A Novel PSEN1 Variant Leading to Posterior Cortical Atrophy: A Case Report

J Alzheimers Dis Rep. 2023 May 31;7(1):469-473. doi: 10.3233/ADR230023. eCollection 2023.

Abstract

We describe a 52-year-old patient with a progressive visuospatial disorder and apraxia. Neuropsychological assessment, neuroradiological findings, and Alzheimer's disease (AD) core biomarker assay on cerebrospinal fluid led to a diagnosis of posterior cortical atrophy due to AD. We performed a next generation sequencing dementia-gene panel and found the c.1301 C>T p.(Ala434Val) variant in the Presenilin1 (PSEN1) gene. The missense change affects the PAL (Pro433-Ala434-Leu435) motif critical for catalytic activity of the macromolecular γ-secretase complex. Evolutionary and integrated bioinformatic tools predicted a deleterious effect of the variant supporting its role in the AD pathogenesis.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; case reports; genetics; posterior cortical atrophy.