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Nailing Down the Cause of Nerve Disorder |
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MONDAY, April 5 (HealthDayNews) -- An abnormality in the mitochondria, which produce energy for cells and fuels the nerves required for muscle control, is responsible for Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease (CMT), one of the most common inherited disorders in humans.
The discovery by neurogeneticists at Duke University's Center for Human Genetics and their international colleagues could help in the development of treatments for CMT and provide scientists with a better understanding of various diseases that affect the peripheral nervous system.
The study, published in the April 4 issue of Nature Genetics, included seven families with a form of the degenerative nerve disorder CMT type 2A. The scientists found the families had defects in a gene called mitofusin 2, which is critical to mitochondrial movement.
Using gene therapy to restore lost gene function in people with CMT might serve as an effective treatment, the researchers suggest.
There is no cure for CMT, which affects about 150,000 Americans. Symptoms include weakening of the feet and hands that gradually spreads to the arms and legs. Physical therapy and moderate activity to maintain muscle strength are the only treatments for CMT. People with the disorder often have to use leg braces, and some become wheelchair-dependent.
More information
The Muscular Dystrophy Association has more about CMT.
(SOURCE: Duke University, news release, April 4, 2004)
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