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The Journal of Medical Humanities Mar 2022In this article I consider the role of passing and performance in the everyday lives of alkaptonuria (AKU) and vitiligo patients. Race, LGBTQ, gender and disability...
In this article I consider the role of passing and performance in the everyday lives of alkaptonuria (AKU) and vitiligo patients. Race, LGBTQ, gender and disability scholars have long used the term passing to describe sub-groups of people within marginal populations who intentionally manipulate their bodies or alter their behaviour in order to claim identities that are not socially assigned to them at birth. In this paper I demonstrate the effectiveness of the passing strategies that patients use in order to mitigate their disease symptoms and render them invisible, thus enabling them to pass as "healthy" or unaffected by their condition. I further consider how patients who choose not to pass utilise resistance strategies in order to generate awareness of their disease and encourage funding for it. I conclude by assessing the effectiveness of these strategies in determining whether or not patients can pass, and the ways in which this is aided or hindered by their social and economic status.
Topics: Adaptation, Psychological; Chronic Disease; Gender Identity; Humans; Infant, Newborn
PubMed: 31858350
DOI: 10.1007/s10912-019-09600-x -
JPRAS Open Dec 2021Ochronosis is a syndrome characterized by bluish black discoloration due to the deposition of polymerized products of homogentisic acid (HGA) in the connective tissues....
Ochronosis is a syndrome characterized by bluish black discoloration due to the deposition of polymerized products of homogentisic acid (HGA) in the connective tissues. The endogenous variety (alkaptonuria), is a rare autosomal recessive metabolic disorder. The disorder is manifested by deficiency of the enzyme homogentisate 1,2-dioxygenase. The characteristic of the condition is a triad of pigmentation of skin, cartilage, and sclera; ochronotic arthropathies and homogentisic aciduria (resulting in darkening of urine). More rarely, it may affect the breast. This rare and interesting case of a woman with ochronosis of both breasts and chest wall, prompted us to write this case report.
PubMed: 34381863
DOI: 10.1016/j.jpra.2021.06.005 -
Scientific Reports Sep 2022Nitisinone (NIT) produces inevitable but varying degree of tyrosinaemia. However, the understanding of the dynamic adaptive relationships within the tyrosine catabolic...
Nitisinone (NIT) produces inevitable but varying degree of tyrosinaemia. However, the understanding of the dynamic adaptive relationships within the tyrosine catabolic pathway has not been investigated fully. The objective of the study was to assess the contribution of protein intake, serum NIT (sNIT) and tyrosine pathway metabolites to nitisinone-induced tyrosinaemia in alkaptonuria (AKU). Samples of serum and 24-h urine collected during SONIA 2 (Suitability Of Nitisinone In Alkaptonuria 2) at months 3 (V2), 12 (V3), 24 (V4), 36 (V5) and 48 (V6) were included in these analyses. Homogentisic acid (HGA), tyrosine (TYR), phenylalanine (PHE), hydroxyphenylpyruvate (HPPA), hydroxyphenyllactate (HPLA) and sNIT were analysed at all time-points in serum and urine. Total body water (TBW) metabolites were derived using 60% body weight. 24-h urine and TBW metabolites were summed to obtain combined values. All statistical analyses were post-hoc. 307 serum and 24-h urine sampling points were analysed. Serum TYR from V2 to V6, ranging from 478 to 1983 µmol/L were stratified (number of sampling points in brackets) into groups < 701 (47), 701-900 (105), 901-1100 (96) and > 1100 (59) µmol/L. The majority of sampling points had values greater than 900 µmol/L. sPHE increased with increasing sTYR (p < 0.001). Tyrosine, HPPA and HPLA in serum and TBW all increased with rising sTYR (p < 0.001), while HPLA/TYR ratio decreased (p < 0.0001). During NIT therapy, adaptive response to minimise TYR formation was demonstrated. Decreased conversion of HPPA to HPLA, relative to TYR, seems to be most influential in determining the degree of tyrosinaemia.
Topics: Alkaptonuria; Brain Diseases, Metabolic, Inborn; Cyclohexanones; Homogentisic Acid; Humans; Nitrobenzoates; Phenylalanine; Phenylpropionates; Tyrosine; Tyrosinemias
PubMed: 36167967
DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-20424-z -
JIMD Reports Jan 2022Outcomes from studies employing nitisinone 10 mg and 2 mg in alkaptonuria were compared.
BACKGROUND
Outcomes from studies employing nitisinone 10 mg and 2 mg in alkaptonuria were compared.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
Sixty-nine patients in each of the nitisinone (10 mg daily) and controls of suitability of nitisinone in alkaptonuria 2 (SONIA 2), as well as 37 and 23 in nitisinone (2 mg daily) and control cohorts at the National Alkaptonuria Centre (NAC), respectively, were followed up for 4 years. Severity of alkaptonuria (AKU) was assessed by the AKU Severity Score Index (AKUSSI). 24-h urine homogentisic acid (uHGA), serum HGA (sHGA), serum tyrosine (sTYR) and serum nitisinone (sNIT) were also analysed at each time point. Dietetic support was used in the NAC, but not in SONIA 2. Safety outcomes were also compared. All statistical analyses were post hoc.
RESULTS
The slope of the AKUSSI was 0.55, 0.19, 0.30, and 0.06 per month in the control NAC, nitisinone NAC, control SONIA 2, and nitisinone SONIA 2 cohorts, respectively. The intersection of the slopes on the -axis was -132, -411, -295, and - 1460 months, respectively. The control and nitisinone slope comparisons were statistically significant both in the NAC ( < 0.001) and the SONIA 2 ( < 0.001). Corneal keratopathy occurred in 3 and 10 patients in the NAC and SONIA 2, respectively.
DISCUSSION
The nitisinone 10 mg dose decreased disease progression more than the 2 mg dose although the incidence of corneal keratopathy was 14.5% and 4.9%, respectively.
CONCLUSION
Nitisinone 10 mg decreased urine and serum HGA, increased serum tyrosine, and decreased disease progression more than 2 mg. Low-protein dietetic support may be needed to mitigate tyrosinaemia following nitisinone.
HIGHLIGHTS
Nitisinone 10 mg apparently slows alkaptonuria disease progression more than 2 mg in adults.Corneal keratopathy during nitisinone therapy was more common in men.Serum nitisinone concentrations increased significantly over time.Nitisinone may inhibit cytochrome P450 self catabolism.
PubMed: 35028273
DOI: 10.1002/jmd2.12261 -
JIMD Reports Jul 2023Amongst a cohort of 88 alkaptonuria (AKU) patients attending the United Kingdom National Alkaptonuria Centre (NAC), four unrelated patients had co-existing Parkinson's...
Amongst a cohort of 88 alkaptonuria (AKU) patients attending the United Kingdom National Alkaptonuria Centre (NAC), four unrelated patients had co-existing Parkinson's disease (PD). Two of the NAC patients developed PD before receiving nitisinone (NIT) while the other two developed overt PD during NIT therapy. NIT lowers redox-active homogentisic acid (HGA) and profoundly increases tyrosine (TYR). A further unpublished case of a Dutch patient with AKU and PD on deep brain stimulation is included in this report. A Pubmed search revealed a further five AKU patients with PD, all without NIT usage. The prevalence of PD in AKU in the NAC appears to be nearly 20-times higher than in the non-AKU population ( < 0.001) even when adjusted for age. We propose that life-long exposure to redox-active HGA may account for the higher prevalence of PD in AKU. Furthermore, the appearance of PD in AKU patients during NIT therapy may be due to unmasking dopamine deficiency in susceptible individuals, as a result of the tyrosinaemia during NIT therapy inhibiting the rate-limiting brain tyrosine hydroxylase.
