Natural History, Phenotypic Spectrum, and Discriminative Features of Multisystemic RFC1 Disease


Traschutz A., Cortese A., Reich S., Dominik N., Faber J., Jacobi H., ...More

NEUROLOGY, vol.96, no.9, 2021 (SCI-Expanded) identifier identifier identifier

  • Publication Type: Article / Article
  • Volume: 96 Issue: 9
  • Publication Date: 2021
  • Doi Number: 10.1212/wnl.0000000000011528
  • Journal Name: NEUROLOGY
  • Journal Indexes: Science Citation Index Expanded (SCI-EXPANDED), Scopus, PASCAL, BIOSIS, CAB Abstracts, CINAHL, Educational research abstracts (ERA), EMBASE, MEDLINE, MLA - Modern Language Association Database, Psycinfo, Veterinary Science Database
  • Bursa Uludag University Affiliated: Yes

Abstract

Objective To delineate the full phenotypic spectrum, discriminative features, piloting longitudinal progression data, and sample size calculations of replication factor complex subunit 1 (RFC1) repeat expansions, recently identified as causing cerebellar ataxia, neuropathy, vestibular areflexia syndrome (CANVAS). Methods Multimodal RFC1 repeat screening (PCR, Southern blot, whole-exome/genome sequencing-based approaches) combined with cross-sectional and longitudinal deep phenotyping in (1) cross-European cohort A (70 families) with >= 2 features of CANVAS or ataxia with chronic cough (ACC) and (2) Turkish cohort B (105 families) with unselected late-onset ataxia. Results Prevalence of RFC1 disease was 67% in cohort A, 14% in unselected cohort B, 68% in clinical CANVAS, and 100% in ACC. RFC1 disease was also identified in Western and Eastern Asian individuals and even by whole-exome sequencing. Visual compensation, sensory symptoms, and cough were strong positive discriminative predictors (>90%) against RFC1-negative patients. The phenotype across 70 RFC1-positive patients was mostly multisystemic (69%), including dysautonomia (62%) and bradykinesia (28%) (overlap with cerebellar-type multiple system atrophy [MSA-C]), postural instability (49%), slow vertical saccades (17%), and chorea or dystonia (11%). Ataxia progression was approximate to 1.3 Scale for the Assessment and Rating of Ataxia points per year (32 cross-sectional, 17 longitudinal assessments, follow-up <= 9 years [mean 3.1 years]) but also included early falls, variable nonlinear phases of MSA-C-like progression (SARA points 2.5-5.5 per year), and premature death. Treatment trials require 330 (1-year trial) and 132 (2-year trial) patients in total to detect 50% reduced progression. Conclusions RFC1 disease is frequent and occurs across continents, with CANVAS and ACC as highly diagnostic phenotypes yet as variable, overlapping clusters along a continuous multisystemic disease spectrum, including MSA-C-overlap. Our natural history data help to inform future RFC1 treatment trials. Classification of Evidence This study provides Class II evidence that RFC1 repeat expansions are associated with CANVAS and ACC.