Biallelic mutations of the alsin Rho guanine nucleotide exchange factor (ALS2) gene cause a group of overlapping autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disorders including infantile-onset ascending hereditary spastic paralysis (IAHSP), juvenile primary lateral sclerosis (JPLS), and juvenile amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (JALS/ALS2), caused by retrograde degeneration of the upper motor neurons of the pyramidal tracts.
Recessive mutations in the alsin gene cause three clinically distinct motor neuron diseases: juvenile amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS2), juvenile primary lateral sclerosis (JPLS) and infantile-onset ascending hereditary spastic paraplegia (IAHSP).
Mutations in ALS2 gene/alsin are associated with recessive forms of motor neuron disorders including Juvenile Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (JALS), Infantile-onset Ascending Hereditary Spastic Paraplegia (IAHSP) and Juvenile Primary Lateral Sclerosis (JPLS).
We report two deletion mutations in a new gene that are found both in individuals with ALS2 and those with JPLS, indicating that these conditions have a common genetic origin.