Dataset Information

Classic ataxia-telangiectasia: the phenotype of long-term survivors.

ABSTRACT: OBJECTIVE:Patients with classic ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) generally die in the second or third decade of life. Clinical descriptions of A-T tend to focus on the symptoms at presentation. However, during the course of the disease, other symptoms and complications emerge. As long-term survivors with classic A-T develop a complex multisystem disorder with a largely unknown extent and severity, we aimed to comprehensively assess their full clinical picture. METHODS:Data from Dutch patients with classic A-T above the age of 30 years were retrospectively collected. In addition, we searched the literature for descriptions of classic A-T patients who survived beyond the age of 30 years. RESULTS:In the Dutch cohort, seven classic A-T patients survived beyond 30 years of age. Fourteen additional patients were retrieved by the literature search. Common problems in older patients with classic A-T were linked to ageing. Most patients had pulmonary, endocrine, cardiovascular, and gastro-intestinal problems. All patients had a tetraparesis with contractures. This led to immobilization and frequent hospital admissions. Most patients expressed the wish to no longer undergo intensive medical treatments, and waived follow-up programs. CONCLUSIONS:Paucity of descriptions in the literature, and withdrawal from medical care complicate the acquisition of follow-up data on the natural history of long-term survivors. Irrespective of these limitations, we have obtained impression of the many problems that these patients face when surviving beyond 30 years of age. Awareness of these problems is needed to guide follow-up, counselling, and (palliative) care; decisions about life-prolonging treatments should be well considered.

SUBMITTER: van Os NJH

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7035236 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Publications

Classic ataxia-telangiectasia: the phenotype of long-term survivors.

van Os Nienke J H NJH van Deuren Marcel M Weemaes Corry M R CMR van Gaalen Judith J Hijdra Helma H Taylor Alexander M R AMR van de Warrenburg Bart P C BPC Willemsen Michèl A A P MAAP

Journal of neurology 20191127 3

<h4>Objective</h4>Patients with classic ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) generally die in the second or third decade of life. Clinical descriptions of A-T tend to focus on the symptoms at presentation. However, during the course of the disease, other symptoms and complications emerge. As long-term survivors with classic A-T develop a complex multisystem disorder with a largely unknown extent and severity, we aimed to comprehensively assess their full clinical picture.<h4>Methods</h4>Data from Dutch p ...[more]

PMID: 31776720

Similar Datasets

Project description:IntroductionClassic ataxia telangiectasia (A-T) is an autosomal recessive disease characterized by early onset ataxia, immune deficiency, sino-pulmonary disease, lymphoid/solid malignancies and telangiectasias. Prior studies have suggested that chronic inflammation and premature aging may contribute to the development of malignancy and pulmonary disease in people with A-T. To further examine the link between A-T and inflammation, we hypothesized that subjects with classic A-T would have greater enrichment of inflammatory pathways in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) compared to non A-T age-matched controls. To test this hypothesis we used RNAseq as an unsupervised approach to identify biological processes altered in people with classic A-T.MethodsPBMCs were isolated from subjects with classic A-T and compared to non-A-T age-matched healthy controls. RNAseq with differential gene expression analyses was then performed. Selected genes were validated by RT-qPCR using cohorts of subjects consisting of classic A-T, mild A-T or non-A-T controls. Subjects with mild A-T were characterized by later onset/mild neurologic features and normal/near normal immune status.ResultsRNAseq revealed 310 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) including genes involved in inflammation, immune regulation, and cancer. Using gene set enrichment analysis, A-T subjects were found to have biological processes enriched for inflammatory and malignancy pathways. In examining a cohort of A-T subjects in which baseline serum IL8 and IL6 levels were measured previously, an association was found between higher serum IL8 levels and higher likelihood of developing malignancy and/or death in a subsequent 4-6 year period.ConclusionRNAseq using PBMCs from subjects with classic A-T uncovered differential expression of immune response genes and biological processes associated with inflammation, immune regulation, and cancer. Follow-up of A-T subjects over a 4-6 year period revealed an association between higher baseline serum IL8 levels and malignancy/death. These findings support a role for inflammation as a contributing factor in A-T phenotypes.

