MedGen

HEXA disorders are best considered as a disease continuum based on the amount of residual beta-hexosaminidase A (HEX A) enzyme activity. This, in turn, depends on the molecular characteristics and biological impact of the HEXA pathogenic variants. HEX A is necessary for degradation of GM2 ganglioside; without well-functioning enzymes, GM2 ganglioside builds up in the lysosomes of brain and nerve cells. The classic clinical phenotype is known as Tay-Sachs disease (TSD), characterized by progressive weakness, loss of motor skills beginning between ages three and six months, decreased visual attentiveness, and increased or exaggerated startle response with a cherry-red spot observable on the retina followed by developmental plateau and loss of skills after eight to ten months. Seizures are common by 12 months with further deterioration in the second year of life and death occurring between ages two and three years with some survival to five to seven years. Subacute juvenile TSD is associated with normal developmental milestones until age two years, when the emergence of abnormal gait or dysarthria is noted followed by loss of previously acquired skills and cognitive decline. Spasticity, dysphagia, and seizures are present by the end of the first decade of life, with death within the second decade of life, usually by aspiration. Late-onset TSD presents in older teens or young adults with a slowly progressive spectrum of neurologic symptoms including lower-extremity weakness with muscle atrophy, dysarthria, incoordination, tremor, mild spasticity and/or dystonia, and psychiatric manifestations including acute psychosis. Clinical variability even among affected members of the same family is observed in both the subacute juvenile and the late-onset TSD phenotypes. [from GeneReviews]

Disorders of intracellular cobalamin metabolism have a variable phenotype and age of onset that are influenced by the severity and location within the pathway of the defect. The prototype and best understood phenotype is cblC; it is also the most common of these disorders. The age of initial presentation of cblC spans a wide range: In utero with fetal presentation of nonimmune hydrops, cardiomyopathy, and intrauterine growth restriction. Newborns, who can have microcephaly, poor feeding, and encephalopathy. Infants, who can have poor feeding and slow growth, neurologic abnormality, and, rarely, hemolytic uremic syndrome (HUS). Toddlers, who can have poor growth, progressive microcephaly, cytopenias (including megaloblastic anemia), global developmental delay, encephalopathy, and neurologic signs such as hypotonia and seizures. Adolescents and adults, who can have neuropsychiatric symptoms, progressive cognitive decline, thromboembolic complications, and/or subacute combined degeneration of the spinal cord. [from GeneReviews]

Diamond-Blackfan anemia (DBA) is characterized by a profound normochromic and usually macrocytic anemia with normal leukocytes and platelets, congenital malformations in up to 50%, and growth deficiency in 30% of affected individuals. The hematologic complications occur in 90% of affected individuals during the first year of life. The phenotypic spectrum ranges from a mild form (e.g., mild anemia or no anemia with only subtle erythroid abnormalities, physical malformations without anemia) to a severe form of fetal anemia resulting in nonimmune hydrops fetalis. DBA is associated with an increased risk for acute myelogenous leukemia (AML), myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS), and solid tumors including osteogenic sarcoma. [from GeneReviews]

3-Hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA lyase deficiency (HMGCLD) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder with the cardinal manifestations of metabolic acidosis without ketonuria, hypoglycemia, and a characteristic pattern of elevated urinary organic acid metabolites, including 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaric, 3-methylglutaric, and 3-hydroxyisovaleric acids. Urinary levels of 3-methylcrotonylglycine may be increased. Dicarboxylic aciduria, hepatomegaly, and hyperammonemia may also be observed. Presenting clinical signs include irritability, lethargy, coma, and vomiting (summary by Gibson et al., 1988). [from OMIM]

Optic atrophy type 1 (OPA1, or Kjer type optic atrophy) is characterized by bilateral and symmetric optic nerve pallor associated with insidious decrease in visual acuity (usually between ages 4 and 6 years), visual field defects, and color vision defects. Visual impairment is usually moderate (6/10 to 2/10), but ranges from mild or even insignificant to severe (legal blindness with acuity <1/20). The visual field defect is typically centrocecal, central, or paracentral; it is often large in those with severe disease. The color vision defect is often described as acquired blue-yellow loss (tritanopia). Other findings can include auditory neuropathy resulting in sensorineural hearing loss that ranges from severe and congenital to subclinical (i.e., identified by specific audiologic testing only). Visual evoked potentials are typically absent or delayed; pattern electroretinogram shows an abnormal N95:P50 ratio. Tritanopia is the classic feature of color vision defect, but more diffuse nonspecific dyschromatopsia is not uncommon. Ophthalmoscopic examination discloses temporal or diffuse pallor of the optic discs, sometimes associated with optic disc excavation. The neuroretinal rim shows some pallor in most cases, sometimes associated with a temporal pigmentary gray crescent. [from GeneReviews]

