Publications by authors named "Elisa Leao-Teles"

Arginase 1 deficiency (ARG1-D) is an ultrarare, metabolic disease which may cause spastic paraplegia, cognitive deficiency, seizures, and ultimately severe disability. The aim of this study was to assess disease burden in ARG1-D by performing a cross-sectional survey of patients with ARG1-D and their caregivers in four European countries (France, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom). Patients were enrolled at participating clinics and data were collected using a web-based questionnaire.

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Introduction: Mucopolysaccharidosis type VI (MPS VI) is a rare inherited metabolic disorder, primarily attributed to the deficiency of the enzyme N-acetylgalactosamine-4-sulfatase, responsible for the degradation of dermatan sulfate and chondroitin-4-sulfate. Therefore, there is a widespread accumulation of partially degraded glycosaminoglycans. Corneal opacification is the hallmark ocular feature in the MPS.

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Background And Aims: Arginase 1 deficiency (ARG1-D) is a ultrarare disease with manifestations that cause mobility and cognitive impairment that progress over time and may lead to early mortality. Diseases such as ARG1-D have a major impact also outside of the health care sector and the aim of this study was to estimate the current burden of disease associated with ARG1-D from a societal perspective.

Methods: The study was performed as a web-based survey of patients with ARG1-D and their caregivers in four European countries (France, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom).

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Classic galactosemia (CG, OMIM #230400, ORPHA: 79,239) is a hereditary disorder of galactose metabolism that, despite treatment with galactose restriction, affects brain function in 85% of the patients. Problems with cognitive function, neuropsychological/social emotional difficulties, neurological symptoms, and abnormalities in neuroimaging and electrophysiological assessments are frequently reported in this group of patients, with an enormous individual variability. In this review, we describe the role of impaired galactose metabolism on brain dysfunction based on state of the art knowledge.

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Article Synopsis
  • Fabry disease (FD) is a rare genetic disorder caused by low levels of α-galactosidase A enzyme, leading to various complications that make diagnosis and understanding the disease more challenging.
  • Researchers analyzed the plasma proteins of 50 FD patients and 50 healthy individuals and found over 30 different proteins associated with inflammation, metabolism, and other biological processes that vary based on sex.
  • Notably, certain proteins like apolipoprotein A-IV were identified as strong indicators for complications like chronic kidney disease in FD patients, outperforming traditional renal markers and enhancing the potential for earlier diagnosis and better understanding of the disease.
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Glucose homeostasis is essential for energy production and the central nervous system function, depending on glycogen metabolism. Glycogen storage diseases (GSD) are caused by enzymatic defects of the glycogen degradation and mainly involve the liver since the inhibition of hepatic glycogen breakdown results in its excessive storage and hepatomegaly. Other findings are hypoglycemia and hyperlactatemia and consequent neurological symptoms.

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Mucopolysaccharidoses (MPSs) are rare inherited lysosomal storage diseases (LSDs) caused by deficient activity in one of the enzymes responsible for glycosaminoglycans lysosomal degradation. MPS II is caused by pathogenic mutations in the gene, leading to deficient activity of the enzyme iduronate-2-sulfatase, which causes dermatan and heparan sulfate storage in the lysosomes. In MPS VI, there is dermatan sulfate lysosomal accumulation due to pathogenic mutations in the gene, leading to arylsulfatase B deficiency.

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Mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) VI is a rare genetic disease characterized by deficient activity of N-acetylgalactosamine 4-sulfatase, leading to the systemic deposition of glycosaminoglycans. Ocular involvement is classically characterized by progressive corneal clouding, ocular hypertension (OHT), and optic neuropathy. Although corneal clouding can be solved with penetrating keratoplasty (PK), visual impairment usually remains, being frequently attributed to glaucoma.

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Article Synopsis
  • The study investigated the causes and effects of reversible acute liver failure (ALF) in infants due to harmful TRMU gene variants, focusing on the potential benefits of cysteine supplementation for treatment.
  • Among 62 individuals studied, 47 pathogenic TRMU variants were identified, with nearly all patients experiencing liver issues and many surviving beyond early childhood despite severe ALF cases in infancy, including some who underwent liver transplants.
  • Results indicated that liver failure was generally reversible in patients associated with TRMU variants, and cysteine supplementation significantly enhanced survival rates, although neurodevelopmental challenges persisted in some survivors.
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Assessing public and patients' expectations and concerns about genomic data sharing is essential to promote adequate data governance and engagement in rare diseases genomics research. This cross-sectional study compared the views of 159 rare disease patients, 478 informal carers and 63 healthcare professionals in Northern Portugal about the benefits and risks of sharing genomic data for research, and its associated factors. The three participant groups expressed significantly different views.

