1. Academic Validation
  2. Alterations in the ankyrin domain of TRPV4 cause congenital distal SMA, scapuloperoneal SMA and HMSN2C

Alterations in the ankyrin domain of TRPV4 cause congenital distal SMA, scapuloperoneal SMA and HMSN2C

  • Nat Genet. 2010 Feb;42(2):160-4. doi: 10.1038/ng.508.
Michaela Auer-Grumbach 1 Andrea Olschewski Lea Papić Hannie Kremer Meriel E McEntagart Sabine Uhrig Carina Fischer Eleonore Fröhlich Zoltán Bálint Bi Tang Heimo Strohmaier Hanns Lochmüller Beate Schlotter-Weigel Jan Senderek Angelika Krebs Katherine J Dick Richard Petty Cheryl Longman Neil E Anderson George W Padberg Helenius J Schelhaas Conny M A van Ravenswaaij-Arts Thomas R Pieber Andrew H Crosby Christian Guelly
Affiliations

Affiliation

  • 1 Institute of Human Genetics, Medical University of Graz, Austria. michaela.auergrumbach@medunigraz.at
Abstract

Spinal muscular atrophies (SMA, also known as hereditary motor neuropathies) and hereditary motor and sensory neuropathies (HMSN) are clinically and genetically heterogeneous disorders of the peripheral nervous system. Here we report that mutations in the TRPV4 gene cause congenital distal SMA, scapuloperoneal SMA, HMSN 2C. We identified three missense substitutions (R269H, R315W and R316C) affecting the intracellular N-terminal ankyrin domain of the TRPV4 ion channel in five families. Expression of mutant TRPV4 constructs in cells from the HeLa line revealed diminished surface localization of mutant proteins. In addition, TRPV4-regulated CA(2+) influx was substantially reduced even after stimulation with 4alphaPDD, a TRPV4 channel-specific agonist, and with hypo-osmotic solution. In summary, we describe a new hereditary channelopathy caused by mutations in TRPV4 and present evidence that the resulting substitutions in the N-terminal ankyrin domain affect channel maturation, leading to reduced surface expression of functional TRPV4 channels.

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