Red cell pyruvate kinase deficiency is the most common cause of hereditary nonspherocytic hemolytic anemia. PK deficiency is also the most frequent enzyme abnormality of the glycolytic pathway (Zanella et al., 2005). [from OMIM]

Incontinentia pigmenti (IP) is a disorder that affects the skin, hair, teeth, nails, eyes, and central nervous system; it occurs primarily in females and on occasion in males. Characteristic skin lesions evolve through four stages: I. Blistering (birth to age ~4 months). II. Wart-like rash (for several months). III. Swirling macular hyperpigmentation (age ~6 months into adulthood). IV. Linear hypopigmentation. Alopecia, hypodontia, abnormal tooth shape, and dystrophic nails are observed. Neovascularization of the retina, present in some individuals, predisposes to retinal detachment. Neurologic findings including seizures, intellectual disability, and developmental delays are occasionally seen. [from GeneReviews]

Fanconi anemia (FA) is characterized by physical abnormalities, bone marrow failure, and increased risk for malignancy. Physical abnormalities, present in approximately 75% of affected individuals, include one or more of the following: short stature, abnormal skin pigmentation, skeletal malformations of the upper and/or lower limbs, microcephaly, and ophthalmic and genitourinary tract anomalies. Progressive bone marrow failure with pancytopenia typically presents in the first decade, often initially with thrombocytopenia or leukopenia. The incidence of acute myeloid leukemia is 13% by age 50 years. Solid tumors – particularly of the head and neck, skin, and genitourinary tract – are more common in individuals with FA. [from GeneReviews]

G6PD deficiency is the most common genetic cause of chronic and drug-, food-, or infection-induced hemolytic anemia. G6PD catalyzes the first reaction in the pentose phosphate pathway, which is the only NADPH-generation process in mature red cells; therefore, defense against oxidative damage is dependent on G6PD. Most G6PD-deficient patients are asymptomatic throughout their life, but G6PD deficiency can be life-threatening. The most common clinical manifestations of G6PD deficiency are neonatal jaundice and acute hemolytic anemia, which in most patients is triggered by an exogenous agent, e.g., primaquine or fava beans. Acute hemolysis is characterized by fatigue, back pain, anemia, and jaundice. Increased unconjugated bilirubin, lactate dehydrogenase, and reticulocytosis are markers of the disorder. The striking similarity between the areas where G6PD deficiency is common and Plasmodium falciparum malaria (see 611162) is endemic provided evidence that G6PD deficiency confers resistance against malaria (summary by Cappellini and Fiorelli, 2008). [from OMIM]

Any retinitis pigmentosa in which the cause of the disease is a mutation in the TTC8 gene. [from MONDO]

Autosomal recessive childhood-onset severe retinal dystrophy is a heterogeneous group of disorders affecting rod and cone photoreceptors simultaneously. The most severe cases are termed Leber congenital amaurosis, whereas the less aggressive forms are usually considered juvenile retinitis pigmentosa (Gu et al., 1997). For a general phenotypic description and a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of Leber congenital amaurosis, see LCA1 (204000); for retinitis pigmentosa, see 268000. [from OMIM]

Fumarate hydratase (FH) deficiency results in severe neonatal and early infantile encephalopathy that is characterized by poor feeding, failure to thrive, hypotonia, lethargy, and seizures. Dysmorphic facial features include frontal bossing, depressed nasal bridge, and widely spaced eyes. Many affected individuals are microcephalic. A spectrum of brain abnormalities are seen on magnetic resonance imaging, including cerebral atrophy, enlarged ventricles and generous extra-axial cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) spaces, delayed myelination for age, thinning of the corpus callosum, and an abnormally small brain stem. Brain malformations including bilateral polymicrogyria and absence of the corpus callosum can also be observed. Development is severely affected: most affected individuals are nonverbal and nonambulatory, and many die during early childhood. Less severely affected individuals with moderate cognitive impairment and long-term survival have been reported. [from GeneReviews]

Primary myelofibrosis is a condition characterized by the buildup of scar tissue (fibrosis) in the bone marrow, the tissue that produces blood cells. Because of the fibrosis, the bone marrow is unable to make enough normal blood cells. The shortage of blood cells causes many of the signs and symptoms of primary myelofibrosis.

