Project description:Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis are two syndromic variants within the motor neurone disease spectrum. Whilst primary lateral sclerosis is associated with loss of upper motor neurons and a more benign disease course up to 17yrs, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is caused by loss of both upper and lower motor neurons and has an average disease course of 2-3 years. The majority of cases are sporadic, thereby limiting the availability of cellular models for investigating pathogenic disease mechanisms. The aim of the present study was to evaluate fibroblasts as a cellular model for sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis, to establish whether disease-related dysregulated biological processes recapitulate those seen in the central nervous system and to elucidate pathways that distinguish between the two disease phenotypes. We used microarray analysis to determine the differences in gene expression between fibroblasts derived from skin biopsies taken from sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis neurologically normal human controls
Project description:Identification of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) associated genes. Post mortem spinal cord grey matter from sporadic and familial ALS patients compared with controls.
Project description:Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating disorder of the central nervous system that leads to progressive loss of upper and lower motor neurons. Most cases are sporadic and of unknown aetiology. In this study, we screened 71 patients with sporadic ALS for the presence of DNA copy number variations, in order to identify novel candidate disease genes. Methods: We have used sub-megabase resolution BAC array comparative genomic hybridisation to detect genomic imbalances in our ALS patient cohort. In order to distinguish phenotypically neutral copy number variations occurring frequently in the normal population from disease-associated aberrations, we screened our results against both the Database of Genomic Variants and a reference data set of approximately 700 normal individuals and probands with other disorders analysed in our laboratory. Aberrations with potential relevance for disease aetiology were verified by oligo array CGH. Findings: In 71 patients with sporadic ALS, we identified a total of six duplications and seven deletions that scored above our threshold. Twelve of these thirteen variations were smaller than 1Mb. Seven were observed exclusively in ALS patients and thus likely play causal roles in the disorder. Analysis of these regions highlighted, for example, the SLC1A7 (EAAT5) glutamate transporter and the kinesin family member KIF9 as good positional and functional candidate genes for ALS. Interpretation: Non-polymorphic sub-microscopic duplications and deletions observable by array CGH are frequent in patients with sporadic ALS. Analysis of such aberrations serves as an excellent starting point in deciphering the aetiology of this complex disease. Keywords: array CGH
Project description:Identification of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) associated genes. Post mortem spinal cord grey matter from sporadic and familial ALS patients compared with controls. Keywords: other
Project description:Background: Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a devastating disorder of the central nervous system that leads to progressive loss of upper and lower motor neurons. Most cases are sporadic and of unknown aetiology. In this study, we screened 71 patients with sporadic ALS for the presence of DNA copy number variations, in order to identify novel candidate disease genes. Methods: We have used sub-megabase resolution BAC array comparative genomic hybridisation to detect genomic imbalances in our ALS patient cohort. In order to distinguish phenotypically neutral copy number variations occurring frequently in the normal population from disease-associated aberrations, we screened our results against both the Database of Genomic Variants and a reference data set of approximately 700 normal individuals and probands with other disorders analysed in our laboratory. Aberrations with potential relevance for disease aetiology were verified by oligo array CGH. Findings: In 71 patients with sporadic ALS, we identified a total of six duplications and seven deletions that scored above our threshold. Twelve of these thirteen variations were smaller than 1Mb. Seven were observed exclusively in ALS patients and thus likely play causal roles in the disorder. Analysis of these regions highlighted, for example, the SLC1A7 (EAAT5) glutamate transporter and the kinesin family member KIF9 as good positional and functional candidate genes for ALS. Interpretation: Non-polymorphic sub-microscopic duplications and deletions observable by array CGH are frequent in patients with sporadic ALS. Analysis of such aberrations serves as an excellent starting point in deciphering the aetiology of this complex disease. Keywords: array CGH A cohort of 71 ALS patients was analysed by means of a submegabase resolution BAC array. No replicates were included. Experiments were done without dye swap.
Project description:Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis are two syndromic variants within the motor neurone disease spectrum. Whilst primary lateral sclerosis is associated with loss of upper motor neurons and a more benign disease course up to 17yrs, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is caused by loss of both upper and lower motor neurons and has an average disease course of 2-3 years. The majority of cases are sporadic, thereby limiting the availability of cellular models for investigating pathogenic disease mechanisms. The aim of the present study was to evaluate fibroblasts as a cellular model for sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and primary lateral sclerosis, to establish whether disease-related dysregulated biological processes recapitulate those seen in the central nervous system and to elucidate pathways that distinguish between the two disease phenotypes.