Organic acidemias (OAs) are inherited metabolic disorders caused by deficiency of enzymatic activities in the catabolism of amino acids, carbohydrates, or lipids. These disorders result in the accumulation of mono-, di-, or tricarboxylic acids, generally referred to as organic acids. The OA outcomes can involve different organs and/or systems. Some OA disorders are easily managed if promptly di...

BACKGROUND We applied untargeted mass spectrometry-based metabolomics to the diseases methylmalonic acidemia (MMA) and propionic acidemia (PA). METHODS We used a screening platform that used untargeted, mass-based metabolomics of methanol-extracted plasma to find significantly different molecular features in human plasma samples from MMA and PA patients and from healthy individuals. Capillary...

Methylmalonic acidemia (MMA) is an organic acidemia caused by deficient activity of the mitochondrial enzyme methylmalonyl-CoA mutase (MUT). This disorder is associated with lethal metabolic instability and carries a poor prognosis for long-term survival. A murine model of MMA that replicates a severe clinical phenotype was used to examine the efficacy of recombinant adeno-associated virus (rAA...

A 5-day-old male infant with an increased dried blood spot propionylcarnitine (C3-carnitine) value of 7.93 mol/L (cutoff 6.79 mol/L) was identified by the New Jersey state newborn screening program. C3carnitine is used as a screening tool for methylmalonic and propionic acidemias, potentially fatal but treatable inborn errors of metabolism. The initial screen values provided a calculated C3:C2 ...

ATP:cob(I)alamin adenosyltransferase (ATR, E.C.2.5.1.17) converts reduced cob(I)alamin to the adenosylcobalamin cofactor. Mutations in the MMAB gene encoding ATR are responsible for the cblB type methylmalonic aciduria. Here we report the functional analysis of five cblB mutations to determine the underlying molecular basis of the dysfunction. The transcriptional profile along with minigenes an...

The three-dimensional crystal structure of the PduO-type corrinoid adenosyltransferase from Lactobacillus reuteri (LrPduO) has been solved to 1.68-A resolution. The functional assignment of LrPduO as a corrinoid adenosyltransferase was confirmed by in vivo and in vitro evidence. The enzyme has an apparent Km(ATP) of 2.2 microM and Km(Cobalamin) of 0.13 microM and a kcat of 0.025 s(-1). Co-cryst...

Methylmalonic acidemia (MMA) is a very rare genetic disease of metabolism that progressively leads to neurological and renal sequelae. This report describes an unusual case of a patient with MMA who developed severe hyperkalemia and severe dysrhythmia during anesthesia. A 13-month-old male infant with MMA underwent urgent insertion of a port-a-cath under general anesthesia. A life-threatening a...

In their prospective neurodevelopmental evaluation of children with combined methylmalonic acidemia and homocystinuria, cobalamin C type (MMAHCC), Weisfeld-Adams et al. [1] obtained a magnetic resonance imaging and spectroscopy (MRI/MRS) of the brain. While the authors report a range of MRI brain abnormalities similar to previously published series, MR spectra were found to be normal in all sub...