U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Format

Send to:

Choose Destination

Hereditary spastic paraplegia 44(SPG44)

MedGen UID:
413042
Concept ID:
C2750784
Disease or Syndrome
Synonyms: Spastic Paraplegia 44; Spastic paraplegia 44, autosomal recessive
SNOMED CT: Autosomal recessive spastic paraplegia type 44 (723821002)
Modes of inheritance:
Autosomal recessive inheritance
MedGen UID:
141025
Concept ID:
C0441748
Intellectual Product
Source: Orphanet
A mode of inheritance that is observed for traits related to a gene encoded on one of the autosomes (i.e., the human chromosomes 1-22) in which a trait manifests in individuals with two pathogenic alleles, either homozygotes (two copies of the same mutant allele) or compound heterozygotes (whereby each copy of a gene has a distinct mutant allele).
 
Gene (location): GJC2 (1q42.13)
 
Monarch Initiative: MONDO:0013179
OMIM®: 613206
Orphanet: ORPHA320401

Definition

A very rare, complex form of hereditary spastic paraplegia characterised by a late-onset, slowly progressive spastic paraplegia associated with mild ataxia and dysarthria, upper extremity involvement (i.e. loss of finger dexterity, dysmetria), and mild cognitive impairment, without the presence of nystagmus. A hypomyelinating leucodystrophy and thin corpus callosum is observed in all cases and psychomotor development is normal or near normal. Caused by mutations in the GJC2 gene (1q41-q42) encoding the gap junction gamma-2 protein. [from SNOMEDCT_US]

