https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31037088 Neimann-Pick disease
Iran J Child Neurol. 2019 Spring;13(2):155-162.

Niemann-Pick Diseases: The Largest Iranian Cohort with Genetic Analysis.

Hashemian S1, Eshraghi P1, Dilaver N2, Galehdari H3,4, Shalbafan B5, Vakili R6,7, Ghaemi N1, Ahangari N7, Rezazadeh Varaghchi J8, Zeighami J3, Sedaghat A3,9, Aminzadeh M10, Hamid M3,11, Saberi A3,12, Ashtari F13, Ghayoor Karimiani E14,15, Shariati G3,12.

Abstract

OBJECTIVES:
Niemann-Pick diseases (NPD) is an autosomal recessive inherited lysosomal lipid storage disorder which occurs due to a defect in cellular cholesterol trafficking, leading to excess lipid accumulation in multiple organ systems such as the brain, lungs, spleen, and liver. SPMD1-associated disease includes classic infantile and visceral NPD type A and B respectively. Type C NPD is subacute or juvenile.

MATERIALS & METHODS:
During 2012-2016, the patients who had the clinical and biochemical signs and symptoms of different types of NPD, underwent genetic analysis. All patients were collected from five provinces in Iran (Razavi Khorasan, South Khorasan, Khozaestan, Isfahan and Tehran province). Sanger sequencing of the candidate genes for NPD was performed followed by bioinformatics analysis to confirm the types of NPD and to identify novel mutations. All patients underwent full clinical assessment.

RESULTS:
We present two cases with NPD type A, six cases with NPD type B, and 11 cases with type C with various enzymatic defects identified in these cases. Within these 19 patients, we present 9 previously reported mutations and 10 novel mutations causing NPD.

CONCLUSION:
This study is the largest Iranian study for NPD analysis ever. Our report demonstrates that NPD has a variable age of onset and can present early in life. We investigated the clinical and genetic manifestations of a large Iranian cohort. Understanding the variable presentation of NPD will allow for clinicians to have a high index of suspicion for the disease.