Initially, most people with primary myelofibrosis have no signs or symptoms. Eventually, fibrosis can lead to a reduction in the number of red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. A shortage of red blood cells (anemia) often causes extreme tiredness (fatigue) or shortness of breath. A loss of white blood cells can lead to an increased number of infections, and a reduction of platelets can cause easy bleeding or bruising.

Because blood cell formation (hematopoiesis) in the bone marrow is disrupted, other organs such as the spleen or liver may begin to produce blood cells. This process, called extramedullary hematopoiesis, often leads to an enlarged spleen (splenomegaly) or an enlarged liver (hepatomegaly). People with splenomegaly may feel pain or fullness in the abdomen, especially below the ribs on the left side. Other common signs and symptoms of primary myelofibrosis include fever, night sweats, and bone pain.

Primary myelofibrosis is most commonly diagnosed in people aged 50 to 80 but can occur at any age. [from MedlinePlus Genetics]

Elliptocytosis is a hematologic disorder characterized by elliptically shaped erythrocytes and a variable degree of hemolytic anemia. Usually inherited as an autosomal dominant trait, elliptocytosis results from mutation in any one of several genes encoding proteins of the red cell membrane skeleton (summary by McGuire et al., 1988). Genetic Heterogeneity of Elliptocytosis Elliptocytosis-2 (130600) is caused by mutation in the SPTA1 gene (182860). Elliptocytosis-3 (617948) is caused by mutation in the SPTB gene (182870). Elliptocytosis-4 (166900), also known as Southeast Asian ovalocytosis, is caused by mutation in the SLC4A1 gene (109270). Also see pyropoikilocytosis (266140). See Delaunay (2007) for a discussion of the molecular basis of hereditary red cell membrane disorders. [from OMIM]

Myopathy, lactic acidosis, and sideroblastic anemia (MLASA) is a rare autosomal recessive oxidative phosphorylation disorder specific to skeletal muscle and bone marrow (Bykhovskaya et al., 2004). Genetic Heterogeneity of Myopathy, Lactic Acidosis, and Sideroblastic Anemia MLASA2 (613561) is caused by mutation in the YARS2 gene (610957) on chromosome 12p11. MLASA3 (500011) is caused by heteroplasmic mutation in the mitochondrially-encoded MTATP6 gene (516060). [from OMIM]

Myopathy, lactic acidosis, and sideroblastic anemia-2 (MLASA2) is an autosomal recessive disorder of the mitochondrial respiratory chain. The disorder shows marked phenotypic variability: some patients have a severe multisystem disorder from infancy, including cardiomyopathy and respiratory insufficiency resulting in early death, whereas others present in the second or third decade of life with sideroblastic anemia and mild muscle weakness (summary by Riley et al., 2013). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of MLASA, see MLASA1 (600462). [from OMIM]

Any Senior-Loken syndrome in which the cause of the disease is a mutation in the WDR19 gene. [from MONDO]

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) deletion syndromes predominantly comprise three overlapping phenotypes that are usually simplex (i.e., a single occurrence in a family), but rarely may be observed in different members of the same family or may evolve from one clinical syndrome to another in a given individual over time. The three classic phenotypes caused by mtDNA deletions are Kearns-Sayre syndrome (KSS), Pearson syndrome, and progressive external ophthalmoplegia (PEO). KSS is a progressive multisystem disorder defined by onset before age 20 years, pigmentary retinopathy, and PEO; additional features include cerebellar ataxia, impaired intellect (intellectual disability, dementia, or both), sensorineural hearing loss, ptosis, oropharyngeal and esophageal dysfunction, exercise intolerance, muscle weakness, cardiac conduction block, and endocrinopathy. Pearson syndrome is characterized by sideroblastic anemia and exocrine pancreas dysfunction and may be fatal in infancy without appropriate hematologic management. PEO is characterized by ptosis, impaired eye movements due to paralysis of the extraocular muscles (ophthalmoplegia), oropharyngeal weakness, and variably severe proximal limb weakness with exercise intolerance. Rarely, a mtDNA deletion can manifest as Leigh syndrome. [from GeneReviews]

A rare, syndromic, hereditary optic neuropathy disorder characterized by early-onset, severe, progressive visual impairment, optic disc pallor and central scotoma, variably associated with dyschromatopsia, auditory neuropathy (e.g. mild progressive sensorineural hearing loss), sensorimotor axonal neuropathy and, occasionally, moderate hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. [from ORDO]