What type of disease is Leber amaurosis?

Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) is a rare type of inherited eye disorder that causes severe vision loss at birth. It is the most common cause of inherited blindness in childhood, and is found in two to three out of every 100,000 babies.

Is Leber congenital amaurosis progressive?

Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) primarily affects the retina, the specialized tissue at the back of the eye that detects light and color. Beginning in infancy, people with LCA typically have severe visual impairment. This is most often non-progressive, but sometimes it very slowly worsens over time.

What type of mutation is Leber congenital amaurosis?

Leber congenital amaurosis usually has an autosomal recessive pattern of inheritance. Autosomal recessive inheritance means both copies of the gene in each cell have mutations.

Is LCA an RP?

Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) is a rare recessive retinal degeneration that has similar clinical features as RP. However, it is distinct in that the onset of disease occurs within months following birth and results in profound vision loss very early in life.

Is there treatment for LCA?

Treatment for LCA is symptomatic and supportive. Genetic counseling is recommended for families of affected children.

What causes Leber congenital amaurosis?

When Leber congenital amaurosis is caused by mutations in the CRX or IMPDH1 genes, the disorder has an autosomal dominant pattern of inheritance. Autosomal dominant inheritance means one copy of the altered gene in each cell is sufficient to cause the disorder.

What mutations cause blindness?

Researchers have investigated a recessive genetic disorder that destroys the eyes from developing and results in childhood blindness. After analyzing the genomes of each member of a consanguineous family with affected children, the geneticists pinpointed pathogenic mutations in a new gene, MARK3, as being the cause.

Is Leber congenital amaurosis autosomal recessive?

LCA is usually inherited as an autosomal recessive genetic condition. Twenty-four of the genes associated with LCA cause only recessive disease. Two genes (IMPDH1 and OTX2) are known to cause dominant disease. One gene (CRX) is known to cause either dominant or recessive disease, depending on the specific mutation.

What are the symptoms of Leber congenital amaurosis?

Other symptoms may include crossed eyes (strabismus); rapid, involuntary eye movements (nystagmus); unusual sensitivity to light (photophobia); clouding of the lenses of the eyes (cataracts); and/or a cone shape to the front of the eye (keratoconus). LCA is usually inherited as an autosomal recessive genetic condition.

Can a mutation in rdh12 cause LCA?

Mutations in RDH12 have been linked to Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA) and autosomal dominant retinitis pigmentosa. A number of in-vitro studies have shown that mutations in RDH12 result in little or no enzyme activity.

Which is autosomal dominant genetic disorder causes LCA?

Causes. In rare cases, LCA is inherited as an autosomal dominant genetic disorder. Mutations in three genes, CRX, IMPDH1, and OTX2 are currently known to be associated with this type of LCA. Dominant genetic disorders occur when only a single copy of an abnormal gene is necessary to cause a particular disease.