Aicardi-Goutieres syndrome

Aicardi-Goutieres syndrome is an inherited disease that mainly affects the brain, immune system, and the skin. Loss of white matter in the brain (leukodystrophy) and abnormal deposits of calcium (calcification) in the brain leads to an early-onset severe brain dysfunction (encephalopathy) that usually results in severe intellectual and physical disability. Additional symptoms may include epilepsy, painful, itchy skin lesion (chilblains), vision problems, and joint and muscle stiffness (spasticity), involuntary muscle twisting and contractions (dystonia), and weak muscle tone (hypotonia) in the torso. Other signs and symptoms may include a very small head (microcephaly), presence of white blood cells and other sign of inflammation in the cerebrospinal fluid, which is the fluid that surrounds the brain and spinal cord (central nervous system). Symptoms usually progress over several months before the disease course stabilizes.

There are several types of Aicardi-Goutieres syndrome, depending on the gene that causes the condition: TREX1, RNASEH2A, RNASEH2B, RNASEH2C, SAMHD1, ADAR and IFIH1 , genes. Most cases are inherited in an autosomal recessive pattern, although rare autosomal dominant cases have been reported. Treatment is symptomatic and supportive. The prognosis depends mainly on the severity neurologic problems and in the age of onset of these problems.