Spinocerebellar ataxia type 3 (SCA3), also known as Machado-Joseph disease (MJD), is characterized by progressive cerebellar ataxia and variable findings including pyramidal signs, a dystonic-rigid extrapyramidal syndrome, significant peripheral amyotrophy and generalized areflexia, progressive external ophthalmoplegia, action-induced facial and lingual fasciculations, and bulging eyes. Neurologic findings tend to evolve as the disorder progresses.

Hyperornithinemia-hyperammonemia-homocitrullinuria (HHH) syndrome is a disorder of the urea cycle and ornithine degradation pathway. Clinical manifestations and age of onset vary among individuals even in the same family. Neonatal onset (~8% of affected individuals). Manifestations of hyperammonemia usually begin 24-48 hours after feeding begins and can include lethargy, somnolence, refusal to feed, vomiting, tachypnea with respiratory alkalosis, and/or seizures. Infantile, childhood, and adult onset (~92%). Affected individuals may present with: Chronic neurocognitive deficits (including developmental delay, ataxia, spasticity, learning disabilities, cognitive deficits, and/or unexplained seizures); Acute encephalopathy secondary to hyperammonemic crisis precipitated by a variety of factors; and Chronic liver dysfunction (unexplained elevation of liver transaminases with or without mild coagulopathy, with or without mild hyperammonemia and protein intolerance). Neurologic findings and cognitive abilities can continue to deteriorate despite early metabolic control that prevents hyperammonemia.

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 1 (SCA1) is characterized by progressive cerebellar ataxia, dysarthria, and eventual deterioration of bulbar functions. Early in the disease, affected individuals may have gait disturbance, slurred speech, difficulty with balance, brisk deep tendon reflexes, hypermetric saccades, nystagmus, and mild dysphagia. Later signs include slowing of saccadic velocity, development of up-gaze palsy, dysmetria, dysdiadochokinesia, and hypotonia. In advanced stages, muscle atrophy, decreased deep tendon reflexes, loss of proprioception, cognitive impairment (e.g., frontal executive dysfunction, impaired verbal memory), chorea, dystonia, and bulbar dysfunction are seen. Onset is typically in the third or fourth decade, although childhood onset and late-adult onset have been reported. Those with onset after age 60 years may manifest a pure cerebellar phenotype. Interval from onset to death varies from ten to 30 years; individuals with juvenile onset show more rapid progression and more severe disease. Anticipation is observed. An axonal sensory neuropathy detected by electrophysiologic testing is common; brain imaging typically shows cerebellar and brain stem atrophy.

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 2 (SCA2) is characterized by progressive cerebellar ataxia, including nystagmus, slow saccadic eye movements, and in some individuals, ophthalmoparesis or parkinsonism. Pyramidal findings are present; deep tendon reflexes are brisk early on and absent later in the course. Age of onset is typically in the fourth decade with a ten- to 15-year disease duration.

For a general discussion of autosomal dominant spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA), see SCA1 (164400).

Chylomicron retention disease (CMRD), characterized by the inability to secrete chylomicrons from the enterocytes following the ingestion of fat, typically presents in infancy with failure to thrive, diarrhea, vomiting, abdominal distention, and malabsorption of fat. This leads to steatorrhea – the severity of which relates to the fat content of the diet – and in some cases, hepatomegaly. Organ systems outside of the gastrointestinal tract may also be affected (often due to malnutrition and deficiencies of fat-soluble vitamins), including neuromuscular abnormalities (typically in the first or second decade of life) secondary to vitamin E deficiency, poor bone mineralization and delayed bone maturation due to vitamin D deficiency, prolonged international normalized ratio (INR) due to vitamin K deficiency, mild ophthalmologic issues (e.g., micronystagmus, delayed dark adaptation, abnormal visual evoked potentials, and abnormal scotopic electroretinograms), and (in a small proportion of adults) cardiomyopathy with decreased ejection fraction. Affected individuals typically have marked hypocholesterolemia, low plasma apolipoprotein B levels, normal-to-low plasma triglyceride levels, and low serum concentrations of fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, and K). Endoscopy typically demonstrates a gelée blanche ("white hoar frosting") appearance of the duodenal mucosa.

