1. Novel POLG1 mutations associated with neuromuscular and liver phenotypes in adults and children.
- Author
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Stewart, J. D., Tennant, S., Powell, H., Pyle, A., Blakely, E. L., He, L., Hudson, G., Roberts, M., du Plessis, D., Gow, D., Mewasingh, L. D., Hanna, M. G., Omer, S., Morris, A. A., Roxburgh, R., Livingston, J. H., McFarland, R., Turnbull, D. M., Chinnery, P. F., and Taylor, R. W.
- Subjects
GENETIC mutation ,DNA polymerases ,MITOCHONDRIAL DNA ,DNA replication ,PHENOTYPES - Abstract
Background: The POLG1 gene encodes the catalytic subunit of DNA polymerase gamma, essential for mitochondrial DNA replication and repair. Mutations in POLG1 have been linked to a spectrum of clinical phenotypes, and may account for up to 25% of all adult presentations of mitochondrial disease. Methods and results: We present 14 patients, with characteristic features of mitochondrial disease including progressive external ophthalmoplegia (PEO) and Alpers-Huttenlocher syndrome and laboratory findings indicative of mitochondrial dysfunction, including cytochrome c oxidase (COX) deficiency and multiple deletions or depletion of the mitochondrial DNA. Four novel POLG1 missense substitutions (p.R597W, p.L605R, p.G746S, p.A862T), are described, together with the first adult patient with a recently described polymerase domain mutation (p.R1047W). All novel changes were rare in a control population and affected highly conserved amino acids. Conclusion: The addition of these substitutions--including the first report of a dinucleotide mutation (c.1814‗1815TT>GC)--to the growing list of defects further confirms the importance of POLG1 mutations as the underlying abnormality in a range of neurological presentations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
- Published
- 2009