LBSL (leukoencephalopathy with brain stem and spinal cord involvement and lactate elevation) is an autosomal recessive white matter disorder with slowly progressive cerebellar ataxia, spasticity and dorsal column dysfunction.
An abnormal accumulation of α-synuclein has been reported also in the spinal cord, but extent and significance of the spinal cord involvement are still poorly defined.
Here, the authors present a case of leukoencephalopathy with brainstem and spinal cord involvement with normal brain lactate, in which genetic analysis revealed a new mutation in the DARS2 gene not previously described.
Impaired information-processing speed and working memory in leukoencephalopathy with brainstem and spinal cord involvement and elevated lactate (LBSL) and DARS2 mutations: a report of three adult patients.
Intriguingly, HBSL bears a striking resemblance to leukoencephalopathy with brain stem and spinal cord involvement and elevated lactate (LBSL), which is caused by mutations in the mitochondria-specific DARS2, suggesting that these two diseases might share a common underlying molecular pathology.
Leukoencephalopathy with brain stem and spinal cord involvement and brain lactate elevation (LBSL) was recently shown to be caused by mutations in the DARS2 gene, encoding a mitochondrial aspartyl-tRNA synthetase.
Leukoencephalopathy with brainstem and spinal cord involvement and elevated lactate (LBSL) is a rare, autosomal recessive disorder caused by mutations in the gene encoding a mitochondrial aspartyl-tRNA synthetase, DARS2.
Of interest, we found an intronic variant in DARS2, a gene involved in mitochondrial DNA translation, responsible for the syndrome of leukoencephalopathy with brainstem and spinal cord involvement and high brain lactate.
The autosomal recessive white matter disorder LBSL (leukoencephalopathy with brain stem and spinal cord involvement and lactate elevation) is caused by mutations in DARS2, coding for mtAspRS (mitochondrial aspartyl-tRNA synthetase).
We here describe a pontine autosomal dominant microangiopathy and leukoencephalopathy pedigree with COL4A1 mutation presenting both pontine and cervical spinal cord involvement.