Clinical Description
CSNK2B-related neurodevelopmental disorder (CSNK2B-NDD) is characterized by seizures and variable degrees of developmental delay / intellectual disability. Less consistent findings include ataxia or impaired coordination, generalized hypotonia of infancy, neurobehavioral/psychiatric manifestations, digital abnormalities, and nonspecific facial features.
To date, more than 80 individuals have been identified with a CSNK2B pathogenic variant [Poirier et al 2017, Li et al 2019, Ernst et al 2021, Yang et al 2021, Asif et al 2022, Orsini et al 2022, Wilke et al 2022, Yang et al 2022, Zhang et al 2022, Trivisano et al 2023]. The following description is based on the well-documented phenotypic features of these individuals (see Table 2).
Developmental delay (DD) and intellectual disability (ID). While most individuals have developmental delays and/or intellectual disability, there is marked variability in developmental outcomes.
The following discussion is based on information reported on 48 individuals in publications with at least two individuals with CSNK2B-NDD on whom neurodevelopmental outcomes and age of evaluation are included [Poirier et al 2017, Ernst et al 2021, Yang et al 2021, Yang et al 2022, Trivisano et al 2023]. Ages at the time of evaluation of these individuals ranged from younger than five years (16 individuals), 5-17 years (25 individuals), and 18 years and older (7 individuals).
Of these individuals, the majority (45/48) had developmental delays in at least one domain. Most (39/45) had both speech and motor delays. Of the three individuals reported not to have developmental delay, two were younger than age five years and one (age nine years at the time of evaluation) had a learning disability [Ernst et al 2021, Yang et al 2022].
Motor delay. Of the 93% (42/45) who had motor delay, the average age of independent walking was 24 months. Sixteen of 21 individuals achieved independent walking by age three years. Five individuals walked after age three years (range: 4-7 years).
Two males older than age five years were unable to ambulate independently by the time of evaluation; both had severe epilepsy with recurrent refractory status epilepticus associated with regression. The 12-year-old male lost the ability to walk independently at age nine years; the 26-year-old male had started to walk independently at age seven years but was unable to walk without assistance by the time of evaluation [
Ernst et al 2021].
Speech delay. Of the 40 of 46 individuals who had speech delays, five were nonverbal or minimally verbal at the time of evaluation. Three of the five were ages 5 to 17 years; two were adults.
Of those older than age five years at the time of evaluation, 23 of 29 had ID. Twelve had borderline or mild ID; five had moderate ID; five had severe or profound ID; and one individual's level of ID was not reported. Of the six who did not have intellectual disability, four had a learning disability.
Trivisano et al [2023] also described two families with multiple affected individuals with intrafamilial variability regarding developmental outcomes.
One study noted a possible difference in neurodevelopment outcomes between males and females, with males having a more severe intellectual disability (see Figure 1b in Ernst et al [2021]).
Epilepsy. Age of seizure onset ranged from during the neonatal period to age 10 years. Some individuals had febrile seizures only or an isolated unprovoked seizure and did not meet criteria for epilepsy. Ninety percent of individuals who had developed epilepsy by the time they were reported had their first seizure at age three years or younger [Ernst et al 2021, Yang et al 2022, Trivisano et al 2023].
Epilepsy types included generalized epilepsy, focal epilepsy, and combined generalized and focal epilepsy [Ernst et al 2021]. Seizure types included tonic-clonic, myoclonic, atonic, myoclonic-atonic, absence, atypical absence, myoclonic-absence, and tonic. While the most common seizure type was generalized tonic-clonic, seizures seen initially in infants were often focal or myoclonic [Ernst et al 2021].
The severity of epilepsy was highly variable [Ernst et al 2021]. At least one individual had only a single seizure at age 1.5 months by the time of evaluation at age 12 years, whereas many individuals had multiple seizures daily. Seizures tended to cluster in many individuals. While many individuals had pharmaco-responsive epilepsy, others had severe epilepsy with recurrent episodes of refractory status epilepticus [Li et al 2019, Ernst et al 2021, Trivisano et al 2023]. No anti-seizure medication (ASM) has been demonstrated to have specific efficacy in CSNK2B-NDD, and different ASMs have been reported to be effective in different individuals.
Although the course of epilepsy tended to improve with age, several individuals experienced increased seizure frequency between ages 7 and 12 years [Ernst et al 2021].
EEG is often characterized by generalized epileptiform discharges, including generalized spike-and-wave and polyspikes [Ernst et al 2021]. Epileptiform abnormalities most often were high amplitude generalized or lateralized polyspikes occurring during sleep [Ernst et al 2021].
Multifocal epileptiform abnormalities were also described [Trivisano et al 2023].
Less commonly, some individuals with epilepsy had EEG studies that did not report epileptiform abnormalities (e.g., Patient 5 in Trivisano et al [2023]).
