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Lysosomal Storage DiseaseNCT00001671

The Classification and Cause of Leukodystrophies of Unknown Cause

An observational study of Lysosomal Storage Disease, run by National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) at 5 sites in 4 countries.

Completed

Finished. The study has ended and is not enrolling. Results may be posted on the official record.

Official record
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Trial summary

Leukodystrophy is a disease of the white matter of the brain. White matter is the portion of the brain responsible for conducting electrical impulses from one area of the brain to the other. Insulating cells called myelin cover the brain and nerve cells in the white matter. Read more about this study

Who is it for?
Any age
Conditions the study is for
Lysosomal Storage Disease
How many people
400 participants
Where
5 sitesin 4 countries
Study dates
9 Sep 1997to 15 Dec 2008
Phase
Observational
Are there results?
None posted in the registry

Key requirements

Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.

  • Ages Any age
  • All sexes
  • No healthy volunteers
  • Child, Adult, Older adult

Who may be able to join

  • Candidates for participation in the protocol will be patients of all ages with clinical and radiographic signs of leukodystrophy who do not have a specific etiology despite a previous comprehensive workup. The preceding investigation would have excluded the following: adrenoleukodystrophy, adrenomyeloneuropathy, metachromatic leukodystrophy, Krabbe disease, Canavan disease, a well-defined amino acid organic acid disorder, or a systemic mitochondrial cytopathy.
  • First -degree relatives of patients with leukodystrophies of unknown etiology (father, mother, siblings, or sons and daughters of the patients)

Who cannot join

  • Refusal to sign the protocol consent form.
  • Candidates who are unable to travel to the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center.

Trial locations and contacts

5 sites in 4 countries.

5 sites in 4 countries

United States2 sites
  • University of California, San Francisco

    San Francisco, California, 94143

  • Childrens National Medical Center

    Washington D.C., District of Columbia

Other trials in United States

France1 site
  • Institut National de la Sante' et de la Recherche Medicale

    Clermont-Ferrand, Cedex, 63001

Other trials in France

Israel1 site
  • Tel Aviv University

    Tel Aviv

Other trials in Israel

Netherlands1 site
  • Academiseh Ziuekenhuis Vrije Universiteit

    Amsterdam

Other trials in Netherlands

About this study

Official title: The Nosology and Etiology of Leukodystrophies of Unknown Cause

Leukodystrophy is a disease of the white matter of the brain. White matter is the portion of the brain responsible for conducting electrical impulses from one area of the brain to the other. Insulating cells called myelin cover the brain and nerve cells in the white matter. If myelin becomes damaged electrical information cannot be transferred properly.

Many patients suffering from leukodystrophies do not fit the description of any of the defined types of leukodystrophies and are therefore considered to have a leukodystrophy of unknown cause.

Read more

The purpose of this study is to define groups of patients with leukodystrophies and to work toward finding the cause of the disorders. In order to do this, researchers will analyze patients with leukodystrophies of unknown causes. Patients will undergo clinical, neurophysiologic, biochemical, and genetic examinations and tests.

Researchers believe that by studying these patients and their disorders they will be able to better understand the causes of myelin destruction, and eventually lead to effective treatments for these disorders.

Read the detailed description

Patients with leukodystrophies (LDs) of unknown etiology are a heterogeneous group but constitute the second largest group of genetic white matter diseases. The purpose of this study is to: (a) define novel homogeneous groups of patients with LDs and (b) work toward finding the cause of these disorders. In order to achieve these goals, patients with LDs of unknown cause will be analyzed clinically, neurophysiologically, biochemically and genetically. Patients would have been diagnosed as having no known leukodystrophies at outside centers. At the Clinical Center, such patients will undergo a series of neuropsychological, blood, urine, spinal fluid, radiological, and peripheral tissue pathological tests. Some of these tests will be part of a standard battery while others will be tailored to individual patients. Patients will be followed for 3 years. Patients will be screened for mutations in genes coding for structural myelin proteins. In some patients in whom all tests yielded no information regarding the etiology of their disease, open brain biopsy will be considered. Brain biopsy tissue will be evaluated using a novel combination of approaches including detailed pathological, immunohistochemical, and biochemical analysis of myelin proteins and lipids. Oligodendroglial biology and expression of myelin genes in the brain will also be investigated in situ. It is hoped that the present study will help clarify the nosology of the leukodystrophies and significantly advance our understanding of the pathogenesis of these diseases.