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Article Synopsis
  • - Mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) disorders are rare diseases caused by enzyme deficiencies leading to the buildup of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs), with current enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) showing limited effectiveness for some systems.
  • - The Improve MPS treatment study tested the oral drug odiparcil in a Phase 2a clinical trial to evaluate its safety, pharmacokinetics, and efficacy in MPS VI patients, showing promising results in reducing GAG accumulation and improving various health aspects.
  • - The study enrolled 20 patients, with 13 completing it, and found that odiparcil increased urinary GAG levels and showed a favorable safety profile, suggesting potential benefits even in advanced disease
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The purpose of this clinical case report is to describe a case of mucopolysaccharidosis type IVA (MPS IVA), or Morquio syndrome, with increased choroidal thickness in enhanced-depth imaging optical coherence tomography (EDI-OCT) which can represent choroidal deposition of glycosaminoglycans (GAGs). A 21-year-old male with genetically confirmed diagnosis of MPS IVA was examined at our Pediatric Ophthalmology clinic as part of our follow-up protocol for MPS patients. His best-corrected visual acuity was 4/10 in his right eye (OD) and 6/10 in the left eye (OS).

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Purpose: To describe retinal findings in a patient with mucopolysaccharidosis type I (MPS I) that underwent an early treatment with hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) and enzyme replacement therapy (ERT). . We describe a case of a 12-year-old female with a biochemical and genetic diagnosis of MPS I.

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The electron-transfer flavoprotein dehydrogenase gene () encodes the ETF-ubiquinone oxidoreductase (ETF-QO) and has been reported to be the major cause of multiple acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (MADD). In this study, we present the clinical and molecular diagnostic challenges, at the DNA and RNA levels, involved in establishing the genotype of four MADD patients with novel variants: a missense variant, two deep intronic variants and a gross deletion. RNA sequencing allowed the identification of the second causative allele in all studied patients.

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Recently, a disorder caused by the heterozygous de novo c.1267C>T (p.R423*) substitution in has been described.

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Introduction: International policy imperatives for the public and patient involvement in the governance of health data coexist with conflicting cross-border policies on data sharing. This can challenge the planning and implementation of participatory data governance in healthcare services locally. Engaging with local stakeholders and understanding how their needs, values and preferences for governing health data can be articulated with policies made at the supranational level is crucial.

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Objective: To describe the clinical, biochemical, and genetic features of both new and previously reported patients with congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDGs) diagnosed in Portugal over the last 20 years.

Study Design: The cohort includes patients with an unexplained multisystem or single organ involvement, with or without psychomotor disability. Serum sialotransferrin isoforms and, whenever necessary, apolipoprotein CIII isoforms and glycan structures were analyzed.

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Hyperargininemia in patients with arginase 1 deficiency (ARG1-D) is considered a key driver of disease manifestations, including spasticity, developmental delay, and seizures. Pegzilarginase (AEB1102) is an investigational enzyme therapy which is being developed as a novel arginine lowering approach. We report the safety and efficacy of intravenously (IV) administered pegzilarginase in pediatric and adult ARG1-D patients (n = 16) from a Phase 1/2 study (101A) and the first 12 weeks of an open-label extension study (102A).

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Background: Niemann-Pick type C (NPC, MIM #257220) is a neuro-visceral disease, caused predominantly by pathogenic variants in the NPC1 gene. Here we studied patients with clinical diagnosis of NPC but inconclusive results regarding the molecular analysis.

Methods: We used a Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS)-panel followed by cDNA analysis.

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Purpose: To describe a clinical case of mucopolysaccharidosis type VI (MPS VI), or Maroteaux-Lamy syndrome, with fundoscopic alterations that may correspond to scleral deposits of glycosaminoglycans.

Materials And Methods: Clinical case report.

Results: A 16-year-old girl with MPS VI was examined at the Ophthalmology Department for poor vision due to opacified corneas.

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Objective: To evaluate the impact of galsulfase enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) when initiated in adulthood for patients with mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) VI.

Methods: In 2005, the multi-national, MPS VI Clinical Surveillance Program (CSP) was established to collect long-term observational data from routine clinical and laboratory assessments. A sub-analysis was performed in patients who started ERT at ≥16 years of age and had received galsulfase for ≥6 months.

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The lysosome has a key role in the presentation of lipid antigens by CD1 molecules. While defects in lipid antigen presentation and in invariant Natural Killer T (iNKT) cell response were detected in several mouse models of lysosomal storage diseases (LSD), the impact of lysosomal engorgement in human lipid antigen presentation is poorly characterized. Here, we analyzed the capacity of monocyte-derived dendritic cells (Mo-DCs) from Fabry, Gaucher, Niemann Pick type C and Mucopolysaccharidosis type VI disease patients to present exogenous antigens to lipid-specific T cells.

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