Molecularly confirmed pontocerebellar hypoplasia in a large family from Slovakia with four severely affected children.

BACKGROUND

Pontocerebellar hypoplasia type 1 (PCH1) is characterized by a central and peripheral motor dysfunction associated with anterior horn cell degeneration, similar to spinal muscular atrophy (SMA).

OBJECTIVES

We analysed three probands (later discovered to be siblings) suspected to have severe SMA, however, not confirmed by genetic test.

METHODS

Clinical-exome analysis (Illumina) was performed to identify causative variants, followed by Sanger sequencing confirmation in probands and other 10 family members.

RESULTS

Homozygous pathogenic variant c.92G>C (p.(Gly31Ala)) in the Exosome Component 3 (EXOSC3) gene was found in all 3 probands, thus confirming the diagnosis of a severe form of PCH1B. The parents and six siblings were carriers, while one sibling was homozygous for a reference allele. This variant is frequent in the Czech Roma population, where it is considered a founder mutation. Haplotype analysis in this largest reported PCH1B family showed that our patients inherited from their father (of Roma origin) a haplotype identical to that found in the Czech Roma population, thus indicating these alleles have a common origin.

CONCLUSION

This EXOSC3 variant is rare among the general population but most likely frequent also among Roma people in Slovakia. PCH1B should be considered for a differential diagnosis in infants manifesting SMA-like phenotype, especially if of Roma origin (Tab. 1, Fig. 1, Ref. 22). Text in PDF www.elis.sk Keywords: pontocerebellar hypoplasia, PCH1B, EXOSC3, SMA plus syndromes, pathogenic sequence variant.