Active clinical trials for "Gaucher Disease"

Hypergammaglobulinaemia is frequently observed in type 1 Gaucher disease (GD1), being either polyclonal or monoclonal gammopathies. Polyclonal hypergammaglobulinemia may be related to the presence of autoantibodies. The clinical significance of such antibodies is questioned in Gaucher disease (GD), as some cases of immunologic thrombocytopenia and autoimmune hemolytic anemia have also been reported. Objectives: To evaluate the prevalence of autoantibodies and autoimmune diseases in GD1 patients, we conducted a multicenter national study. The investigators investigated whether there was a link between splenectomy, genotype, therapeutic options and the presence of these autoantibodies.They also investigated whether there was a correlation with some clinical manifestations of GD1

The purpose of this study is to determine if participants have changes in dopamine cells in their brain using DaTSCAN™ brain imaging. Dopamine cell loss occurs in Parkinson's disease (PD) and other degenerative Parkinsonian disorders, but does not occur in most other movement disorders such as essential tremor or dystonia. DaTSCAN, which is also known as 123I-Ioflupane, is a new compound that has been developed by General Electric, Inc. and has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to help doctors detect changes in dopamine. This test is performed by injecting DaTSCAN into a vein in the arm, and after a few hours, a large amount of DaTSCAN temporarily accumulates in an area of the brain where there are a lot of dopamine brain cells. Because DaTSCAN contains a small amount of radioactive iodine, it allows doctors to use a special machine called single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) scanning to detect the location and amount of radioactivity in the brain and help determine if there are changes in brain dopamine. It is hoped that this study will help doctors detect the presence of dopamine changes even before symptoms are present. This study will evaluate DaTSCAN in people with PD, those who are at risk for developing PD (e.g., those with idiopathic rapid eye movement sleep disorder (iRBD) and those who are heterozygous or homozygous for Gaucher's disease (GBA) mutations) and those who are healthy volunteers.

Gaucher disease is a rare lysosomal storage disorder caused by the deficiency of the enzyme glucocerebrosidase (GCB). Due to the deficiency of functional GCB, glucocerebroside accumulates within macrophages leading to cellular engorgement, organomegaly, and organ system dysfunction. The purpose of this treatment protocol is to observe the safety of velaglucerase alfa in patients with type 1 Gaucher disease who are either treatment naive (newly diagnosed) or who are currently being treated with the Enzyme Replacement Therapy (ERT) imiglucerase.

The primary aim of the study is to conclusively demonstrate the possibility of using the following molecules, α-Synuclein, LRRK2 and Parkin individually or in combination as biomarkers for Parkinson's disease (PD) progression in patients/ carriers of Gaucher disease (GD). All the assays will be performed only using peripheral blood, thus the identification of a peripheral marker that can be used in both diagnosis and prognosis of the disease and symptom severity would lead to a fast, efficient and reliable assay that can be performed on an easily accessible tissue type outside of the brain. It is now known that patients with GD, even carriers with one mutated GBA gene (OMIM 606463) are at a higher risk for developing PD, and at an earlier age. In an attempt to assess whether GBA alterations would also impact α-Synuclein and Parkin metabolism in humans, the expression at both molecular and protein level in the peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) will be investigated.

In Gaucher disease type I bleeding is a common presenting symptom, that may manifest itself as frequent nose bleeds, easy bruising but can also cause substantial bleeding after surgical or dental procedures and may occur in association with pregnancy or delivery . The bleeding tendency is usually considered to be secondary to thrombocytopenia However 50,000 platelets are enough in healthy people to give a normal bleeding time but are associated with significant bleeding tendencies in Gaucher patients. Bleeding tendency might be attributed by genetic inherited or Gaucher related coagulation factors abnormalities which in some cases stabilize with ERT. However, In other cases the etiology is an abnormality of platelet function. This thrombocytopathy has not been delineated and apart from a few aggregation studies, no systematic analysis has been published that convincingly shows the cause of the disturbed function. While, experience shows that enzyme replacement (ERT, i.e: imiglucerase, Cerezyme®) reduces this bleeding tendency, in part due to the improvement in the thrombocyte count and elevation in coagulation factors, it is less clear what effect ERT has on the thrombocytopathy. This has clinical significance when patients need to be prepared for surgery or delivery or in the event of a major bleed. There is no consensus as to how patients should be prepared or treated. Different centres use different approaches. When the procedure is elective ERT is appropriate but in other situations DDAVP, fresh frozen plasma and platelet infusion are possible treatments. Even activated factor VII has been used when bleeding was not controlled. As in any other coagulation abnormality, treatment should be tailored to the specific cause of the bleeding diathesis. The aim of this study is to define the etiology of platelet dysfunction in Gaucher patients. Hypothesis: The investigators expect to see a difference between platelets activation profile among imiglucerase treated and untreated patients with at least a partial restoration of platelets function due to treatment commencement.

This project is expected to elucidate role of different therapeutic interventions: SRT in comparison to ERT in influencing immune aspects of GD pathology, as well as bone involvement.

Bone-related problems represent the principal unmet medical need in Gaucher disease (GD). 75% of GD type 1 patients develop skeletal complications, including bone remodeling defects, osteopenia, osteoporosis, marrow infiltration, avascular necrosis, and osteolysis. However, the underlying cellular/molecular basis of bone involvement and related complications in GD are not fully known. Neither are there any bone-specific markers associated with individual bone pathology. Early diagnosis of bone disease is the key issue for planning individual therapy to prevent and reverse bone disease in GD.

Study objectives: Investigate the anti-HCV response in patients with Gaucher disease(GD) Define the potential role of high levels of Glucocerebroside in the immune system Study hypothesis: High levels of Glucocerebroside can be used as a tool in the antiviral treatment of hepatitis C by potentiating the immune response of natural killer T cells and dendritic cells

clinical audit on managment of gausher disease in children

Although lysosomal storage disorders, such as Fabry disease, Gaucher disease, and Pompe disease, represent serious challenges in the healthcare system, no study has yet investigated the prevalence of these diseases in the US. Frequently, patients show progressive worsening of symptoms for several years before they get diagnosed. Since many of these diseases can be managed therapeutically, it is important to identify and treat patients in order to avoid organ damage. The investigators aim to undertake a screening study that identifies undiagnosed patients with lysosomal storage disorders and determine the prevalence of these diseases with special focus on underrepresented minority groups.