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. 2017 May 1;140(5):1316-1336.
doi: 10.1093/brain/awx054.

Genetic and phenotypic heterogeneity suggest therapeutic implications in SCN2A-related disorders

Markus Wolff  1 Katrine M Johannesen  2   3 Ulrike B S Hedrich  4 Silvia Masnada  5 Guido Rubboli  2   6 Elena Gardella  2   3 Gaetan Lesca  7   8   9 Dorothée Ville  10 Mathieu Milh  11   12 Laurent Villard  12 Alexandra Afenjar  13 Sandra Chantot-Bastaraud  13 Cyril Mignot  14 Caroline Lardennois  15 Caroline Nava  16   17 Niklas Schwarz  4 Marion Gérard  18 Laurence Perrin  19 Diane Doummar  20 Stéphane Auvin  21   22 Maria J Miranda  23 Maja Hempel  24 Eva Brilstra  25 Nine Knoers  25 Nienke Verbeek  25 Marjan van Kempen  25 Kees P Braun  26 Grazia Mancini  27 Saskia Biskup  28 Konstanze Hörtnagel  28 Miriam Döcker  28 Thomas Bast  29 Tobias Loddenkemper  30 Lily Wong-Kisiel  31 Friedrich M Baumeister  32 Walid Fazeli  33 Pasquale Striano  34 Robertino Dilena  35 Elena Fontana  36 Federico Zara  37 Gerhard Kurlemann  38 Joerg Klepper  39 Jess G Thoene  40 Daniel H Arndt  41 Nicolas Deconinck  42 Thomas Schmitt-Mechelke  43 Oliver Maier  44 Hiltrud Muhle  45 Beverly Wical  46 Claudio Finetti  47 Reinhard Brückner  48 Joachim Pietz  49 Günther Golla  50 Dinesh Jillella  51 Karen M Linnet  52 Perrine Charles  53 Ute Moog  54 Eve Õiglane-Shlik  55 John F Mantovani  56 Kristen Park  57 Marie Deprez  58 Damien Lederer  58 Sandrine Mary  58 Emmanuel Scalais  59 Laila Selim  60 Rudy Van Coster  61 Lieven Lagae  62 Marina Nikanorova  2 Helle Hjalgrim  2   3 G Christoph Korenke  63 Marina Trivisano  64 Nicola Specchio  64 Berten Ceulemans  65 Thomas Dorn  66 Katherine L Helbig  67 Katia Hardies  68   69 Hannah Stamberger  68   69   70 Peter de Jonghe  68   69   70 Sarah Weckhuysen  68   69   70 Johannes R Lemke  71 Ingeborg Krägeloh-Mann  1 Ingo Helbig  45   72 Gerhard Kluger  73   74 Holger Lerche  4 Rikke S Møller  2   3
Affiliations

Genetic and phenotypic heterogeneity suggest therapeutic implications in SCN2A-related disorders

Markus Wolff et al. Brain. .

Abstract

Mutations in SCN2A, a gene encoding the voltage-gated sodium channel Nav1.2, have been associated with a spectrum of epilepsies and neurodevelopmental disorders. Here, we report the phenotypes of 71 patients and review 130 previously reported patients. We found that (i) encephalopathies with infantile/childhood onset epilepsies (≥3 months of age) occur almost as often as those with an early infantile onset (<3 months), and are thus more frequent than previously reported; (ii) distinct phenotypes can be seen within the late onset group, including myoclonic-atonic epilepsy (two patients), Lennox-Gastaut not emerging from West syndrome (two patients), and focal epilepsies with an electrical status epilepticus during slow sleep-like EEG pattern (six patients); and (iii) West syndrome constitutes a common phenotype with a major recurring mutation (p.Arg853Gln: two new and four previously reported children). Other known phenotypes include Ohtahara syndrome, epilepsy of infancy with migrating focal seizures, and intellectual disability or autism without epilepsy. To assess the response to antiepileptic therapy, we retrospectively reviewed the treatment regimen and the course of the epilepsy in 66 patients for which well-documented medical information was available. We find that the use of sodium channel blockers was often associated with clinically relevant seizure reduction or seizure freedom in children with early infantile epilepsies (<3 months), whereas other antiepileptic drugs were less effective. In contrast, sodium channel blockers were rarely effective in epilepsies with later onset (≥3 months) and sometimes induced seizure worsening. Regarding the genetic findings, truncating mutations were exclusively seen in patients with late onset epilepsies and lack of response to sodium channel blockers. Functional characterization of four selected missense mutations using whole cell patch-clamping in tsA201 cells-together with data from the literature-suggest that mutations associated with early infantile epilepsy result in increased sodium channel activity with gain-of-function, characterized by slowing of fast inactivation, acceleration of its recovery or increased persistent sodium current. Further, a good response to sodium channel blockers clinically was found to be associated with a relatively small gain-of-function. In contrast, mutations in patients with late-onset forms and an insufficient response to sodium channel blockers were associated with loss-of-function effects, including a depolarizing shift of voltage-dependent activation or a hyperpolarizing shift of channel availability (steady-state inactivation). Our clinical and experimental data suggest a correlation between age at disease onset, response to sodium channel blockers and the functional properties of mutations in children with SCN2A-related epilepsy.

Keywords: SCN2A; epilepsy; epilepsy genetics; sodium channel blockers; treatment response.

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