Authors: Ulf Edener Ingo Kurth Annechristin Meiner Frank Hoffmann Christian A Hübner Veronica Bernard Gabriele GillessenKaesbach Christine Zühlke
Publish Date: 2009/06/17
Volume: 256, Issue: 11, Pages: 1856-1859
Abstract
The spinocerebellar ataxias SCAs with autosomal dominant inheritance are a clinically and genetically heterogeneous group of neurological disorders with overlapping as well as highly variable phenotypes primarily affecting the cerebellum To date 28 different loci have been identified Nine SCAs are caused by repeat expansions for 14 only the chromosomal localisation is known Recently two frameshift mutations in the tau tubulin kinase 2 gene TTBK2 were reported to cause SCA11 To evaluate the frequency of mutations in the TTBK2 gene we performed molecular genetic analyses in 49 unrelated familial cases with ataxia Sequencing all coding exons revealed amongst others two novel missense exchanges at evolutionarily conserved amino acid positions Although being unique in 98 alleles of ataxia patients a disease causing effect can be excluded with high probability for both variations This result demonstrates the challenges in diagnostic testing for SCA11We thank all patients for supplying blood samples for scientific research and their clinicians for collecting them Part of this work was supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft DFG ZU 136/12 and by the German HeredoAtaxia Society DHAG
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