Papers

Peer-reviewed International journal
May, 2011

A patient with fragile x-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome presenting with executive cognitive deficits and cerebral white matter lesions.

Case reports in neurology
  • Kensaku Kasuga
  • ,
  • Takeshi Ikeuchi
  • ,
  • Keiko Arakawa
  • ,
  • Ryuji Yajima
  • ,
  • Takayoshi Tokutake
  • ,
  • Masatoyo Nishizawa

Volume
3
Number
2
First page
118
Last page
23
Language
English
Publishing type
DOI
10.1159/000328838

Fragile X-associated tremor/ataxia syndrome (FXTAS) is a late-onset neurodegenerative disorder that primarily affects males who are carriers of a premutation of a CGG expansion in the FMR1 gene. In Asian populations, FXTAS has rarely been reported. Here, we report the case of a Japanese FXTAS patient who showed predominant executive cognitive deficits as the main feature of his disease. In contrast, the patient exhibited only very mild symptoms of intention tremor and ataxia, which did not interfere with daily activities. A gene analysis revealed that the patient carried a premutation of a CGG expansion (111 CGG repeats) in the FMR1 gene. The mRNA expression level of FMR1 in the patient was 1.5-fold higher than in controls. On brain MRI scans, fluid-attenuated inversion recovery images showed high-intensity lesions in the middle cerebellar peduncles and the cerebral white matter, with a frontal predominance. The present case extends previous notions regarding the cognitive impairment in FXTAS patients. Recognizing FXTAS patients with predominant cognitive impairment from various ethnic backgrounds would contribute to our understanding of the phenotypic variation of this disease.

Link information
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1159/000328838
PubMed
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/21720528
PubMed Central
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3124446
ID information
  • DOI : 10.1159/000328838
  • Pubmed ID : 21720528
  • Pubmed Central ID : PMC3124446

Export
BibTeX RIS