Characterization of DCTN1 genetic variability in neurodegeneration.

OBJECTIVE

Recently, mutations in DCTN1 were found to cause Perry syndrome, a parkinsonian disorder with TDP-43-positive pathology. Previously, mutations in DCTN1 were identified in a family with lower motor neuron disease, in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), and in a family with ALS/frontotemporal dementia (FTD), suggesting a central role for DCTN1 in neurodegeneration.

METHODS

In this study we sequenced all DCTN1 exons and exon-intron boundaries in 286 samples diagnosed with Parkinson disease (PD), frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD), or ALS.

RESULTS

This analysis revealed 36 novel variants (9 missense, 5 silent, and 22 noncoding). Segregation analysis in families and association studies in PD, FTLD, and ALS case-control series did not identify any variants segregating with disease or associated with increased disease risk.

CONCLUSIONS

This study suggests that pathogenic mutations in DCTN1 are rare and do not play a common role in the development of Parkinson disease, frontotemporal lobar degeneration, or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis.