Galactose supplementation in phosphoglucomutase-1 deficiency; review and outlook for a novel treatable CDG.

We recently redefined phosphoglucomutase-1 deficiency not only as an enzyme defect, involved in normal glycogen metabolism, but also an inborn error of protein glycosylation. Phosphoglucomutase-1 is a key enzyme in glycolysis and glycogenesis by catalyzing in the bidirectional transfer of phosphate from position 1 to 6 on glucose. Glucose-1-P and UDP-glucose are closely linked to galactose metabolism. Normal PGM1 activity is important for effective glycolysis during fasting. Activated glucose and galactose are essential for normal protein glycosylation. The complex defect involving abnormal concentrations of activated sugars leads to hypoglycemia and two major phenotypic presentations, one with primary muscle involvement and the other with severe multisystem disease. The multisystem phenotype includes growth delay and malformations, like cleft palate or uvula, and liver, endocrine and heart function with possible cardiomyopathy. The patients have normal intelligence. Decreased transferrin galactosylation is a characteristic finding on mass spectrometry. Previous in vitro studies in patient fibroblasts showed an improvement of glycosylation on galactose supplements. Four patients with PGM1 deficiency have been trialed on d-galactose (compassionate use), and showed improvement of serum transferrin hypoglycosylation. There was a parallel improvement of liver function, endocrine abnormalities and a decrease in the frequency of hypoglycemic episodes. No side effects have been observed. Galactose supplementation didn't seem to resolve all clinical symptoms. Adding complex carbohydrates showed an additional clinical amelioration. Based on the available clinical data we suggest to consider the use of 0.5-1g/kg/day d-galactose and maximum 50 g/day oral galactose therapy in PGM1-CDG. The existing data on galactose therapy have to be viewed as preliminary observations. A prospective multicenter trial is ongoing to evaluate the efficacy and optimal d-galactose dose of galactose supplementation.

Morava E 《-》

A novel phosphoglucomutase-deficient mouse model reveals aberrant glycosylation and early embryonic lethality.

Patients with phosphoglucomutase (PGM1) deficiency, a congenital disorder of glycosylation (CDG) suffer from multiple disease phenotypes. Midline cleft defects are present at birth. Overtime, additional clinical phenotypes, which include severe hypoglycemia, hepatopathy, growth retardation, hormonal deficiencies, hemostatic anomalies, frequently lethal, early-onset of dilated cardiomyopathy and myopathy emerge, reflecting the central roles of the enzyme in (glycogen) metabolism and glycosylation. To delineate the pathophysiology of the tissue-specific disease phenotypes, we constructed a constitutive Pgm2 (mouse ortholog of human PGM1)-knockout (KO) mouse model using CRISPR-Cas9 technology. After multiple crosses between heterozygous parents, we were unable to identify homozygous life births in 78 newborn pups (P = 1.59897E-06), suggesting an embryonic lethality phenotype in the homozygotes. Ultrasound studies of the course of pregnancy confirmed Pgm2-deficient pups succumb before E9.5. Oral galactose supplementation (9 mg/mL drinking water) did not rescue the lethality. Biochemical studies of tissues and skin fibroblasts harvested from heterozygous animals confirmed reduced Pgm2 enzyme activity and abundance, but no change in glycogen content. However, glycomics analyses in serum revealed an abnormal glycosylation pattern in the Pgm2+/- animals, similar to that seen in PGM1-CDG.

Balakrishnan B ，Verheijen J ，Lupo A ，Raymond K ，Turgeon C ，Yang Y ，Carter KL ，Whitehead KJ ，Kozicz T ，Morava E ，Lai K ... -  《-》

Phosphoglucomutase-1 deficiency: Early presentation, metabolic management and detection in neonatal blood spots.

Phosphoglucomutase 1 deficiency is a congenital disorder of glycosylation (CDG) with multiorgan involvement affecting carbohydrate metabolism, N-glycosylation and energy production. The metabolic management consists of dietary D-galactose supplementation that ameliorates hypoglycemia, hepatic dysfunction, endocrine anomalies and growth delay. Previous studies suggest that D-galactose administration in juvenile patients leads to more significant and long-lasting effects, stressing the urge of neonatal diagnosis (0-6 months of age). Here, we detail the early clinical presentation of PGM1-CDG in eleven infantile patients, and applied the modified Beutler test for screening of PGM1-CDG in neonatal dried blood spots (DBSs). All eleven infants presented episodic hypoglycemia and elevated transaminases, along with cleft palate and growth delay (10/11), muscle involvement (8/11), neurologic involvement (5/11), cardiac defects (2/11). Standard dietary measures for suspected lactose intolerance in four patients prior to diagnosis led to worsening of hypoglycemia, hepatic failure and recurrent diarrhea, which resolved upon D-galactose supplementation. To investigate possible differences in early vs. late clinical presentation, we performed the first systematic literature review for PGM1-CDG, which highlighted respiratory and gastrointestinal symptoms as significantly more diagnosed in neonatal age. The modified Butler-test successfully identified PGM1-CDG in DBSs from seven patients, including for the first time Guthrie cards from newborn screening, confirming the possibility of future inclusion of PGM1-CDG in neonatal screening programs. In conclusion, severe infantile morbidity of PGM1-CDG due to delayed diagnosis could be prevented by raising awareness on its early presentation and by inclusion in newborn screening programs, enabling early treatments and galactose-based metabolic management.

