OPTN p.Met468Arg and ATXN2 intermediate length polyQ extension in families with C9orf72 mediated amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia

Sali M.K. Farhan, Tania F. Gendron, Leonard Petrucelli, Robert A. Hegele, Michael J. Strong

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Scopus citations

Abstract

We have ascertained two families affected with familial amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in which they both carry a hexanucleotide repeat expansion in the C9orf72 gene, specifically in individuals who also presented with frontotemporal dementia (FTD) or behavioral variant FTD (bvFTD). While some reports attribute this phenotypic heterogeneity to the C9orf72 expansion alone, we screened for additional genetic variation in known ALS-FTD genes that may also contribute to or modify the phenotypes. We performed genetic testing consisting of C9orf72 hexanucleotide expansion, ATXN2 polyglutamine (polyQ) expansion, and targeted next generation sequencing using the ONDRISeq, a gene panel consisting of 80 genes known to be associated with neurodegenerative diseases such as ALS, FTD, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and vascular cognitive impairment. In addition to the C9orf72 expansion, we observed an ATXN2 polyQ intermediate length expansion, and OPTN p.Met468Arg in patients who exhibited ALS and FTD or bvFTD. We conclude that the C9orf72 expansion likely explains much of the ALS-FTD phenotype; however, inheritance of these additional variants likely modifies the disease course and may provide further evidence for biologically relevant oligogenic inheritance in ALS.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)75-85
Number of pages11
JournalAmerican Journal of Medical Genetics, Part B: Neuropsychiatric Genetics
Volume177
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Jan 2018

Keywords

  • ATXN2
  • C9orf72
  • OPTN
  • amyotrophic lateral sclerosis
  • frontotemporal dementia
  • genetic modifiers
  • oligogenic inheritance

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Genetics(clinical)
  • Psychiatry and Mental health
  • Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'OPTN p.Met468Arg and ATXN2 intermediate length polyQ extension in families with C9orf72 mediated amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and frontotemporal dementia'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this