Juvenile-onset Sporadic Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis with a Frameshift <i>FUS</i> Gene Mutation Presenting Unique Neuroradiological Findings and Cognitive Impairment

BackgroundAmyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is often associated with cognitive and/or behavioural impairment. Cognitive reserve (CR) may play a protective role in offsetting cognitive impairment. This study examined the relationship between CR and longitudinal change in cognition in an Irish ALS cohort.MethodsLongitudinal neuropsychological assessment was carried out on 189 patients over 16 months using the Edinburgh cognitive and behavioural ALS screen (ECAS) and an additional battery of neuropsychological tests. CR was measured by combining education, occupation and physical activity data. Joint longitudinal and time-to-event models were fitted to investigate the associations between CR, performance at baseline and decline over time while controlling for non-random drop-out.ResultsCR was a significant predictor of baseline neuropsychological performance, with high CR patients performing better than those with medium or low CR. Better cognitive performance in high CR individuals was maintained longitudinally for ECAS, social cognition, executive functioning and confrontational naming. Patients displayed little cognitive decline over the course of the study, despite controlling for non-random drop-out.ConclusionsThese findings suggest that CR plays a role in the presentation of cognitive impairment at diagnosis but is not protective against cognitive decline. However, further research is needed to examine the interaction between CR and other objective correlates of cognitive impairment in ALS.

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Glutathione S-transferase Omega 2 DD genotype is associated with an increased risk of sporadic amyotrophic lateral sclerosis in Chinese men

Journal of International Medical Research ◽

10.1177/03000605211033219 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 49 (7) ◽

pp. 030006052110332

Author(s):

Zhiliang Fan ◽

Hong Jiang ◽

Xueqin Song ◽

Yansu Guo ◽

Xinying Tian

Keyword(s):

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ◽

Healthy Subjects ◽

Chinese Population ◽

Sporadic Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis ◽

Glutathione S Transferase ◽

Genotype Frequencies ◽

Sporadic Als ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Chi Squared ◽

Lateral Sclerosis

Objective To investigate whether GSTA1, GSTO2, and GSTZ1 are relevant to an increased risk of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in a Chinese population. Methods In this study, 143 sporadic ALS (sALS) patients (83 men, 60 women) and 210 age- and sex-matched healthy subjects were enrolled. Blood samples were collected by venipuncture. Genomic DNA was isolated by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) according to the manufacturer’s instructions. The potential associations between ALS and GSTA1, GSTO2, and GSTZ1 polymorphisms were estimated using chi-squared analysis and unconditional logistic regression. Results The D allele and genotype frequencies of GSTO2 were increased in sALS patients compared with healthy subjects, indicating that the GSTO2 DD genotype was associated with an increased risk of sALS (odds ratio [OR] = 3.294, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.039–10.448). However, a significant association between the DD genotype and the risk of sALS was evident in men only (OR = 7.167, 95% CI = 1.381–37.202). Conclusion This study revealed that the D allele and genotype frequencies of GSTO2 were increased in sALS patients. The GSTO2 DD genotype was associated with an increased risk of sALS in men in a Chinese population.

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