Any autosomal dominant complex spastic paraplegia in which the cause of the disease is a mutation in the ALDH18A1 gene.

Autosomal recessive spinocerebellar ataxia is a neurologic disorder characterized by onset of progressive gait difficulties, eye movement abnormalities, and dysarthria in the first or second decade of life (summary by Dy et al., 2015).

Intestinal pseudo-obstruction is a condition characterized by impairment of the muscle contractions that move food through the digestive tract. It can occur at any time of life, and its symptoms range from mild to severe. The condition may arise from abnormalities of the gastrointestinal muscles themselves (myogenic) or from problems with the nerves that control the muscle contractions (neurogenic).\n\nWhen intestinal pseudo-obstruction occurs by itself, it is called primary or idiopathic intestinal pseudo-obstruction. The disorder can also develop as a complication of another health problem; in these cases, it is called secondary intestinal pseudo-obstruction. The condition can be episodic (acute) or persistent (chronic).\n\nIntestinal pseudo-obstruction leads to a buildup of partially digested food in the intestines. This buildup can cause abdominal swelling (distention) and pain, nausea, vomiting, and constipation or diarrhea. Affected individuals experience loss of appetite and impaired ability to absorb nutrients, which may lead to malnutrition. These symptoms resemble those of an intestinal blockage (obstruction), but in intestinal pseudo-obstruction no blockage is found.\n\nDepending on the cause of intestinal pseudo-obstruction, affected individuals can have additional signs and symptoms. Some people with intestinal pseudo-obstruction have bladder dysfunction such as an inability to pass urine. Other features may include decreased muscle tone (hypotonia) or stiffness (spasticity) of the torso and limbs, weakness in the muscles that control eye movement (ophthalmoplegia), intellectual disability, seizures, unusual facial features, or recurrent infections.

Friedreich ataxia (FRDA) is characterized by slowly progressive ataxia with onset usually before age 25 years (mean age at onset: 10-15 yrs). FRDA is typically associated with dysarthria, muscle weakness, spasticity particularly in the lower limbs, scoliosis, bladder dysfunction, absent lower-limb reflexes, and loss of position and vibration sense. Approximately two thirds of individuals with FRDA have cardiomyopathy, up to 30% have diabetes mellitus, and approximately 25% have an "atypical" presentation with later onset or retained tendon reflexes.

A complex form of hereditary spastic paraplegia characterised by a spastic paraplegia presenting in adolescence, associated with the additional manifestations of sensorial hearing impairment due to auditory neuropathy and persistent vomiting due to a hiatal or paraoesophageal hernia. The phenotype has been mapped to a locus on chromosome 1p31.1-p21.1.

Spinocerebellar ataxia-27A (SCA27A) is an autosomal dominant neurologic disorder characterized by general cerebellar dysfunction manifest as gait disturbances, ataxia, tremor, dysarthria, and gaze-evoked nystagmus. The age at onset is highly variable: some patients present in infancy with nystagmus or delayed motor development, whereas others present as adults with tremor or gait difficulties. The disorder is slowly progressive, and ataxia may be very subtle or even absent. Cerebellar atrophy may or may not be observed on brain imaging. Individuals with SCA27A often show mild developmental delay with variably impaired intellectual development. Many patients report an exacerbation of symptoms with fever, emotional stress, or exercise, which can be reminiscent of episodic ataxia or be associated with outbursts, depression, or other behavioral and psychiatric disturbances. There is significant inter- and intrafamilial variability and patients show various combinations of neurologic features (summary by Tucker et al., 2013; Piarroux et al., 2020; Ceroni et al., 2023). For a general discussion of autosomal dominant spinocerebellar ataxia, see SCA1 (164400).

Friedreich ataxia (FRDA) is an autosomal recessive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive gait and limb ataxia with associated limb muscle weakness, absent lower limb reflexes, extensor plantar responses, dysarthria, and decreased vibratory sense and proprioception. Onset is usually in the first or second decade, before the end of puberty (summary by Delatycki et al., 2000). For a general phenotypic description of Friedreich ataxia (FRDA), see FRDA1 (229300), which is caused by mutation in the FXN gene (606829) on chromosome 9q13.

