acquired insults (such as nutritional or toxic factors). Either may challenge energy production in all cells of the body. While this challenge may be met through certain compensatory mechanisms (such as in the size, shape, or number of the mitochondria), there exists in neurons a threshold which, once passed, leads to catastrophic changes. This threshold may be that point at which mitochondrial derangement leads to such ATP depletion that axonal transport is compromised, and decreased mitochondrial transport results in even further ATP depletion. neurons are singularly dependent on the axonal transport of mitochondria. (- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.4keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
4/75. Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy: clinical and molecular genetic findings in a patient with a new mutation in the ND6 gene.BACKGROUND: Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) is a maternally inherited ocular disease associated with mutations in the mitochondrial dna (mtDNA). We describe the clinical and molecular genetic findings in a LHON patient and his family with a new mtDNA mutation at np14568 in the ND6 gene. methods: Ophthalmological examination was performed in one affected male and two maternal relatives. Direct sequence analysis of the complete mtDNA protein coding region was initiated in the affected patient. Four unaffected maternal relatives also underwent molecular genetic evaluation. RESULTS: Clinical examination of the affected male showed typical features of LHON. In his unaffected mother slight peripapillary microangiopathy was found. Molecular analysis did not show any of the common LHON mutations. A nucleotide exchange was detected at position 14568 replacing a glycine by serine in the ND6 gene. This mutation was the only new mutation found within the entire protein and tRNA coding region of the patient's mitochondrial genome. This novel mutation was also present in four non-affected maternal family members, but absent in 60 other LHON lineages and 175 unrelated controls. CONCLUSION: The new mutation at nucleotide position 14568 lies in the close vicinity of other LHON-related mutations (np14459, np14484, np14498, np14596) within the evolutionarily most conserved region of the ND6 gene. Since no other mutation was detected throughout the mtDNA coding region and the new alteration was excluded in controls, our clinical and molecular genetic findings suggest that the novel point mutation at np14568 is responsible for LHON in this family.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
5/75. Choreic movements and MRI abnormalities in the subthalamic nuclei reversible after administration of coenzyme Q10 and multiple vitamins in a patient with bilateral optic neuropathy.A 37-year-old man developed choreic movements of the limbs over a few months. His medical history included bilateral visual loss detected at the age of 9 and worsening at age 20. Visual field testing showed a central scotoma. Fundus examination showed atrophy of the optic disks and narrowing of vessels. The diagnosis of Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) was considered. There was no family history of visual loss or movement disorders. blood lactate:pyruvate ratio was moderately elevated. Skeletal muscle biopsy was normal. magnetic resonance imaging showed bilateral hypointense lesions on T1-weighted sequences in the subthalamic nuclei and in the lateral part of the substantia nigra. Linear hyperlucencies in the pyramidal tract facing the lateral part of the ruber nuclei were also demonstrated on T2-weighted sequences. Nine LHON-associated mutations were ruled out by RFLP analysis. Treatment with 250 mg coenzyme Q10 per day and multiple vitamins was initiated. Gradual recovery in movement disorders occurred over 1 year. Lactate to pyruvate ratio normalized. No change of visual function was observed. On magnetic resonance imaging performed 3 years later, lesions of the subthalamic nuclei almost completely disappeared. We think the patient might have an unusual, genetically uncharacterized mitochondrial disorder, combining optic neuropathy and chorea.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.2keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
6/75. Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy.A case of Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) in a healthy young man who presented with a slow progressive visual loss in one eye and later developed a visual loss in the other eye. There was no pre-existing symptom and no history of visual loss in other family members. Mitochondrial dna mutation at 11,778 was found in the patient and his uneffected mother and brother. Currently the availability of reliable molecular genetic testing has revolutionized the diagnosis of LHON. LHON is a maternal inherited disorder that causes bilateral visual loss, predominantly in young men. This disorder has been associated with point mutations in the mitochondrial genome which constitute the different clinical phenotypes and prognosis. genetic counseling in families at risk is recommended.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
7/75. The mitochondrial dna G13513A transition in ND5 is associated with a LHON/MELAS overlap syndrome and may be a frequent cause of MELAS.We report on 4 male patients with clinical, radiological, and muscle biopsy findings typical of the mitochondrial encephalomyopathy with lactic acidosis and stroke-like episodes (MELAS) phenotype. Skeletal muscle mitochondrial dna (mtDNA) analysis showed that all patients harbored a heteroplasmic G13513A mutation in the ND5 subunit gene. One of these cases (Patient 1) presented with symptoms characteristic of Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) 2 years before the first stroke-like episode. Quantitative analysis in several postmortem tissue sections showed that the relative proportions of mutant mtDNA were generally lower than those reported with other pathogenic mtDNA mutations. Single-fiber polymerase chain reaction studies demonstrated significantly higher amounts of mutant mtDNA in ragged red fibers (RRFs) compared with non-RRFs. This study indicates that the G13513A transition is likely to be pathogenic, that it can cause an LHON/MELAS overlap syndrome, and that it may be a more frequent cause of MELAS than previously recognized.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 0.2keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
8/75. Optic nerve enhancement on magnetic resonance imaging in arteritic ischemic optic neuropathy.Although optic nerve enhancement may be seen in magnetic resonance imaging of radiation-induced ischemic optic neuropathy, similar enhancement in ischemic optic neuropathy has not been previously reported in the English-language neuroophthalmologic literature. We report three cases of optic nerve enhancement in biopsy-proven arteritic ischemic optic neuropathy. Clinicians should consider giant cell arteritis in the differential diagnosis of an optic neuropathy with optic nerve enhancement on magnetic resonance imaging.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1.6keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
9/75. A family with Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy with mitochondrial 11778/ND4 and 4216/ND1 mutations.Leber's hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) is caused by a point mutation in the mitochondrial deoxynucleic acid (mtDNA) and accounts for 30% of bilateral optic atrophy of unknown etiology. The authors found a Korean family with mtDNA mutations in the nucleotide positions (np) 11778 and np 4216. This is the first report confirming a secondary mtDNA np 4216 mutation in Koreans, as well as the first report of a Korean family harboring both primary and the secondary mutations that the authors are aware of.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
10/75. Novel mutation in RP2 gene in two brothers with X-linked retinitis pigmentosa and mtDNA mutation of leber hereditary optic neuropathy who showed marked differences in clinical severity.PURPOSE: To report the identification of a novel mutation of the RP2 gene in two Japanese brothers with X-linked retinitis pigmentosa of a differing clinical severity. The mother was a carrier of both retinitis pigmentosa and optic atrophy. methods: The older brother had a severe form of retinitis pigmentosa associated with macular degeneration and total optic atrophy, whereas the younger brother presented typical X-linked retinitis pigmentosa. RESULTS: Each patient exhibited a novel 2-bp insertion at codon 278 in exon 3 of the RP2 gene as well as a 11778 mutation in mitochondrial dna. This suggests that the older brother may have developed Leber hereditary optic neuropathy as well as retinitis pigmentosa. CONCLUSION: Molecular testing confirmed the clinical diagnosis in each case. However, such testing did not explain the differences in the severity of the ophthalmoscopic findings between the two brothers.- - - - - - - - - - ranking = 1keywords = neuropathy (Clic here for more details about this article) |
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