Project description:BackgroundAtaxia Telangiectasia (A-T) is an inherited multisystem disorder with cerebellar neurodegeneration. The relationships between imaging metrics of cerebellar health and neurological function across childhood in A-T are unknown, but may be important for determining timing and impact of therapeutic interventions.PurposeTo test the hypothesis that abnormalities of cerebellar structure, physiology and cellular health occur in childhood A-T and correlate with neurological disability, we performed multiparametric cerebellar MRI and establish associations with disease status in childhood A-T.MethodsProspective cross-sectional observational study. 22 young people (9 females / 13 males, age 6.6-17.8 years) with A-T and 24 matched healthy controls underwent 3-Tesla MRI with volumetric, diffusion and proton spectroscopic acquisitions. Participants with A-T underwent structured neurological assessment, and expression / activity of ataxia-telangiectasia mutated (ATM) kinase were recorded.ResultsAtaxia-telangiectasia participants had cerebellar volume loss (fractional total cerebellar volume: 5.3% vs 8.7%, P < 0.0005, fractional 4th ventricular volumes: 0.19% vs 0.13%, P < 0.0005), that progressed with age (fractional cerebellar volumes, r = -0.66, P = 0.001), different from the control group (t = -4.88, P < 0.0005). The relationship between cerebellar volume and age was similar for A-T participants with absent ATM kinase production and those producing non-functioning ATM kinase. Markers of cerebellar white matter injury were elevated in ataxia-telangiectasia vs controls (apparent diffusion coefficient: 0.89 × 10-3 mm2 s-1 vs 0.69 × 10-3 mm2 s-1, p < 0.0005) and correlated (age-corrected) with neurometabolite ratios indicating impaired neuronal viability (N-acetylaspartate:creatine r = -0.70, P < 0.001); gliosis (inositol:creatine r = 0.50, P = 0.018; combined glutamine/glutamate:creatine r = -0.55, P = 0.008) and increased myelin turnover (choline:creatine r = 0.68, P < 0.001). Fractional 4th ventricular volume was the only variable retained in the regression model predicting neurological function (adjusted r2 = 0.29, P = 0.015).ConclusionsQuantitative MRI demonstrates cerebellar abnormalities in children with A-T, providing non-invasive measures of progressive cerebellar injury and markers reflecting neurological status. These MRI metrics may be of value in determining timing and impact of interventions aimed at altering the natural history of A-T.

Project description:Glioblastoma (GBM) is a highly aggressive type of glioma with poor prognosis. However, a small number of patients live much longer than the median survival. A better understanding of these long-term survivors (LTS) may provide important insight into the biology of GBM. We identified 7 patients with GBM treated at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) with survival greater than 48 months. We characterized the transcriptome of each patient and determined rates of MGMT promoter methylation and IDH1 and IDH2 mutational status. We identified LTS in two independent cohorts (TCGA and REMBRANDT) and analyzed the transcriptomal characteristics of these LTS. The median overall survival of our cohort was 62.5 months. LTS were distributed between the proneural (n=2), neural (n=2), classical (n=2) and mesenchymal (n=1) subtypes. Similarly, LTS in the TCGA and REMBRANDT cohorts demonstrated diverse transcriptomal subclassification identity. The majority of the MSKCC LTS (71%) were found to have methylation of the MGMT promoter. None of the patients had an IDH1 or IDH2 mutations, and IDH mutation occurred in a minority of the TCGA LTS as well. A set of 42 genes was found to be differentially expressed in the MSKCC and TCGA LTS. While IDH mutant proneural tumors impart a better prognosis in the short-term, survival beyond 4 years does not require IDH mutation and is not dictated by a single transcriptional subclass. In contrast, MGMT methylation continues to have strong prognostic value for survival beyond 4 years. These findings have substantial impact for understanding GBM biology and progression. All tumors (n = 7) were obtained following surgical resection at the MSKCC as part of routine clinical care, and snap frozen. Tumors were obtained in accordance with Institutional Review Board policies at the MSKCC. Each sample was examined histologically by 3 independent neuropathologists and confirmed to be World Health Organization (WHO) grade IV glioma (GBM). Before analysis, tumors were sectioned and microdissected. Genomic DNA or RNA was extracted using the DNeasy kit (Qiagen) or RNeasy Lipid Tissue Mini Kit (Qiagen) as per the manufacturer’s instructions. Expression analysis of tumors was performed using the Affymetrics U133 2.0 microarray (Affymetrix). Affymetrix CEL files were imported into the Partek Genomics Suite (Partek). The TCGA gene expression data (HT-HG-U133A) was accessed from the TCGA data repositories (http://cancergenome.nih.gov, date of download 12/2013).

Dataset Information

Classic ataxia-telangiectasia: the phenotype of long-term survivors.

Publications

Classic ataxia-telangiectasia: the phenotype of long-term survivors.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets