Menkes disease

Menkes disease
Other namesTrichopoliodystrophy, copper transport disease, steely hair disease, kinky hair disease
Child with Menkes disease, showing characteristic hair
SpecialtyPediatrics, Medical Genetics
CausesMutations in genes coding for the copper-transport protein ATP7A
Frequency1 in 254,000 (Europe)
1 in 357,143 (Japan)

Menkes disease (MNK), also known as Menkes syndrome,[1][2] is an X-linked recessive disorder caused by mutations in genes coding for the copper-transport protein ATP7A,[3] leading to copper deficiency.[4][5] Characteristic findings include kinky hair, growth failure, and nervous system deterioration. Like all X-linked recessive conditions, Menkes disease is more common in males than in females. The disorder was first described by John Hans Menkes in 1962.[6]

Onset occurs during infancy, with incidence of about 1 in 100,000 to 250,000 newborns; affected infants often do not live past the age of three years, though there are rare cases in which less severe symptoms emerge later in childhood.[7]

  1. ^ Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM): 309400
  2. ^ James, William; Berger, Timothy; Elston, Dirk (2005). Andrews Diseases of the Skin: Clinical Dermatology (10th ed.). Saunders. p. 765. ISBN 978-0-7216-2921-6.
  3. ^ "Menkes syndrome" at Dorland's Medical Dictionary
  4. ^ Rensing, Christopher; McDevitt, Sylvia Franke (2013). "The Copper Metallome in Prokaryotic Cells". Metallomics and the Cell. Metal Ions in Life Sciences. Vol. 12. pp. 417–450. doi:10.1007/978-94-007-5561-1_12. ISBN 978-94-007-5560-4.
  5. ^ de Bie P, Muller P, Wijmenga C, Klomp LW (Nov 2007). "Molecular pathogenesis of Wilson and Menkes disease: correlation of mutations with molecular defects and disease phenotypes". J. Med. Genet. 44 (11): 673–688. doi:10.1136/jmg.2007.052746. PMC 2752173. PMID 17717039.
  6. ^ Menkes JH, Alter M, Steigleder GK, Weakley DR, Sung JH (1962). "A sex-linked recessive disorder with retardation of growth, peculiar hair, and focal cerebral and cerebellar degeneration". Pediatrics. 29: 764–779. PMID 14472668.
  7. ^ "Research Overview". themenkesfoundation.org. Archived from the original on 2017-02-12. Retrieved 2015-12-10.