Repeat expansion disease: progress and puzzles in disease pathogenesis.
Repeat expansion mutations cause at least 22 inherited neurological diseases. The complexity of repeat disease genetics and pathobiology has revealed unexpected shared themes and mechanistic pathways among the diseases, such as RNA toxicity. Also, investigation of the polyglutamine diseases has identified post-translational modification as a key step in the pathogenic cascade and has shown that the autophagy pathway has an important role in the degradation of misfolded proteins--two themes that are likely to be relevant to the entire neurodegeneration field. Insights from repeat disease research are catalysing new lines of study that should not only elucidate molecular mechanisms of disease but also highlight opportunities for therapeutic intervention for these currently untreatable disorders.
La Spada
Albert R
AR
Division of Genetics, Department of Pediatrics, Institute for Genomic Medicine, University of California-San Diego, La Jolla, California 92093, USA. alaspada@ucsd.edu
Taylor
J Paul
JP
D000818:Animals; D001259:Ataxia / Q000235:genetics; D000067696:Ataxin-1; D000067528:Ataxins; D001343:Autophagy / Q000235:genetics; D042622:DNA Repeat Expansion; D005600:Fragile X Syndrome / Q000235:genetics; D006801:Humans; D000071058:Huntingtin Protein; D051379:Mice; D009223:Myotonic Dystrophy / Q000235:genetics; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D009422:Nervous System Diseases / Q000209:etiology / Q000235:genetics*; D009687:Nuclear Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D010455:Peptides / Q000235:genetics; D011499:Protein Processing, Post-Translational; D012313:RNA / Q000235:genetics / Q000633:toxicity; D013132:Spinocerebellar Degenerations / Q000235:genetics
C000593749:ATXN1 protein, human; D000067696:Ataxin-1; D000067528:Ataxins; C000593750:Atxn1 protein, mouse; C086055:HTT protein, human; D000071058:Huntingtin Protein; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins; D009687:Nuclear Proteins; D010455:Peptides; C097188:polyglutamine; D012313:RNA