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The clinical phenotype of frontotemporal dementia patients carrying progranulin (GRN) mutations is known to be heterogeneous. We present a patient with corticobasal syndrome and a family with progressive aphasia and behavioral features who were found to have the same p.Gln257Profs*27 mutation. These cases depict the variability of GRN mutation carriers regarding clinical presentation and age of onset. In addition to giving a detailed report of a GRN mutation, we highlight the importance of searching for the presence of GRN mutations in selected sporadic cases and suggest a broadening of GRN genetic screening to better understand the clinical spectrum of these mutations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Serum progranulin is decreased in frontotemporal dementia (FTD) patients with progranulin gene (PGRN) mutations. We investigate the utility of prospective serum screening as a surrogate diagnostic marker for progranulin mutations. A commercial ELISA was used to measure progranulin protein concentration in serum from 63 FTD patients and 32 normal controls, and DNA screening then performed. Four patients (2/17 behavioral variant, 2/8 corticobasal syndrome) had abnormally low progranulin levels with PGRN mutations confirmed on DNA testing. Surprisingly, elevated levels were found in 6/16 patients with progressive non-fluent aphasia, the significance of which is unclear. Serum testing is an accurate and cost effective means of predicting PGRN mutations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]