A pure form of hereditary spastic paraplegia with late childhood to early adulthood-onset of slowly progressive spastic paraplegia with spastic gait and lower limb hyperreflexia, brisk tendon reflexes and ankle clonus. Lower limb pain and reduced lower limb vibratory sense is also reported in some older adult patients.

Autosomal recessive spastic paraplegia-46 (SPG46) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by onset in childhood of slowly progressive spastic paraplegia and cerebellar signs. Some patients have cognitive impairment, cataracts, and cerebral, cerebellar, and corpus callosum atrophy on brain imaging (summary by Boukhris et al., 2010 and Martin et al., 2013). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of autosomal recessive spastic paraplegia, see SPG5A (270800).

SPG53 is an autosomal recessive neurologic disorder characterized by onset in infancy of delayed motor development progressing to upper and lower limb spasticity with impaired walking. Affected individuals also show mild to moderate cognitive impairment (summary by Zivony-Elboum et al., 2012).

The overlapping phenotypes of neonatal adrenoleukodystrophy (NALD) and infantile Refsum disease (IRD) represent the milder manifestations of the Zellweger syndrome spectrum (ZSS) of peroxisome biogenesis disorders. The clinical course of patients with the NALD and IRD presentation is variable and may include developmental delay, hypotonia, liver dysfunction, sensorineural hearing loss, retinal dystrophy, and visual impairment. Children with the NALD presentation may reach their teens, and those with the IRD presentation may reach adulthood. Some patients with PEX10 mutations have a milder disorder characterized by childhood-onset cerebellar ataxia and neuropathy without mental retardation (summary by Waterham and Ebberink, 2012). For a complete phenotypic description and a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of PBD(NALD/IRD), see 601539. Individuals with mutations in the PEX10 gene have cells of complementation group 7 (CG7, equivalent to CGB). For information on the history of PBD complementation groups, see 214100.

Spastic paraplegia-79B (SPG79B) is an autosomal recessive progressive neurologic disorder characterized by onset of spastic paraplegia and optic atrophy in the first decade of life. Additional features are variable, but may include peripheral neuropathy, cerebellar ataxia, and cognitive impairment (summary by Rydning et al., 2017). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of autosomal recessive spastic paraplegia, see SPG5A (270800).

Hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathy type VIII is an autosomal recessive neurologic disorder characterized by congenital insensitivity to pain resulting in ulceration to the fingers, tongue, lips, and other distal appendages. Affected individuals may also have decreased sweating and tear production (summary by Chen et al., 2015). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathy, see HSAN1A (162400).

Axonal Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 2CC is an autosomal dominant peripheral neuropathy that predominantly affects the lower limbs, resulting in muscle weakness and atrophy and gait impairment. Other features include distal sensory impairment and less severe involvement of the upper limbs. The age at onset and severity are variable (summary by Rebelo et al., 2016). For a phenotypic description and a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of axonal CMT type 2, see CMT2A (118210).

Severe congenital neutropenia-3 is an autosomal recessive bone marrow failure disorder characterized by low numbers of neutrophils, increased susceptibility to bacterial and fungal infections, and increased risk of developing myelodysplastic syndrome or acute myeloid leukemia. In addition, patients with HAX1 mutations affecting both isoform A and B of the gene develop neurologic abnormalities (summary by Boztug et al., 2010). The Swedish physician Rolf Kostmann (1956) described an autosomal recessive hematologic disorder, termed infantile agranulocytosis, with severe neutropenia with an absolute neutrophil count below 0.5 x 10(9)/l and early onset of severe bacterial infections. The disorder was later termed Kostmann syndrome (Skokowa et al., 2007). Lekstrom-Himes and Gallin (2000) discussed severe congenital neutropenia in a review of immunodeficiencies caused by defects in phagocytes. In addition to Kostmann agranulocytosis, recessively inherited neutropenic syndromes include congenital neutropenia with eosinophilia (257100), Chediak-Higashi syndrome (214500), and Fanconi pancytopenic syndrome (see 227650). For a phenotypic description and a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of severe congenital neutropenia, see SCN1 (202700).

