Rinsho Shinkeigaku (Clinical Neurology)

The 45th Annual Meeting of the Japanese Society of Neurology

Update on hereditary neuropathy

Masanori Nakagawa, M.D.1) and Hiroshi Takashima, M.D., Ph.D.2)

1)Department of Neurology and Gerontology, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine
2)Department of Neurology and Geriatrics, Kagoshima University Graduate
School of Medical and Dental Sciences, Kagoshima University

Hereditary neuropathies are classified into several subtypes according to clinical, electrophysiologic and pathologic findings. Recent genetic studies have revealed their phenotypic and genetic diversities. In the primary peripheral demyelinating neuropathies (CMT1), at least 15 genes have been associated with the disorders; altered dosage or point mutation of PMP22, GJB1, MPZ, EGR2, MTMR2, NDRG1, PRX, SOX10, GDAP1 and MTMR13/SBF2. In the primary peripheral axonal neuropathies (CMT2), at least 10 genes have been associated with these disorders; NEFL, KIF1B, MFN2, GAN1, LMNA, RAB7, GARS, TDP1, APTX, and SETX. In addition, some mutations in GJB1, MPZ, GDAP1 and NEFL also present with clinical and electrophysiologic findings of CMT2. Patients with TDP1, APTX or SETX mutations share common clinical findings; autosomal recessive inheritance, cerebellar ataxia, and axonal neuropathy. These genes are suspected to be related to DNA/RNA repair and induce cell death especially in neuronal cells. In addition to the above diseases, we have reported a new type of NMSNP (MIM#*604484) characterized by proximal dominant neurogenic atrophy, obvious sensory nerve involvement and the gene locus on 3q12.3 Here, we summarize the genetic bases of hereditary neuropathies and attempt to highlight significant genotype-phenotype correlations with a special interest in nonsense-mediated mRNA decay pathway.

(CLINICA NEUROL, 44: 991－994, 2004)
key words: hereditary neuropathies, demyelinating, axonal, genotype- phenotype correlation, therapy

(Received: 14-May-04)