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. 2019 May 11;8(2):34. doi: 10.3390/biology8020034

Table 1.

Summary of mitochondrial disorders with cardiac phenotypes.

Disease Incidence Age at Onset/Death Primary Phenotype Cardiac Manifestations Genetic Mutations Treatments
MELAS 0.18/100,000
 
<20 years
 
Rapid progression to death after onset
  • Stroke-like symptoms

  • Encephalopathy

  • Lactic Acidemia

  • Myopathy

30% of cases:
  • HCM, DCM

  • Conduction abnormalities (WPW)

A324G (80% of cases)
  • Nitric oxide precursors

  • Citrulline supplementation

  • Ketogenic diet

  • Creatine, CoQ10, lipoic acid therapy

Leigh Syndrome 1/32,000–40,000
 
<1–2 years
 
Median age of death 2.4 years
  • Encephalopathy with cognitive and behavioral dysfunction

  • Seizures

  • Hypotonia/Ataxia

  • Oculomotor dysfunction

  • Respiratory dysfunction

20% of cases:
  • HCM

  • Pericardial effusions

  • Conduction abnormalities

Mutations to SURF1 gene
 
G13513A (WPW and HCM)
  • High dose biotin

  • Thiamine for SLC19A3

  • CoQ10

MERRF 0.9 or <1/100,000
 
10–20 years
 
Progression to death within 2–15 years of onset (median 8.4 years)
  • Myoclonus

  • Lactic acidosis

  • Cerebellar ataxia

  • Muscle weakness

  • Ragged red fibers

  • DCM

  • HCM

  • Conduction abnormalities (WPW, SVT, RBBB)

A8344G (83–90% of cases and 53% of cases with cardiac involvement)
  • Treatment of seizures with antiepileptic drugs

MIDD 6/100,000
(~1% of patients with diabetes)
 
<35 years
  • Diabetes (type I or II)

  • Bilateral neurosensory hearing loss

  • LVH (55%)

  • HCM (15–30%)

  • Conduction abnormalities (WPW, SSS, Afib)

A3243G
  • Treatment of diabetes

  • Cochlear implantation

  • CoQ10

NARP 1/12,000–40,000
 
3-12 months
  • Neuropathy

  • Ataxia

  • Retinitis Pigmentosa

  • Deafness

  • Myoclonic epilepsy

  • DCM

  • HCM

  • Conduction abnormalities (WPW)

Point mutations at 8993
MT-ATP6 gene (most commonly T8993G, then T8993C)
  • Experimental: mitochondrially targeted obligate heterodimeric zinc finger nucleases to target mitochondrial DNA with the NARP T8993G mutation

GRACILE 1/47,000 (in Finland, may be lower worldwide)
 
Onset in utero
 
50% die within first 4 months of life, remainder die by 4 years
  • Growth restriction

  • Aminoaciduria

  • Cholestasis

  • Iron overload

  • Early death

  • Prolonged QT

  • Reduced levels of complex III in myocardial tissues post mortem

homozygous point mutation A232G within the BCS1L gene
  • Symptomatic/palliative care (usually lethal in first months of life).

MNGIE * Only 100 cases ever reported
 
Mean age of onset 18 years
 
Mean age of death 35 years
  • Chronic intestinal dysmotility

  • Leukoencephalopathy

  • Failure to thrive

  • Ptosis

  • Ophthalmoparesis

  • Peripheral neuropathy

  • LVH

  • Conduction abnormalities (prolonged QT, SVT, sudden cardiac death)

Loss of function mutations to thymidine phosphorylase (TP) gene, chromosome 22q13.32-qter
  • Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

  • Platelet transfusion

  • Hemodialysis or peritoneal dialysis

  • Experimental gene therapies aimed to restore thymidine phosphorylase activity

Barth Syndrome 1:300,000–400,000
 
<1 year
 
Most die within first 4 years of life
  • DCM

  • Skeletal myopathy (proximal)

  • Neutropenia

  • Growth retardation

  • DCM

  • Cardiac abnormalities in utero

  • Endocardial fibroelastosis

  • LV noncompaction

  • Conduction abnormalities (prolonged WT, SVT, WPW, VT)

G4.5 gene (TAZ gene) on Xq28
  • Treatment of heart failure

  • Cardiac transplantation

LHON 1/31,000–50,000
 
2–87 years
  • Acute/subacute painless vision loss

  • Dystonia

  • Peripheral neuropathy

  • LV hypertrebeculation

  • Prolonged QT

  • WPW

90% caused by G11778A (ND4 gene), G3460A (ND1 gene), and the T14484C (NG6 gene) which all cause dysfunction in complex I
  • EPI-743: experimental drug targeting glutathione production

  • Idebenone (antioxidant that can slow vision loss)

Pearson Syndrome 1/1,000,000
 
Presents in infancy
 
most deaths by 3 years of age
  • Transfusion-dependent anemia (presenting finding)

  • Severe Infections

  • Liver, Kidney, Pancreas and CNS abnormalities

  • Increased wall thickness

  • Depolarization abnormalities

  • Prolonged QT

Large deletions ranging from 4.9–14 kb
  • Treatment of anemia with transfusions, EPO, GCSF

  • Treatment of pancreatic insufficiency with enzyme replacement

Kearns-Sayre Syndrome 1–3/100,000
  • Progressive external ophthalmoplegia (ptosis, weakness of eye muscles)

  • Retinopathy

  • Ataxia

  • Elevated CSF proteins

  • Conduction abnormalities (AV block requiring PPM)

  • Cardiac arrest

Large deletions ranging from 1000 to 10,000 base pairs
  • ECG screening

  • PPM implantation for AV block

CPEO 1–3/100,000
  • Loss of motor function of the eye and eyelid

  • Spectrum of disorders with PS and KSS

  • HCM

  • Arrhythmias

Large mtDNA deletions similar to PS or KSS
 
AD: mutations to nuclear-encoded genes ANT1, C10orf2 and POLG
  • Symptomatic/supportive care

Freiderich’s Ataxia 1–47:1,000,000
 
Presents in childhood
 
Mean life expectancy 40 years
  • Progressive ataxia/areflexia

  • Progressive and life-threatening cardiomyopathy (2/3 patients die from cardiovascular causes)

  • HCM

  • DCM

Expansion of DNA triplet intron repeat GAA in the frataxin (FXN) gene
  • Idebenone (antioxidant), reduces cardiac hypertrophy

Abbreviations: hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM), dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome (WPW), supraventricular tachycardia (SVT), right bundle branch block (RBBB), left ventricular hypertrophy (LVH), sick sinus syndrome (SSS), atrial fibrillation (Afib), ventricular tachyarrhythmias, permanent pacemaker (PPM), autosomal dominant (AD).