Clinical features

From HPO
Urinary incontinence
MedGen UID:
22579
Concept ID:
C0042024
Finding
Loss of the ability to control the urinary bladder leading to involuntary urination.
Pes cavus
MedGen UID:
675590
Concept ID:
C0728829
Congenital Abnormality
An increase in height of the medial longitudinal arch of the foot that does not flatten on weight bearing (i.e., a distinctly hollow form of the sole of the foot when it is bearing weight).
Constipation
MedGen UID:
1101
Concept ID:
C0009806
Sign or Symptom
Infrequent or difficult evacuation of feces.
Sensorineural hearing loss disorder
MedGen UID:
9164
Concept ID:
C0018784
Disease or Syndrome
A type of hearing impairment in one or both ears related to an abnormal functionality of the cochlear nerve.
Cerebellar ataxia
MedGen UID:
849
Concept ID:
C0007758
Disease or Syndrome
Cerebellar ataxia refers to ataxia due to dysfunction of the cerebellum. This causes a variety of elementary neurological deficits including asynergy (lack of coordination between muscles, limbs and joints), dysmetria (lack of ability to judge distances that can lead to under- or overshoot in grasping movements), and dysdiadochokinesia (inability to perform rapid movements requiring antagonizing muscle groups to be switched on and off repeatedly).
Dysarthria
MedGen UID:
8510
Concept ID:
C0013362
Mental or Behavioral Dysfunction
Dysarthric speech is a general description referring to a neurological speech disorder characterized by poor articulation. Depending on the involved neurological structures, dysarthria may be further classified as spastic, flaccid, ataxic, hyperkinetic and hypokinetic, or mixed.
Babinski sign
MedGen UID:
19708
Concept ID:
C0034935
Finding
Upturning of the big toe (and sometimes fanning of the other toes) in response to stimulation of the sole of the foot. If the Babinski sign is present it can indicate damage to the corticospinal tract.
Seizure
MedGen UID:
20693
Concept ID:
C0036572
Sign or Symptom
A seizure is an intermittent abnormality of nervous system physiology characterized by a transient occurrence of signs and/or symptoms due to abnormal excessive or synchronous neuronal activity in the brain.
Spastic paraplegia
MedGen UID:
20882
Concept ID:
C0037772
Disease or Syndrome
Spasticity and weakness of the leg and hip muscles.
Hyperreflexia
MedGen UID:
57738
Concept ID:
C0151889
Finding
Hyperreflexia is the presence of hyperactive stretch reflexes of the muscles.
Spastic gait
MedGen UID:
115907
Concept ID:
C0231687
Finding
Spasticity is manifested by increased stretch reflex which is intensified with movement velocity. This results in excessive and inappropriate muscle activation which can contribute to muscle hypertonia. Spastic gait is characterized by manifestations such as muscle hypertonia, stiff knee, and circumduction of the leg.
Dysmetria
MedGen UID:
68583
Concept ID:
C0234162
Finding
A type of ataxia characterized by the inability to carry out movements with the correct range and motion across the plane of more than one joint related to incorrect estimation of the distances required for targeted movements.
Cognitive impairment
MedGen UID:
90932
Concept ID:
C0338656
Mental or Behavioral Dysfunction
Abnormal cognition is characterized by deficits in thinking, reasoning, or remembering.
Hypoplasia of the corpus callosum
MedGen UID:
138005
Concept ID:
C0344482
Congenital Abnormality
Underdevelopment of the corpus callosum.
Lower limb spasticity
MedGen UID:
220865
Concept ID:
C1271100
Finding
Spasticity (velocity-dependent increase in tonic stretch reflexes with increased muscle tone and hyperexcitable tendon reflexes) in the muscles of the lower limbs, hips, and pelvis.
Upper limb spasticity
MedGen UID:
220882
Concept ID:
C1273957
Finding
Distal sensory impairment
MedGen UID:
335722
Concept ID:
C1847584
Finding
An abnormal reduction in sensation in the distal portions of the extremities.
CNS hypomyelination
MedGen UID:
892446
Concept ID:
C4025616
Finding
Reduced amount of myelin in the central nervous system resulting from defective myelinogenesis.
Intention tremor
MedGen UID:
1642960
Concept ID:
C4551520
Sign or Symptom
A type of kinetic tremor that occurs during target directed movement is called intention tremor. That is, an oscillatory cerebellar ataxia that tends to be absent when the limbs are inactive and during the first part of voluntary movement but worsening as the movement continues and greater precision is required (e.g., in touching a target such as the patient's nose or a physician's finger).
Scoliosis
MedGen UID:
11348
Concept ID:
C0036439
Disease or Syndrome
The presence of an abnormal lateral curvature of the spine.
Nystagmus
MedGen UID:
45166
Concept ID:
C0028738
Disease or Syndrome
Rhythmic, involuntary oscillations of one or both eyes related to abnormality in fixation, conjugate gaze, or vestibular mechanisms.
Strabismus
MedGen UID:
21337
Concept ID:
C0038379
Disease or Syndrome
A misalignment of the eyes so that the visual axes deviate from bifoveal fixation. The classification of strabismus may be based on a number of features including the relative position of the eyes, whether the deviation is latent or manifest, intermittent or constant, concomitant or otherwise and according to the age of onset and the relevance of any associated refractive error.
Slow saccadic eye movements
MedGen UID:
232942
Concept ID:
C1321329
Finding
An abnormally slow velocity of the saccadic eye movements.

Term Hierarchy

CClinical test,  RResearch test,  OOMIM,  GGeneReviews,  VClinVar  
  • CROGVHereditary spastic paraplegia 44
Follow this link to review classifications for Hereditary spastic paraplegia 44 in Orphanet.

Professional guidelines

Recent clinical studies

Etiology

Ho NJ, Chen X, Lei Y, Gu S
Zool Res 2023 May 18;44(3):650-662. doi: 10.24272/j.issn.2095-8137.2022.281. PMID: 37161652Free PMC Article
Fereshtehnejad SM, Saleh PA, Oliveira LM, Patel N, Bhowmick S, Saranza G, Kalia LV
Neurol Sci 2023 Mar;44(3):947-959. Epub 2022 Nov 28 doi: 10.1007/s10072-022-06516-8. PMID: 36441344Free PMC Article
Yang JO, Yoon JY, Sung DH, Yun S, Lee JJ, Jun SY, Halder D, Jeon SJ, Woo EJ, Seok JM, Cho JW, Jang JH, Choi JK, Kim BJ, Kim NS
Genomics 2021 Nov;113(6):4136-4148. Epub 2021 Oct 27 doi: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2021.10.014. PMID: 34715294
González-Salazar C, Takazaki KAG, Martinez ARM, Pimentel-Silva LR, Jacinto-Scudeiro LA, Nakagawa ÉY, Fujiwara Murakami CE, Saute JAM, Pedroso JL, Barsottini OGP, Teive HAG, França MC Jr
Eur J Neurol 2019 Apr;26(4):687-693. Epub 2019 Jan 10 doi: 10.1111/ene.13878. PMID: 30489674
Servelhere KR, Faber I, Saute JA, Moscovich M, D'Abreu A, Jardim LB, Teive HA, Lopes-Cendes I, Franca MC Jr
Eur J Neurol 2016 Feb;23(2):408-11. doi: 10.1111/ene.12839. PMID: 26806216