Slowing of the EEG background was observed in about 50% of individuals [Ernst et al 2021, Trivisano et al 2023].
Neuroimaging. Brain MRI abnormalities are variable with no identifiable persistent patterns. Nonspecific findings reported in a few or single individuals include the following:
Ventriculomegaly that resolved on later imaging (1 individual) [
Yang et al 2022]
Hindbrain abnormalities reported in one or more individuals include T2 hyperintensity and restricted diffusion in the pontine central tegmental tracts, pontine hypoplasia, cerebellar vermis hypoplasia with a large cisterna magna, and Chiari malformation [Ernst et al 2021].
Microcephaly, seen in one individual, was associated with severe intellectual disability [Orsini et al 2022].
Neurobehavioral/psychiatric manifestations. Behavioral manifestations (including tantrums, aggression, and hyperactivity) were reported in 26/83 individuals in well-described cohorts. Eleven individuals had autism spectrum disorder or autistic features; eight had attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD); and one had anxiety, depression, and obsessive-compulsive disorder [Asif et al 2022].
Other reported findings include the following:
Dental
abnormalities (14 individuals), including widely spaced teeth, small teeth, large central or superior incisors, hyperdontia, hypodontia, diastema, delayed tooth eruption, and prominence of the upper dental arch
Skin findings (several individuals), including soft/translucent skin, intermittent rashes, congenital scalp nevus sebaceous, vascular skin abnormality, partial hypopigmentation, and hypopigmented and hyperpigmented macules
Hair findings (3 individuals), including thin hair, one of whom had sparse temporal hair and coarse posterior hair
Endocrine/growth
All five individuals reported by
Yang et al [2022] had short stature. Of the two who underwent growth hormone (GH) stimulation testing, one had complete GH deficiency and one had partial GH deficiency.
One individual reported by
Ernst et al [2021] had partial GH deficiency, short stature, and hypoglycemia of childhood, and another individual had delayed bone age / puberty.
Cardiovascular abnormalities. Since each of the following cardiac abnormalities (reported in one individual) can be seen in the general population, it is unclear whether they are manifestations of
CSNK2B-NDD or incidentally identified: congenital heart disease (unspecified) [
Ernst et al 2021], patent foramen ovale [
Ernst et al 2021], Ebstein anomaly and atrial septal defect [
Asif et al 2022], fenestrated atrial septal defect [
Asif et al 2022], Wolff-Parkinson-White syndrome [
Asif et al 2022], episodes of supraventricular tachycardia at birth [
Ernst et al 2021], mitral and tricuspid valve insufficiency [
Orsini et al 2022], episode of unspecified cardiac arrhythmia at birth [
Trivisano et al 2023], and aortic root dilatation (z score = 2.4].
Genital abnormalities. Undescended testes were reported in two individuals; hypospadias and uterine agenesis was reported in one individual [
Ernst et al 2021,
Zhang et al 2022]. It is unclear if these are incidental findings or manifestations of
CSNK2B-NDD.
Digital abnormalities include clinodactyly of fingers and toes; syndactyly of fingers and toes; polydactyly; tapered fingers; hypoplasia of fingers and toes; broad thumb; protonation of feet; nail hypoplasia; and both long and short fingers [
Ernst et al 2021,
Asif et al 2022,
Orsini et al 2022,
Wilke et al 2022]. One individual with contractures of the first, fourth, and fifth fingers of one hand required surgery to release a trigger finger [
Asif et al 2022].
Facial features. In about half of individuals a facial gestalt can be seen, variably including a broad or narrow forehead; frontal bossing; wide-spaced and/or deep-set eyes; a wide and/or depressed nasal bridge; bulbous nose or broad nasal tip; underdeveloped ala nasi; smooth philtrum; thin vermilion of the upper lip; wide mouth; downturned corners of the mouth; prognathism; a pointed chin; and various ear abnormalities (e.g., overfolded helix, forward-facing ear lobes) [
Asif et al 2022,
Di Stazio et al 2023].
Intrafamilial variability. In one reported family, the proband had a history of neonatal hypoxia, hypotonia, moderate ID, epilepsy, and disruptive behavior disorder; the proband's father, who had the same CSNK2B pathogenic variant, had mild ID and febrile seizures that did not requirement treatment. In another family, the mother and proband had mild cognitive disability, whereas an affected sib with the same CSNK2B pathogenic variant had normal cognitive ability and ADHD [Trivisano et al 2023].
Prognosis. It is unknown whether life span in CSNK2B-NDD is abnormal. One individual is alive at age 36 years [Ernst et al 2021], demonstrating that survival into adulthood is possible. Since many adults with disabilities have not undergone advanced genetic testing, it is likely that adults with this condition are underrecognized and underreported.