Adult-onset vanishing white matter disease due to a novel EIF2B3 mutation

OBJECTIVE: To report a novel mutation in the gene EIF2B3 responsible for a late-onset form of vanishing white matter disease. DESIGN: Case report. SETTING: University teaching hospital. PATIENT: A 29-year-old pregnant woman with a history of premature ovarian failure and hemiplegic migraines presented with a 10-week history of progressive confusion and headaches. Magnetic resonance imaging of the brain revealed a diffuse leukoencephalopathy. RESULTS: Sequencing of the exons and intron boundaries of EIF2B3 uncovered 2 missense mutations: c.260C>T(p.Ala87Val) and c.272G>A(p.Arg91His). To our knowledge,the latter missense mutation has never been previously reported. CONCLUSION: This is the second report of adult-onset vanishing white matter disease due to mutations in EIF2B3 and the first report of the c.272G>A (p.Arg91His) missense mutation.