Diagnosis

Saffari A, Kellner M, Jordan C, Rosengarten H, Mo A, Zhang B, Strelko O, Neuser S, Davis MY, Yoshikura N, Futamura N, Takeuchi T, Nabatame S, Ishiura H, Tsuji S, Aldeen HS, Cali E, Rocca C, Houlden H, Efthymiou S, Assmann B, Yoon G, Trombetta BA, Kivisäkk P, Eichler F, Nan H, Takiyama Y, Tessa A, Santorelli FM, Sahin M, Blackstone C, Yang E, Schüle R, Ebrahimi-Fakhari D
Brain 2023 May 2;146(5):2003-2015. doi: 10.1093/brain/awac391. PMID: 36315648Free PMC Article
Panwala TF, Garcia-Santibanez R, Vizcarra JA, Garcia AG, Verma S
Pediatr Neurol 2022 May;130:7-13. Epub 2022 Mar 3 doi: 10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2022.02.007. PMID: 35303589
Yang JO, Yoon JY, Sung DH, Yun S, Lee JJ, Jun SY, Halder D, Jeon SJ, Woo EJ, Seok JM, Cho JW, Jang JH, Choi JK, Kim BJ, Kim NS
Genomics 2021 Nov;113(6):4136-4148. Epub 2021 Oct 27 doi: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2021.10.014. PMID: 34715294
Du J
J Clin Neurosci 2021 Mar;85:67-71. Epub 2021 Jan 15 doi: 10.1016/j.jocn.2020.11.036. PMID: 33581793
Haj Salem I, Beaudin M, Stumpf M, Estiar MA, Côté PO, Brunet F, Gamache PL, Rouleau GA, Mourabit-Amari K, Gan-Or Z, Dupré N
Can J Neurol Sci 2021 Sep;48(5):655-665. Epub 2021 Jan 5 doi: 10.1017/cjn.2020.277. PMID: 33397523

Therapy

Diella E, D'Angelo MG, Stefan C, Girardi G, Morganti R, Martinuzzi A, Biffi E
PLoS One 2024;19(4):e0301452. Epub 2024 Apr 1 doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0301452. PMID: 38557877Free PMC Article
Saffari A, Kellner M, Jordan C, Rosengarten H, Mo A, Zhang B, Strelko O, Neuser S, Davis MY, Yoshikura N, Futamura N, Takeuchi T, Nabatame S, Ishiura H, Tsuji S, Aldeen HS, Cali E, Rocca C, Houlden H, Efthymiou S, Assmann B, Yoon G, Trombetta BA, Kivisäkk P, Eichler F, Nan H, Takiyama Y, Tessa A, Santorelli FM, Sahin M, Blackstone C, Yang E, Schüle R, Ebrahimi-Fakhari D
Brain 2023 May 2;146(5):2003-2015. doi: 10.1093/brain/awac391. PMID: 36315648Free PMC Article
Bastani PB, Kordjazi M, Oveisgharan S, Abdi S
J Clin Neurophysiol 2023 Feb 1;40(2):173-179. Epub 2021 Nov 23 doi: 10.1097/WNP.0000000000000874. PMID: 34817445
van de Venis L, van de Warrenburg BPC, Weerdesteyn V, van Lith BJH, Geurts ACH, Nonnekes J
Trials 2021 Jan 7;22(1):32. doi: 10.1186/s13063-020-04932-9. PMID: 33413555Free PMC Article
Ardolino G, Bocci T, Nigro M, Vergari M, Di Fonzo A, Bonato S, Cogiamanian F, Cortese F, Cova I, Barbieri S, Priori A
J Spinal Cord Med 2021 Jan;44(1):46-53. Epub 2018 Dec 3 doi: 10.1080/10790268.2018.1543926. PMID: 30508408Free PMC Article

