Exercise Intolerance and Myoglobinuria Associated with a Novel Maternally Inherited MT-ND1 Mutation.

The most common clinical phenotype caused by a mtDNA mutation in complex I of the mitochondrial respiratory chain is Leber hereditary optic neuropathy. We report a family with a novel maternally inherited homoplasmic mtDNA m.4087A>G mutation in the ND1 gene (MT-ND1) associated with isolated myopathy, recurrent episodes of myoglobinuria, and rhabdomyolysis. DNA from blood in seven family members and muscle from four family members were PCR amplified and sequenced directly and assessed for the m.4087A>G variation in MT-ND1. Mitochondrial enzyme activity in all muscle biopsies was measured. PCR and direct sequencing of the MT-ND1 genes from blood showed that all seven family members were homoplasmic for the m.4087A>G mutation (NC_012920.1:c.781A>G). The mutation predicts a threonine to alanine substitution at position 261 (p.T261A). The same mutation was found in muscle of all four family members available for muscle biopsy, and biochemical analyses revealed an isolated complex I defect in muscle of all family members (range 22-52% of normal). Muscle morphology showed severe myopathic changes with internal nuclei in multiple fibers of all family members. Monosymptomatic myopathy with recurrent myoglobinuria is a rare phenotype of mitochondrial myopathies. We report this phenotype in a family affected by a novel homoplasmic mutation in MT-ND1. It is the first time such a phenotype has been associated with complex I gene mutations and a homoplasmic mutation of mtDNA.

A mitochondrial tRNA(Met) mutation causing developmental delay, exercise intolerance and limb girdle phenotype with onset in early childhood.

A 10-year-old girl presented with exercise intolerance, learning difficulty, and muscle weakness in a limb girdle distribution. She had delayed achievement of motor milestones and difficulties with social interaction at pre-school age. Muscle biopsy showed no myopathic or dystrophic features, but 90% COX negative fibres and ragged blue fibres. Respiratory chain enzyme analysis in muscle showed a combined deficiency and mitochondrial DNA sequencing revealed the presence of an m.4450G>A mutation in the MT-TM gene encoding the tRNA for methionine. The mutation was only detected in mtDNA extracted from muscle and skin fibroblast, and could not be found in other tissues or in the mother. This is the second patient reported in the literature with a mitochondrial myopathy due to a mt-tRNA(Met) mutation. The first patient, a 30-year-old woman, presented with exercise intolerance, limb girdle muscle weakness, lactic acidosis, learning difficulty, and growth retardation in early childhood. Thus, the two patients exhibit strikingly overlapping phenotypes.

A novel de novo mutation of the mitochondrial tRNAlys gene mt.8340G>a associated with pure myopathy.

Most patients with mutations in the tRNA(lys) gene (MTTK) present with symptoms from the central nervous system (CNS). We describe a 41-year-old woman with pure myopathy associated with a novel de novo mtDNA mutation, mt.8340G>A, which was heteroplasmic in muscle (53%), blood, urine and mouth epithelial cells (<7%). No other family members, including her mother, carried the mutation. She presented with exercise intolerance from age 9, and since age 20 she experienced ptosis and reduced ocular motility. A muscle biopsy revealed ragged red fibres (10%), no COX negative fibres, and many fibres with central nuclei (30%), indicating ongoing damage and repair. The present case expands the mutational and phenotypic spectrum of diseases associated with mutations in MTTK.

Recurrent myoglobinuria and deranged acylcarnitines due to a mutation in the mtDNA MT-CO2 gene.

Mitochondrial myopathies commonly present with exercise intolerance typified by breathlessness and fatigue on exercise. In contrast, exercise-induced rhabdomyolysis and myoglobinuria occur rarely. We present a 43-year-old man with a lifelong history of exercise intolerance associated with myalgia and recurrent episodes of exercise-induced myoglobinuria. From early childhood, he had weekly episodes of myoglobinuria, which became infrequent (every 3 months) as an adult. Carnitine transporter defect was suspected, because carnitine levels were low in muscle. During childhood, he was treated with carnitine (4-5 g daily), but without effect. With the advent of acylcarnitines, profiles mimicking but not diagnostic for multiple acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (MADD) were found. This led to treatment with riboflavin (100 mg/day for 3 years), again without effect. Clinical examination, including echocardiography, revealed no signs of involvement from other organs, and all relatives were asymptomatic.