PubMed: 37404676
DOI: 10.1002/jmd2.12367 -
JIMD Reports Jul 2022Alkaptonuria (AKU) is a rare debilitating autosomal recessive disorder of tyrosine (TYR) metabolism which results in a deficiency of the enzyme homogentisate...
Alkaptonuria (AKU) is a rare debilitating autosomal recessive disorder of tyrosine (TYR) metabolism which results in a deficiency of the enzyme homogentisate 1,2-dioxygenase activity. Several studies have reported the metabolic changes in homogentisic acid (HGA) concentrations and subsequent deposition of an ochronotic pigment in connective tissues, especially cartilage. Treatment with nitisinone (NTBC) reduces urinary and circulating HGA, but its mode of action results in hypertyrosinaemia. The effect of NTBC on other metabolites in the TYR pathway has not been reported. Modification of the current reverse phase liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry methods for serum and urine to include phenylalanine (PHE), hydroxyphenyllactate (HPLA) and hydroxyphenylpyruvate (HPPA) has been validated. HPPA and HPLA (negative ionisation) eluted at 2.8 and 2.9 min respectively on an Atlantis C18 column with PHE (positive ionisation) eluting earlier at 2.4 min. Intra- and inter-assay accuracy was between 96.3% and 100.3% for PHE; 96.6% and 110.5% for HPLA and 95.0% and 107.8% for HPPA in both urine and serum. Precision, both inter- and intra-assay, was <10% for all analytes in both serum and urine. No significant issues with carry-over, stability or matrix interferences were seen in either the urine or serum assays. Measurement of serum and urine from AKU patients has demonstrated a robust, fully validated assay, appropriate for monitoring of patients with AKU and for demonstrating metabolite changes, following NTBC therapy.
PubMed: 35822095
DOI: 10.1002/jmd2.12287 -
Cureus Aug 2023Alkaptonuria is a rare autosomal recessive trait. Symptomatic lumbar disc herniation warranting surgical intervention is a rare scenario in alkaptonuria and only a few...
Alkaptonuria is a rare autosomal recessive trait. Symptomatic lumbar disc herniation warranting surgical intervention is a rare scenario in alkaptonuria and only a few cases have been described in the literature. We present one such rare case of alkaptonuria in a 31-year-old female presenting with low back pain and left leg radiculopathy not relieved with conservative management. Roentgenograms of the lumbar spine revealed wafer-like disc calcifications and MRI showed a herniated disc at the L4-L5 level with deeply hypointense disc spaces in T2 suggestive of disc calcification and associated modic type 2 changes. During the surgery, the disc material removed was black in color, which raised a clinical suspicion of alkaptonuria. Postoperatively, the patient was re-examined and urine homogentisic acid was found to be raised. This, along with a histopathological examination, was diagnostic of alkaptonuria. The patient had excellent relief of symptoms postoperatively. In conclusion, if a 'black disc' is found during surgery, retrospective analysis and re-examination of patient clinical features and urine examination have to be done to diagnose alkaptonuria. While making a differential diagnosis of degenerative disc disease in patients with a calcified disc seen on radiography, a high index of suspicion for alkaptonuria has to be maintained.