Prognosis

Zhang Q, Yang Q, Luo J, Zhou X, Yi S, Tan S, Qin Z
BMC Med Genomics 2024 Jan 31;17(1):44. doi: 10.1186/s12920-024-01805-x. PMID: 38297306Free PMC Article
Jones HF, Stoll M, Ho G, O'Neill D, Han VX, Paget S, Stewart K, Lewis J, Kothur K, Troedson C, Crow YJ, Dale RC, Mohammad SS
Brain Dev 2022 Feb;44(2):153-160. Epub 2021 Oct 24 doi: 10.1016/j.braindev.2021.10.001. PMID: 34702576
Yang JO, Yoon JY, Sung DH, Yun S, Lee JJ, Jun SY, Halder D, Jeon SJ, Woo EJ, Seok JM, Cho JW, Jang JH, Choi JK, Kim BJ, Kim NS
Genomics 2021 Nov;113(6):4136-4148. Epub 2021 Oct 27 doi: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2021.10.014. PMID: 34715294
Kumar KR, Wali GM, Kamate M, Wali G, Minoche AE, Puttick C, Pinese M, Gayevskiy V, Dinger ME, Roscioli T, Sue CM, Cowley MJ
Neurogenetics 2016 Oct;17(4):265-270. Epub 2016 Sep 28 doi: 10.1007/s10048-016-0495-z. PMID: 27679996Free PMC Article

Clinical prediction guides

Saffari A, Kellner M, Jordan C, Rosengarten H, Mo A, Zhang B, Strelko O, Neuser S, Davis MY, Yoshikura N, Futamura N, Takeuchi T, Nabatame S, Ishiura H, Tsuji S, Aldeen HS, Cali E, Rocca C, Houlden H, Efthymiou S, Assmann B, Yoon G, Trombetta BA, Kivisäkk P, Eichler F, Nan H, Takiyama Y, Tessa A, Santorelli FM, Sahin M, Blackstone C, Yang E, Schüle R, Ebrahimi-Fakhari D
Brain 2023 May 2;146(5):2003-2015. doi: 10.1093/brain/awac391. PMID: 36315648Free PMC Article
Yang JO, Yoon JY, Sung DH, Yun S, Lee JJ, Jun SY, Halder D, Jeon SJ, Woo EJ, Seok JM, Cho JW, Jang JH, Choi JK, Kim BJ, Kim NS
Genomics 2021 Nov;113(6):4136-4148. Epub 2021 Oct 27 doi: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2021.10.014. PMID: 34715294
Du J
J Clin Neurosci 2021 Mar;85:67-71. Epub 2021 Jan 15 doi: 10.1016/j.jocn.2020.11.036. PMID: 33581793
González-Salazar C, Takazaki KAG, Martinez ARM, Pimentel-Silva LR, Jacinto-Scudeiro LA, Nakagawa ÉY, Fujiwara Murakami CE, Saute JAM, Pedroso JL, Barsottini OGP, Teive HAG, França MC Jr
Eur J Neurol 2019 Apr;26(4):687-693. Epub 2019 Jan 10 doi: 10.1111/ene.13878. PMID: 30489674
Servelhere KR, Faber I, Saute JA, Moscovich M, D'Abreu A, Jardim LB, Teive HA, Lopes-Cendes I, Franca MC Jr
Eur J Neurol 2016 Feb;23(2):408-11. doi: 10.1111/ene.12839. PMID: 26806216

Recent systematic reviews

Fereshtehnejad SM, Saleh PA, Oliveira LM, Patel N, Bhowmick S, Saranza G, Kalia LV
Neurol Sci 2023 Mar;44(3):947-959. Epub 2022 Nov 28 doi: 10.1007/s10072-022-06516-8. PMID: 36441344Free PMC Article
Du J
J Clin Neurosci 2021 Mar;85:67-71. Epub 2021 Jan 15 doi: 10.1016/j.jocn.2020.11.036. PMID: 33581793

Supplemental Content

Table of contents

    Clinical resources

    Practice guidelines

    • PubMed
      See practice and clinical guidelines in PubMed. The search results may include broader topics and may not capture all published guidelines. See the FAQ for details.

    Recent activity

    Your browsing activity is empty.

    Activity recording is turned off.

    Turn recording back on

    See more...