Conte F ，Morava E ，Bakar NA ，Wortmann SB ，Poerink AJ ，Grunewald S ，Crushell E ，Al-Gazali L ，de Vries MC ，Mørkrid L ，Hertecant J ，Brocke Holmefjord KS ，Kronn D ，Feigenbaum A ，Fingerhut R ，Wong SY ，van Scherpenzeel M ，Voermans NC ，Lefeber DJ ... -  《-》

Coagulation abnormalities and vascular complications are common in PGM1-CDG.

Phosphoglucomutase-1-congenital disorder of glycosylation (PGM1-CDG) is a rare genetic disorder caused by biallelic variants in the PGM1 gene, leading to the deficiency of the PGM1 enzyme. The most common clinical presentations include muscle involvement, failure to thrive, cleft palate, and cardiac involvement. Abnormal serum N-glycosylation, hypoglycemia, and liver function abnormalities including coagulation abnormalities are the most common laboratory abnormalities. While PGM1-CDG has been extensively studied, little is known about the extent of the coagulation abnormalities in individuals with PGM1-CDG. Unlike most CDG, some symptoms of PGM1-CDG are treatable with D-galactose (D-gal) supplementation, though reliable clinical endpoints are necessary to appropriately evaluate the potential improvement with D-gal in PGM1-CDG. Here, we aimed to describe the incidence of coagulation abnormalities in PGM1-CDG and their evolution, their relation to clinical events, and the ability of D-gal treatment to improve them. A retrospective analysis was conducted on 73 reported individuals. All individuals had a molecularly confirmed PGM1-CDG diagnosis. All incidences of antithrombin (AT), aPTT, PT, factor (F) XI, FX, FIX, FVII, protein C and protein S data and major clinical events related to coagulation abnormalities, were collected. Coagulation information was available for only 58.9 % of the reported individuals, out of which 67.4 % of PGM1-CDG individuals were reported to have abnormalities. The most frequently observed abnormality was AT (mean: 30.8% R:80-120 %) deficiency. Four individuals had major thrombotic events. Coagulation status on D-gal treatment, were reported in 19 individuals. Several factors showed improvement including AT (mean: 64.5 %), indicating galactose is beneficial in treating coagulation abnormalities in PGM1-CDG. Due to the scarcity of the reported data on coagulation parameters, we also evaluated data collected in sixteen PGM1-CDG individuals enrolled in the FCDGC Natural History Study. Longitudinal data showed improvements in several coagulant parameters and disease severity improved for almost all patients of whom we had multiple datapoints on D-gal. AT showed significant improvement on D-gal. We conclude that coagulation abnormalities are frequently present in PGM1-CDG and show improvement on D-gal. We recommend coagulation parameters should be routinely checked in individuals with PGM1-CDG or suspected of having PGM1-CDG. Finally, AT may be used as a primary or secondary clinical endpoint for upcoming clinical trials in PGM1-CDG individuals.

Radenkovic S ，Bleukx S ，Engelhardt N ，Eklund E ，Mercimek-Andrews S ，Edmondson AC ，Morava E ... -  《-》

The Metabolic Map into the Pathomechanism and Treatment of PGM1-CDG.

Phosphoglucomutase 1 (PGM1) encodes the metabolic enzyme that interconverts glucose-6-P and glucose-1-P. Mutations in PGM1 cause impairment in glycogen metabolism and glycosylation, the latter manifesting as a congenital disorder of glycosylation (CDG). This unique metabolic defect leads to abnormal N-glycan synthesis in the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and the Golgi apparatus (GA). On the basis of the decreased galactosylation in glycan chains, galactose was administered to individuals with PGM1-CDG and was shown to markedly reverse most disease-related laboratory abnormalities. The disease and treatment mechanisms, however, have remained largely elusive. Here, we confirm the clinical benefit of galactose supplementation in PGM1-CDG-affected individuals and obtain significant insights into the functional and biochemical regulation of glycosylation. We report here that, by using tracer-based metabolomics, we found that galactose treatment of PGM1-CDG fibroblasts metabolically re-wires their sugar metabolism, and as such replenishes the depleted levels of galactose-1-P, as well as the levels of UDP-glucose and UDP-galactose, the nucleotide sugars that are required for ER- and GA-linked glycosylation, respectively. To this end, we further show that the galactose in UDP-galactose is incorporated into mature, de novo glycans. Our results also allude to the potential of monosaccharide therapy for several other CDG.

Radenkovic S ，Bird MJ ，Emmerzaal TL ，Wong SY ，Felgueira C ，Stiers KM ，Sabbagh L ，Himmelreich N ，Poschet G ，Windmolders P ，Verheijen J ，Witters P ，Altassan R ，Honzik T ，Eminoglu TF ，James PM ，Edmondson AC ，Hertecant J ，Kozicz T ，Thiel C ，Vermeersch P ，Cassiman D ，Beamer L ，Morava E ，Ghesquière B ... -  《-》