PubMed: 37786570
DOI: 10.7759/cureus.44395 -
Rheumatology and Immunology Research Jun 2021Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the major causes of disability and pain worldwide, yet despite a massive international research effort, no effective disease-modifying... (Review)
Review
Osteoarthritis (OA) is one of the major causes of disability and pain worldwide, yet despite a massive international research effort, no effective disease-modifying drugs have been identified to date. In this review, we put forward the proposition that greater focus on rarer forms of OA could lead to a better understanding of the pathogenesis of more common OA. We have investigated the severe osteoarthropathy of the ultra-rare disease alkaptonuria (AKU). In addition to the progress made in finding a treatment for AKU, our research has revealed important lessons for more common OA, including the identification of high-density mineralized protrusions (HDMPs), new pathoanatomical structures which may play an important role in joint destruction and pain in AKU and in OA. AKU is an inherited disorder of tyrosine metabolism, caused by genetic lack of the enzyme homogentisate 1,2 dioxygenase (HGD), which leads to failure to breakdown homogentisic acid (HGA). While most HGA is excreted over time, some of it is deposited as a pigment in connective tissues, a process described as ochronosis. Ochronotic pigment alters the mechanical properties of tissues, leading to inevitable joint destruction and frequently to cardiac valve disease. Until recently, there was no effective therapy for AKU, but preclinical studies demonstrated that upstream inhibition of tyrosine metabolism by nitisinone, a drug previously used in hereditary tyrosinaemia 1 (HT1), completely prevented ochronosis in AKU mice. This was followed by successful clinical trials which have resulted in nitisinone being approved for therapy of AKU by the European Medicines Agency, making AKU the only cause of OA for which there is an effective therapy to date. Study of other rare causes of OA should be a higher priority for researchers and funders to ensure further advances in understanding and eventual therapy of OA.
PubMed: 36465977
DOI: 10.2478/rir-2021-0011 -
Journal of Orthopaedic Case Reports Oct 2022Ochronotic arthropathy is a rapidly progressive sequelae of alkaptonuria. This is a rare autosomal recessive condition caused by a mutation in the homogentisate 1,2...
INTRODUCTION
Ochronotic arthropathy is a rapidly progressive sequelae of alkaptonuria. This is a rare autosomal recessive condition caused by a mutation in the homogentisate 1,2 dioxygenase (HGD) gene leading to HGD enzyme deficiency. Here, we report a case of neck femur fracture in a patient with ochronotic arthropathy managed by primary hip arthroplasty.
CASE REPORT
A 62-year-old gentleman presented with complaints of pain in his left groin area and difficulty in weight bearing on his left lower limb for 3 weeks. The pain was sudden in onset and started while he was on his morning walk. He did not have any problems with his left hip before this episode and he did not give a history of any significant trauma. History, radiological, and intraoperative findings revealed ochronotic hip arthropathy.
CONCLUSION
Ochronotic arthropathy is relatively rare and is seen in isolated communities. The treatment options are similar to primary osteoarthritis and the outcome is comparable to arthroplasty done for osteoarthritis.
PubMed: 36874893
DOI: 10.13107/jocr.2022.v12.i10.3346 -
American Journal of Men's Health 2020This study aimed to evaluate the urinary tract for dynamic function and stones and calcifications in patients with alkaptonuria. Thirty-eight patients were prospectively...
This study aimed to evaluate the urinary tract for dynamic function and stones and calcifications in patients with alkaptonuria. Thirty-eight patients were prospectively divided into two groups. Study group (A) involved 17 patients; the average age was 42 years. The control group (B) involved 21 patients; the average age was 37 years. All patients from the two groups underwent uroflowmetry assessment and ultrasonography for the kidneys and urinary bladder, and prostate in two phases (full bladder and empty bladder). Group A-Bladder volume ranged between 400 and 520 cc. The peak flow rate was between 7 and 23 mL/s, with an average of 18.6 mL/s. Flow rate curves shape were acceptable to the normal bell-shape curve in 11 patients. Seven patients (41%) had prostate calcification accounting for 5%-35% of prostate size. Group B-Bladder volume ranged between 290 and 510 cc. The peak flow rate was 8-27 ml/s, with an average of 20 mL/sec. Normal bell shape voiding curves were observed in 17 patients (80%). Four patients (19%) had prostate calcification accounting for 2%-12% of prostate size. Renal measurements on ultrasonography were the same in both groups. Patients with alkaptonuria developed prostate calcification at younger age; they have a slight but not statistically significant reduced peak urinary flow rate and post void residual urine.
Topics: Adult; Alkaptonuria; Case-Control Studies; Humans; Kidney; Male; Middle Aged; Prostate; Ultrasonography; Urinary Bladder; Urination
PubMed: 33118482
DOI: 10.1177/1557988320969310