This study demonstrates the central role of the metal transporter, Zip7, in the aberrant biometal metabolism of CLN6 variants of NCL and further highlights the key contribution of deregulated biometal trafficking to the pathology of neurodegenerative diseases.
Mutations in CLN6 cause variant late-onset neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (vLINCL), a childhood neurodegenerative disorder resulting from aberrant neuronal cell loss and pathological accumulation of lysosomal autofluorescent storage material in the central nervous system.
In conclusion, the data reported provide novel clues into molecular pathophysiological mechanisms of CLN6-deficiency, and may also help in developing disease biomarkers and therapies for this and other neurodegenerative diseases.
The CLN6 gene that causes variant late-infantile neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (vLINCL), a recessively inherited neurodegenerative disease that features blindness, seizures, and cognitive decline, maps to 15q21-23.