A bench to bedside approach is used in our studies of human genetic disorders, integrating both basic and clinical research. We focus on a rare genetic disorder, Gaucher disease, and a common complex disorder, Parkinson disease. Most inherited diseases are characterized by a wide range of patient presentations, yet the factors contributing to this heterogeneity are elusive. Gaucher disease, the most common of the sphingolipidoses, is studied as a prototype because of the broad spectrum of clinical diversity resulting from this recessively inherited enzyme deficiency. Gaucher disease affects approximately 10,000 to 20,000 Americans and is more common among Ashkenazi Jews. Natural history studies, as well as molecular and biochemical evaluations in humans and animals, are used to enhance our understanding of heterogeneity in Gaucher disease and our ability to develop rational therapy for patients. In contrast, Parkinson disease is a common disorder that affects over 1.5 million Americans. The techniques, insights, and experience gained from our studies of Gaucher disease are being applied to the challenges of complex illnesses like Parkinson disease. An important consequence of our research was the discovery of an association between Gaucher disease and parkinsonism. Our clinical studies of patients with both disorders, neuropathologic evaluations, family studies and screening of tissues and DNA samples from subjects with Parkinson disease have all supported this link. Evaluations of patients with Gaucher disease and Parkinson disease demonstrate both classic and atypical features. Many different genotypes are encountered. Longitudinal imaging studies of these subjects and their affected or at-risk relatives using Positron Emission Tomography studies of the brain have been completed, establishing the rate of disease progression and degree of non-penetrance in our cohort. Longitudinal clinical evaluations of these at- risk individuals are continuing. Our work has led to the recognition that mutations in glucocerebrosidase are the most frequent inherited risk factor associated with parkinsonism. As a result, investigator in the field are now focusing on the role of lysosomal pathways in Parkinson parthenogenesis. Over the past two decades under our clinical protocols, we have established a vast bank of clinical data, DNA, RNA and tissue samples enabling us to understand the natural history and genotype/phenotype correlation in Gaucher disease. Our research has shown that although Gaucher disease is classically divided into three types, there is actually a continuum of manifestations. We have uncovered several unexpected phenotypes and have solid evidence that modifiers must contribute to this phenotypic diversity. Studying specific families, we have identified some with atypical inheritance resulting from germline mosiacism and uniparental disomy. Now utilizing next-generation sequencing strategies, we can better investigate the intricate relationships between clinical phenotypes, metabolic defects and genes in patient samples. Understanding the mechanisms leading to the diverse phenotypes in Gaucher disease may help in the identification of modifier genes and will provide insights relevant to other disorders. To enhance our studies of Gaucher disease and of parkinsonism we have been working to develop new cellular models. We have successfully studied patient derived macrophages in culture and show that they mimic the storage phenotype seen in patients. We have now also generated induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from patient fibroblasts and have differentiated these into macrophages, astrocytes and dopaminergic neurons. We find that they have an appropriate phenotype, with deficient glucocerebrosidase and increased glycolipid storage. iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons from patients with both Gaucher disease and Parkinson disease demonstrate elevated levels of alpha-synuclein. Another important goal is to develop new treatment strategies for patients. Enzyme replacement therapy for Gaucher disease has been shown to be clinically effective, but it is extremely costly, and requires life-long intravenous infusions. A potential alternative therapy is the use of small molecules that may function as chemical chaperones that can stabilize and enhance the patient s mutant enzyme. We are now exploring whether small molecule drugs may enhance the delivery of mutant glucocerebrosidase to the lysosome. In collaboration with NCATS, we have screened large libraries of compounds using mutant forms of the enzyme, identifying exciting lead molecules that are being developed as treatments for Gaucher disease. For the first time, we identified non-inhibitory chaperone molecules that result in translocation of the enzyme to the lysosome and enhancement of activity. These new non-inhibitory leads have been validated in our marcrophage models, and in iPS cells. The therapy resulted in enhanced enzymatic activity, decreased lipid storage and improved cellular function in these models. Treatment of dopaminerigic neurons from patients with parkinsonism also decreased the levels of alpha-synuclein. This approach may lead to more convenient and less costly therapy for Gaucher disease and may have important implications for the treatment of Parkinson disease.
| Davidson, Brad A; Hassan, Shahzeb; Garcia, Eric Joshua et al. (2018) Exploring genetic modifiers of Gaucher disease: The next horizon. Hum Mutat 39:1739-1751 |
| Gary, Sam E; Ryan, Emory; Steward, Alta M et al. (2018) Recent advances in the diagnosis and management of Gaucher disease. Expert Rev Endocrinol Metab 13:107-118 |
| Danilov, Sergei M; Tikhomirova, Victoria E; Metzger, Roman et al. (2018) ACE phenotyping in Gaucher disease. Mol Genet Metab 123:501-510 |
| Hassan, Shahzeb; Lopez, Grisel; Stubblefield, Barbara K et al. (2018) Alleles with more than one mutation can complicate genotype/phenotype studies in Mendelian disorders: Lessons from Gaucher disease. Mol Genet Metab 125:1-3 |
| Aflaki, Elma; Westbroek, Wendy; Sidransky, Ellen (2017) The Complicated Relationship between Gaucher Disease and Parkinsonism: Insights from a Rare Disease. Neuron 93:737-746 |
| Hagege, Ermias; Grey, Richard J; Lopez, Grisel et al. (2017) Type 2 Gaucher disease in an infant despite a normal maternal glucocerebrosidase gene. Am J Med Genet A 173:3211-3215 |
| Roshan Lal, Tamanna; Sidransky, Ellen (2017) The Spectrum of Neurological Manifestations Associated with Gaucher Disease. Diseases 5: |
| Borger, Daniel K; McMahon, Benjamin; Roshan Lal, Tamanna et al. (2017) Induced pluripotent stem cell models of lysosomal storage disorders. Dis Model Mech 10:691-704 |
| Aflaki, Elma; Borger, Daniel K; Grey, Richard J et al. (2017) Efferocytosis is impaired in Gaucher macrophages. Haematologica 102:656-665 |
| Hassan, Shahzeb; Sidransky, Ellen; Tayebi, Nahid (2017) The role of epigenetics in lysosomal storage disorders: Uncharted territory. Mol Genet Metab 122:10-18 |
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