Cerebrotendinous xanthomatosis (CTX) is a lipid storage disease characterized by infantile-onset diarrhea, childhood-onset cataract, adolescent- to young adult-onset tendon xanthomas, and adult-onset progressive neurologic dysfunction (dementia, psychiatric disturbances, pyramidal and/or cerebellar signs, dystonia, atypical parkinsonism, peripheral neuropathy, and seizures). Chronic diarrhea from infancy and/or neonatal cholestasis may be the earliest clinical manifestation. In approximately 75% of affected individuals, cataracts are the first finding, often appearing in the first decade of life. Xanthomas appear in the second or third decade; they occur on the Achilles tendon, the extensor tendons of the elbow and hand, the patellar tendon, and the neck tendons. Xanthomas have been reported in the lung, bones, and central nervous system. Some individuals show cognitive impairment from early infancy, whereas the majority have normal or only slightly impaired intellectual function until puberty; dementia with slow deterioration in intellectual abilities occurs in the third decade in more than 50% of individuals. Neuropsychiatric symptoms such as behavioral changes, hallucinations, agitation, aggression, depression, and suicide attempts may be prominent. Pyramidal signs (i.e., spasticity) and/or cerebellar signs almost invariably become evident between ages 20 and 30 years. The biochemical abnormalities that distinguish CTX from other conditions with xanthomas include high plasma and tissue cholestanol concentration, normal-to-low plasma cholesterol concentration, decreased chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA), increased concentration of bile alcohols and their glyconjugates, and increased concentrations of cholestanol and apolipoprotein B in cerebrospinal fluid.

Spastic paraplegia-5A (SPG5A) is an autosomal recessive neurologic disorder with a wide phenotypic spectrum. Some patients have pure spastic paraplegia affecting only gait, whereas others may have a complicated phenotype with additional manifestations, including optic atrophy or cerebellar ataxia (summary by Arnoldi et al., 2012). The hereditary spastic paraplegias (SPG) are a group of clinically and genetically diverse disorders characterized by progressive, usually severe, lower extremity spasticity; see reviews of Fink et al. (1996) and Fink (1997). Inheritance is most often autosomal dominant (see 182600), but X-linked (see 303350) and autosomal recessive forms also occur. Genetic Heterogeneity of Autosomal Recessive Spastic Paraplegia Autosomal recessive forms of SPG include SPG7 (607259), caused by mutation in the paraplegin gene (602783) on chromosome 16q24; SPG9B (616586), caused by mutation in the ALDH18A1 gene (138250) on 10q24; SPG11 (604360), caused by mutation in the spatacsin gene (610844) on 15q21; SPG15 (270700), caused by mutation in the ZFYVE26 gene (612012) on 14q24; SPG18 (611225), caused by mutation in the ERLIN2 gene (611605) on 8p11; SPG20 (275900), caused by mutation in the spartin gene (607111) on 13q12; SPG21 (248900), caused by mutation in the maspardin gene (608181) on 15q21; SPG26 (609195), caused by mutation in the B4GALNT1 gene (601873) on 12q13; SPG28 (609340), caused by mutation in the DDHD1 gene (614603) on 14q22; SPG30 (610357), caused by mutation in the KIF1A gene (601255) on 2q37; SPG35 (612319), caused by mutation in the FA2H gene (611026) on 16q23; SPG39 (612020), caused by mutation in the PNPLA6 gene (603197) on 19p13; SPG43 (615043), caused by mutation in the C19ORF12 gene (614297) on 19q12; SPG44 (613206), caused by mutation in the GJC2 gene (608803) on 1q42; SPG45 (613162), caused by mutation in the NT5C2 gene (600417) on 10q24; SPG46 (614409), caused by mutation in the GBA2 gene (609471) on 9p13; SPG48 (613647), caused by mutation in the KIAA0415 gene (613653) on 7p22; SPG50 (612936), caused by mutation in the AP4M1 gene (602296) on 7q22; SPG51 (613744), caused by mutation in the AP4E1 gene (607244) on 15q21; SPG52 (614067), caused by mutation in the AP4S1 gene (607243) on 14q12; SPG53 (614898), caused by mutation in the VPS37A gene (609927) on 8p22; SPG54 (615033), caused by mutation in the DDHD2 gene (615003) on 8p11; SPG55 (615035), caused by mutation in the MTRFR gene on 12q24; SPG56 (615030), caused by mutation in the CYP2U1 gene (610670) on 4q25; SPG57 (615658), caused by mutation in the TFG gene (602498) on 3q12; SPG61 (615685), caused by mutation in the ARL6IP1 gene (607669) on 1p12; SPG62 (615681), caused by mutation in the ERLIN1 gene on 10q24; SPG63 (615686), caused by mutation in the AMPD2 gene (102771) on 1p13; SPG64 (615683), caused by mutation in the ENTPD1 gene (601752) on 10q24; SPG72 (615625), caused by mutation in the REEP2 gene (609347) on 5q31; SPG74 (616451), caused by mutation in the IBA57 gene (615316) on 1q42; SPG75 (616680), caused by mutation in the MAG gene (159460) on 19q13; SPG76 (616907), caused by mutation in the CAPN1 gene (114220) on 11q13; SPG77 (617046), caused by mutation in the FARS2 gene (611592) on 6p25; SPG78 (617225), caused by mutation in the ATP13A2 gene (610513) on 1p36; SPG79 (615491), caused by mutation in the UCHL1 gene (191342) on 4p13; SPG81 (618768), caused by mutation in the SELENOI gene (607915) on 2p23; SPG82 (618770), caused by mutation in the PCYT2 gene (602679) on 17q25; SPG83 (619027), caused by mutation in the HPDL gene (618994) on 1p34; SPG84 (619621), caused by mutation in the PI4KA gene (600286) on 22q11; SPG85 (619686), caused by mutation in the RNF170 gene (614649) on 8p11; SPG86 (619735), caused by mutation in the ABHD16A gene (142620) on 6p21; SPG87 (619966), caused by mutation in the TMEM63C gene (619953) on 14q24; SPG89 (620379), caused by mutation in the AMFR gene (603243) on 16q13; and SPG90B (620417), caused by mutation in the SPTSSA gene (613540) on 14q13. Additional autosomal recessive forms of SPG have been mapped to chromosomes 3q (SPG14; 605229), 13q14 (SPG24; 607584), 6q (SPG25; 608220), and 10q22 (SPG27; 609041). A disorder that was formerly designated SPG49 has been reclassified as hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathy-9 with developmental delay (HSAN9; 615031).

Desmosterolosis is a rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by multiple congenital anomalies and elevated levels of the cholesterol precursor desmosterol in plasma, tissue, and cultured cells (summary by Waterham et al., 2001).