Sorbitol dehydrogenase deficiency with peripheral neuropathy (SORDD) is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by onset of distal muscle weakness mainly affecting the lower limbs and resulting in difficulty walking. Onset of symptoms is usually in the first or second decades of life, although later adult onset has been reported; the disorder is slowly progressive. Nerve conduction velocities are most consistent with an axonal process. More variable features include distal sensory impairment, upper limb tremor, and scoliosis. Laboratory studies show increased serum sorbitol (summary by Cortese et al., 2020).

Mitochondrial form of axonal Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease-1 (CMTMA1) is inherited only through the maternal line. The disorder is characterized by onset of distal muscle weakness and atrophy mainly affecting the lower limbs and resulting in difficulty walking in the second decade of life, although both earlier and later onset can occur. Upper limb involvement often develops with time, and affected individuals have weakness and atrophy of the intrinsic hand muscles. Other features may include distal sensory impairment, foot deformities, scoliosis, hypo- or hyperreflexia, spastic paraparesis, and neurogenic bladder. Electrophysiologic studies are compatible with an axonal sensorimotor peripheral neuropathy, and muscle and nerve biopsy show evidence of mitochondrial dysfunction with decreased activities of respiratory complexes, mtDNA deletions, and mitochondrial hyperplasia (summary by Fay et al., 2020).

PI4KA-related disorder is a clinically variable disorder characterized primarily by neurologic dysfunction (limb spasticity, developmental delay, intellectual disability, seizures, ataxia, nystagmus), gastrointestinal manifestations (multiple intestinal atresia, inflammatory bowel disease), and combined immunodeficiency (leukopenia, variable immunoglobulin defects). Age of onset is typically antenatal or in early childhood; individuals can present with any combination of these features. Rare individuals present with later-onset hereditary spastic paraplegia. Brain MRI findings can include hypomyelinating leukodystrophy, cerebellar hypoplasia/atrophy, thin or dysplastic corpus callosum, and/or perisylvian polymicrogyria.

Autosomal recessive spastic paraplegia-85 (SPG85) is a neurologic disorder characterized by the onset of motor symptoms in the first few years of life. Affected individuals have spasticity and hyperreflexia of the lower limbs resulting in gait abnormalities. Older patients may have upper limb involvement and demonstrate axonal polyneuropathy. Additional features include optic atrophy, dysarthria, dysphagia, ataxia, and urinary incontinence. Brain imaging may show cerebellar atrophy (summary by Wagner et al., 2019). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of autosomal recessive spastic paraplegia, see SPG5A (270800).

Autosomal recessive spastic paraplegia-78 is an adult-onset neurodegenerative disorder characterized predominantly by spasticity and muscle weakness of the lower limbs, resulting in gait difficulties and loss of ambulation in some patients. Affected individuals also have cerebellar signs, such as dysarthria, oculomotor disturbances, and limb and gait ataxia; brain imaging shows cerebellar atrophy. Some patients may have mild cognitive impairment or frank dementia. The phenotype is highly variable (summary by Estrada-Cuzcano et al., 2017). Biallelic mutation in the ATP13A2 gene also causes Kufor-Rakeb syndrome (KRS; 606693), a neurodegenerative disorder with overlapping features. Patients with KRS have earlier onset and prominent parkinsonism. Loss of ATP13A2 function results in a multidimensional spectrum of neurologic features reflecting various regions of the brain and nervous system, including cortical, pyramidal, extrapyramidal, brainstem, cerebellar, and peripheral (summary by Estrada-Cuzcano et al., 2017).

Combined oxidative phosphorylation deficiency-54 (COXPD54) is an autosomal recessive disorder with pleiotropic multisystem presentations resulting from a disruption in mitochondrial transcription and translation. The phenotype is highly variable. Many patients have early-onset sensorineural hearing loss, sometimes in isolation, and sometimes associated with global developmental delay or primary ovarian failure. Other features may include peripheral hypertonia, seizures, muscle weakness, behavioral abnormalities, and leukoencephalopathy on brain imaging. Serum lactate may or may not be elevated (summary by Hochberg et al., 2021). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of combined oxidative phosphorylation deficiency, see COXPD1 (609060).