Learn / Metabolism
Lysosomal storage diseases
The nine diseases from FMK-04.5, every direction at once: symptoms → gene, gene → disease, enzyme → substrate, histology → disease… Pick what you're given and what you have to name, or let it cycle through every combination. Each answer shows the whole card.
Sphingolipidosis 5
| Disease | Gene | Enzyme | Accumulates | Inheritance | Findings | Histology / hallmark | Treatment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tay-Sachs disease ~6 months; death by 3–5 years Cherry-red spot without organomegaly separates it from Niemann-Pick. Ashkenazi carrier screening. |
HEXA | Hexosaminidase A | GM2 ganglioside (in neurons of brain and spinal cord) | Autosomal recessive |
|
Neurons distended with lysosomal GM2 (no visceral storage cells) | Supportive only |
| Fabry disease Early childhood in males; heterozygous females can be affected The only X-linked sphingolipidosis. Lecture: cardiovascular disease is the top cause of death in both sexes. |
GLA | α-Galactosidase A | Ceramide trihexoside (globotriaosylceramide, Gb3) | X-linked |
|
Lamellar (zebra-body) inclusions in endothelium, podocytes and cardiomyocytes | Enzyme replacement (agalsidase); renal and cardiac care |
| Gaucher disease Any age; type 1 (non-neuronopathic) most common Most common lysosomal storage disease. GBA carriers have an increased risk of Parkinson-like tremor in their 50s–60s. |
GBA | Glucocerebrosidase (β-glucosidase) | Glucocerebroside (glucosylceramide) | Autosomal recessive |
|
Gaucher cells — macrophages with 'crumpled/wrinkled tissue-paper' cytoplasm, nucleus pushed to the edge (bone marrow biopsy) | Enzyme replacement (imiglucerase); substrate reduction |
| Krabbe disease Infantile, first 6 months; death by ~2 years A leukodystrophy: myelin, not neurons, is the target. |
GALC | Galactocerebrosidase (galactocerebroside β-galactosidase) | Galactocerebroside (and psychosine) — in myelin | Autosomal recessive |
|
Globoid cells — large multinucleated macrophages in white matter (brain) | Hematopoietic stem-cell transplant if pre-symptomatic; otherwise supportive |
| Niemann-Pick disease type C Any age; adult onset most common for type C Cherry-red spot WITH hepatosplenomegaly (vs Tay-Sachs). Foam cells (vs Gaucher's tissue-paper cells). Note the lecture attributes sphingomyelinase to NPC; the acid-sphingomyelinase disease is Niemann-Pick A/B (SMPD1). |
NPC1 (95%) or NPC2 (5%) | Sphingomyelinase (per lecture) — NPC1/NPC2 are intracellular cholesterol-transport proteins | Sphingomyelin (and unesterified cholesterol) in lysosomes | Autosomal recessive |
|
Foam cells — lipid-laden macrophages with small round nuclei and clear vacuoles (bone marrow) | Miglustat (substrate reduction); supportive |
Mucopolysaccharidosis 2
| Disease | Gene | Enzyme | Accumulates | Inheritance | Findings | Histology / hallmark | Treatment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hurler syndrome (MPS I) Normal at birth; features emerge over the first 1–3 years Severity spectrum: Hurler (0% enzyme) → Hurler-Scheie (~5%) → Scheie (~10%, no cognitive delay). |
IDUA (written 'IUDA' in the lecture) | α-L-Iduronidase | Dermatan sulfate and heparan sulfate (GAGs) | Autosomal recessive |
|
Urine positive for dermatan and heparan sulfate; vacuolated ('gargoyle') cells | Enzyme replacement (laronidase / Aldurazyme — does not cross the BBB); HSCT |
| Hunter syndrome (MPS II) Presents at 2–4 years; males (female carriers usually asymptomatic) X-linked and no corneal clouding are the two discriminators from Hurler. Only ~20% enzyme activity is needed to be symptom-free. |
IDS | Iduronate-2-sulfatase | Dermatan sulfate and heparan sulfate (GAGs) | X-linked |
|
Urine positive for dermatan and heparan sulfate | Enzyme replacement (idursulfase / Elaprase — does not cross the BBB) |
Glycogen storage (lysosomal) 1
| Disease | Gene | Enzyme | Accumulates | Inheritance | Findings | Histology / hallmark | Treatment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pompe disease (GSD II) Infantile-onset: death by ~10 months untreated. Late-onset: slower, spares the heart, limb-girdle/respiratory weakness The only glycogen storage disease that is lysosomal. Diagnose by GAA activity on a dried blood spot or biallelic GAA variants. |
GAA | Acid α-glucosidase (acid maltase) | Glycogen inside lysosomes of cardiac, skeletal and smooth muscle | Autosomal recessive |
|
PAS-positive glycogen-filled lysosomes that rupture and replace myofibrils; normal cytosolic glycogen metabolism | Enzyme replacement (alglucosidase alfa / Myozyme) slows progression; supportive cardiac/respiratory care |
Mucolipidosis (trafficking defect) 1
| Disease | Gene | Enzyme | Accumulates | Inheritance | Findings | Histology / hallmark | Treatment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| I-cell disease (mucolipidosis II) Infancy Not an enzyme deficiency but a targeting failure: no M6P tag → no delivery to the lysosome. |
GNPTAB | N-acetylglucosamine-1-phosphotransferase (adds the mannose-6-phosphate tag in the Golgi) | Everything — lysosomal enzymes are secreted into plasma instead of reaching the lysosome, so many substrates accumulate | Autosomal recessive |
|
Inclusion bodies in fibroblasts; lysosomal enzymes high in plasma, low in cells | Supportive only |
Source: FMK-04.5 Protein targeting & lysosomal disorders. Gene spelling and the NPC enzyme follow the lecture, with the textbook version noted.