Alteration of mitochondrial membrane inner potential in three Italian patients with megaconial congenital muscular dystrophy carrying new mutations in CHKB gene.

Congenital Muscular Dystrophies (CMDs) are a heterogeneous group of autosomal recessive disorders presenting at birth with psychomotor delay, cognitive impairment, muscle weakness and hypotonia. Here we described an alteration of mitochondrial inner membrane potential and mitochondrial network in cells derived from Italian patients carrying three novel mutations in CHKB gene, recently associated with "megaconial CMD". On the bases of our findings, we hypothesize that the mitochondrial membrane potential alteration, presumably as a consequence of the altered biosynthesis of phosphatidylcholine, could be responsible for the peculiar morphological aspect of mitochondria in this disease and might be involved in the disease pathogenesis.

Absence of the Autophagy Adaptor SQSTM1/p62 Causes Childhood-Onset Neurodegeneration with Ataxia, Dystonia, and Gaze Palsy.

SQSTM1 (sequestosome 1; also known as p62) encodes a multidomain scaffolding protein involved in various key cellular processes, including the removal of damaged mitochondria by its function as a selective autophagy receptor. Heterozygous variants in SQSTM1 have been associated with Paget disease of the bone and might contribute to neurodegeneration in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Using exome sequencing, we identified three different biallelic loss-of-function variants in SQSTM1 in nine affected individuals from four families with a childhood- or adolescence-onset neurodegenerative disorder characterized by gait abnormalities, ataxia, dysarthria, dystonia, vertical gaze palsy, and cognitive decline.

Coenzyme A corrects pathological defects in human neurons of PANK2-associated neurodegeneration.

Pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration (PKAN) is an early onset and severely disabling neurodegenerative disease for which no therapy is available. PKAN is caused by mutations in PANK2, which encodes for the mitochondrial enzyme pantothenate kinase 2. Its function is to catalyze the first limiting step of Coenzyme A (CoA) biosynthesis.

Mutations of C19orf12, coding for a transmembrane glycine zipper containing mitochondrial protein, cause mis-localization of the protein, inability to respond to oxidative stress and increased mitochondrial Ca²⁺.

Mutations in C19orf12 have been identified in patients affected by Neurodegeneration with Brain Iron Accumulation (NBIA), a clinical entity characterized by iron accumulation in the basal ganglia. By using western blot analysis with specific antibody and confocal studies, we showed that wild-type C19orf12 protein was not exclusively present in mitochondria, but also in the Endoplasmic Reticulum (ER) and MAM (Mitochondria Associated Membrane), while mutant C19orf12 variants presented a different localization. Moreover, after induction of oxidative stress, a GFP-tagged C19orf12 wild-type protein was able to relocate to the cytosol.

Alteration of the coenzyme A biosynthetic pathway in neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation syndromes.

NBIA (neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation) comprises a heterogeneous group of neurodegenerative diseases having as a common denominator, iron overload in specific brain areas, mainly basal ganglia and globus pallidus. In the past decade a bunch of disease genes have been identified, but NBIA pathomechanisms are still not completely clear. PKAN (pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration), an autosomal recessive disorder with progressive impairment of movement, vision and cognition, is the most common form of NBIA.

Exome sequence reveals mutations in CoA synthase as a cause of neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation.

Neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation (NBIA) comprises a clinically and genetically heterogeneous group of disorders with progressive extrapyramidal signs and neurological deterioration, characterized by iron accumulation in the basal ganglia. Exome sequencing revealed the presence of recessive missense mutations in COASY, encoding coenzyme A (CoA) synthase in one NBIA-affected subject. A second unrelated individual carrying mutations in COASY was identified by Sanger sequence analysis.

C19orf12 and FA2H mutations are rare in Italian patients with neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation.

Neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation (NBIA) defines a wide spectrum of clinical entities characterized by iron accumulation in specific regions of the brain, predominantly in the basal ganglia. We evaluated the presence of FA2H and C19orf12 mutations in a cohort of 46 Italian patients with early onset NBIA, which were negative for mutations in the PANK2 and PLA2G6 genes. Follow-up molecular genetic and in vitro analyses were then performed.

Metabolic consequences of mitochondrial coenzyme A deficiency in patients with PANK2 mutations.

Pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration (PKAN) is a rare, inborn error of metabolism characterized by iron accumulation in the basal ganglia and by the presence of dystonia, dysarthria, and retinal degeneration. Mutations in pantothenate kinase 2 (PANK2), the rate-limiting enzyme in mitochondrial coenzyme A biosynthesis, represent the most common genetic cause of this disorder. How mutations in this core metabolic enzyme give rise to such a broad clinical spectrum of pathology remains a mystery.

[Environmental and biological monitoring of exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in workers of an electric steel foundry].

Aims: To assess and classify exposure to Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in some specific working areas of a steel foundry operating with a continuous casting process and evaluate biomonitoring data in different job tasks.

Methods: Exposure to dusts and six PAHs classified as carcinogenic by EU directives was studied in a cohort of 35 male foundry workers (aged 41.1 +/- 6.