Keywords
White Matter, Myelin, Degenerative Diseases, Genetic, Oligodendrocytes, Leukodystrophy
Medical subject headings
Lysosomal Storage Diseases

Timeline

From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.

  1. First posted4 Nov 1999 (estimated)
  2. Study start9 Sep 1997
  3. Study completion15 Dec 2008

Resources

More details

For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.

Study design
Study type
Observational
Enrolment
400 participants
IDs, dates and publications
ClinicalTrials.gov ID
NCT00001671
Sponsor's protocol ID
970170
Other IDs
97-N-0170
Status last verified
15 Dec 2008
First submitted
3 Nov 1999
Last updated
2 Jul 2017
Results posted
No

Publications

  • Aicardi J. The inherited leukodystrophies: a clinical overview. J Inherit Metab Dis. 1993;16(4):733-43. doi: 10.1007/BF00711905.

    PubMed 7692130
  • Schiffmann R, Moller JR, Trapp BD, Shih HH, Farrer RG, Katz DA, Alger JR, Parker CC, Hauer PE, Kaneski CR, et al. Childhood ataxia with diffuse central nervous system hypomyelination. Ann Neurol. 1994 Mar;35(3):331-40. doi: 10.1002/ana.410350314.

    PubMed 8122885
  • Schiffmann R, Tedeschi G, Kinkel RP, Trapp BD, Frank JA, Kaneski CR, Brady RO, Barton NW, Nelson L, Yanovski JA. Leukodystrophy in patients with ovarian dysgenesis. Ann Neurol. 1997 May;41(5):654-61. doi: 10.1002/ana.410410515.

    PubMed 9153528
  • McNeill N, Nasca A, Reyes A, Lemoine B, Cantarel B, Vanderver A, Schiffmann R, Ghezzi D. Functionally pathogenic EARS2 variants in vitro may not manifest a phenotype in vivo. Neurol Genet. 2017 Jul 14;3(4):e162. doi: 10.1212/NXG.0000000000000162. eCollection 2017 Aug.

    PubMed 28748214

Questions about this trial

What is this clinical trial studying?

An observational study of Lysosomal Storage Disease, run by National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) at 5 sites in 4 countries.

The full registered description is in the About this study section and the official record.

Who may be eligible to take part?

The sponsor lists 2 inclusion and 2 exclusion criteria. Eligibility is decided by the study team after screening, so read the full criteria and contact a listed site.

Is this clinical trial currently recruiting?

The record says: finished, as of the sponsor's last update on 2 Jul 2017. Status can change between updates, so confirm with the study contact before making plans.

Where is the study taking place?

The record lists 5 sites in United States, France, Israel, Netherlands. Whether a site is taking part right now should be confirmed with that site. See every site.

What are the possible benefits and risks?

They depend on the study and the treatment, and no study can promise a benefit. The study team explains the known risks during informed consent, before anyone joins; the record itself does not list them.

Are results available for this study?

The study is completed, but results are not available in the source record. That does not mean the treatment did or did not work.

How can a doctor refer a patient or contact the research team?

The record lists no contact. The official record names the sponsor, who can be asked directly. AzTrials does not enrol participants or take referrals.

Where can I read the original study information?

On the ClinicalTrials.gov record for NCT00001671, which also lists 4 linked publications.

Does a listing mean the treatment is approved or proven to work?

No. A listing means the study is registered. It does not show that the treatment is safe, works, or is approved by a regulator.

How often is this information updated?

AzTrials copies changed records from ClinicalTrials.gov every night and reloads the whole registry every week. The sponsor last updated this record on 2 Jul 2017.

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