First reported Chinese case of guanidinoacetate methyltransferase deficiency in a 4-year-old child

Abstract

Guanidinoacetate methyltransferase (GAMT) deficiency is a rare inherited disorder characterized by creatine (Cr) depletion and guanidinoacetate (GAA) accumulation in body fluids. We report the first identified Chinese case, diagnosed in a 4-year-old girl with onset of global developmental. Low Cr and high GAA levels were detected in her serum and urine, and low Cr level in her brain. Compound heterozygous variants in GAMT gene were found, including a previously reported variant at c.491dupG which was inherited from her mother and a novel variant at c.564G>T, which was inherited from her father. The Cr and GAA levels returned back to normal after 3 months of treatment. After one year of treatment, the patient stopped taking antiepileptic drugs and her electroencephalogram (EEG) was also back to normal. The girl was followed up for five years and exhibited good results beyond our expectation. The results have shown that protein restriction with high-dose ornithine and creatine supplements have strong therapeutic potential for our patient.

Keywords: Creatine; GAMT deficiency; Guanidinoacetate; Magnetic resonance spectroscopy.