Della Vecchia Stefania, Marchese Maria, Simonati Alessandro, Santorelli Filippo Maria
Department of Neurosciences, Psychology, Drug Research and Child Health (NEUROFARBA), University of Florence, Viale Pieraccini, 6, 50139 Florence, Italy.
Neurobiology and Molecular Medicine Unit, IRCCS Fondazione Stella Maris, Calambrone, Via dei Giacinti 2, 56128 Pisa, Italy.
Int J Mol Sci. 2025 Jul 25;26(15):7192. doi: 10.3390/ijms26157192.
Neuronal ceroid lipofuscinoses (NCLs) are paediatric neurodegenerative disorders that primarily affect the central nervous system (CNS). The high prevalence of gastrointestinal (GI) symptoms has prompted researchers and clinicians to move beyond an exclusively "brain-centric" perspective. At the molecular level, mutations in CLN genes lead to lysosomal dysfunction and impaired autophagy, resulting in intracellular accumulation of storage material that disrupts both central and enteric neuronal homeostasis. To systematically examine current clinical and preclinical knowledge on gut involvement in NCLs, with a focus on recent findings related to the enteric nervous system and gut microbiota. We conducted a systematic review following the PRISMA guidelines using PubMed as the sole database. Both clinical (human) and preclinical (animal) studies were included. A total of 18 studies met the inclusion criteria, focusing on gastrointestinal dysfunction, nervous system involvement, and gut microbiota. We found that the nature of GI symptoms was multifactorial in NCLs, involving not only the CNS but also the autonomic and enteric nervous systems, which were affected early by lysosomal deposits and enteric neuron degeneration. Of note, preclinical studies showed that gene therapy could improve not only CNS manifestations but also GI ones, which may have beneficial implications for patient care. While the role of the ENS seems to be clearer, that of gut microbiota needs to be further clarified. Current evidence from preclinical models highlighted alterations in the composition of the microbiota and suggested a possible influence on the progression and modulation of neurological symptoms. However, these results need to be confirmed by further studies demonstrating the causality of this relationship. GI involvement is a key feature of NCLs, with early impact on the enteric nervous system and possible links to gut microbiota. Although preclinical findings-particularly on gene therapy-are encouraging due to their dual impact on both CNS and GI manifestations, the causal role of the gut microbiota remains to be fully elucidated. In this context, the development of sensitive and specific outcome measures to assess GI symptoms in clinical trials is crucial for evaluating the efficacy of future therapeutic interventions.
神经元蜡样脂褐质沉积症(NCLs)是主要影响中枢神经系统(CNS)的儿科神经退行性疾病。胃肠道(GI)症状的高发生率促使研究人员和临床医生超越单纯的“以脑为中心”的观点。在分子水平上,CLN基因突变导致溶酶体功能障碍和自噬受损,导致储存物质在细胞内积累,破坏中枢和肠神经元的稳态。为了系统地研究目前关于NCLs肠道受累的临床和临床前知识,重点关注与肠神经系统和肠道微生物群相关的最新发现。我们按照PRISMA指南进行了一项系统综述,仅使用PubMed作为数据库。纳入了临床(人类)和临床前(动物)研究。共有18项研究符合纳入标准,重点关注胃肠功能障碍、神经系统受累和肠道微生物群。我们发现,NCLs中GI症状的性质是多因素的,不仅涉及中枢神经系统,还涉及自主神经系统和肠神经系统,这些系统早期受到溶酶体沉积和肠神经元变性的影响。值得注意的是,临床前研究表明,基因治疗不仅可以改善中枢神经系统表现,还可以改善GI表现,这可能对患者护理具有有益的意义。虽然肠神经系统的作用似乎更明确,但肠道微生物群的作用需要进一步阐明。目前来自临床前模型的证据突出了微生物群组成的改变,并表明可能对神经症状的进展和调节有影响。然而,这些结果需要通过进一步研究来证实这种关系的因果性。GI受累是NCLs的一个关键特征,对肠神经系统有早期影响,并可能与肠道微生物群有关。尽管临床前研究结果——特别是关于基因治疗的结果——因其对中枢神经系统和GI表现的双重影响而令人鼓舞,但肠道微生物群的因果作用仍有待充分阐明。在这种情况下,开发敏感和特异的结局指标以评估临床试验中的GI症状对于评估未来治疗干预的疗效至关重要。
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