Clinical Description
LRRK2 Parkinson disease (PD) is characterized by features consistent with idiopathic PD (IPD), including initial symptoms of slowness, decreased arm swing, rest tremor, and initial motor signs of bradykinesia, associated with rigidity and/or resting tremor. Gait abnormalities and postural instability also occur, particularly with progression of the disease [Alcalay et al 2013, Mirelman et al 2013, Trinh et al 2014b]. While indistinguishable individually from IPD, motor and cognitive features suggest that as a group, signs and symptoms of LRRK2-PD may be milder than in IPD [Kestenbaum & Alcalay 2017, Ben Romdhan et al 2018, Saunders-Pullman et al 2018] (see Phenotype Correlations by Cause).
LRRK2-PD disease onset is insidious with a slowly progressive course.
The percentage of men and women with
LRRK2-PD is approximately equal, although individuals with
LRRK2-PD of Tunisian descent demonstrated a male predominance [
Ben Romdhan et al 2018].
Motor features. Data conflict regarding the predominant motor features specific to LRRK2-PD. Some have reported more tremor at onset [Healy et al 2008, Marras et al 2011], while others have reported more gait-predominant features, postural instability, and rigidity at onset [Alcalay et al 2009, Gan-Or et al 2010]. Motor features are overall similar to IPD and include the following:
Slowness and difficulty with dexterity (bradykinesia)
Tremor, which may occur at rest or during action, although this sign may not be present
Slow walk or shuffling gait
Unsteadiness and falls
Low vocal volume, with difficulty projecting
Facial hypomimia (masking)
As with other forms of Parkinson disease, the disorder is slowly progressive, and generally spreads from unilateral to bilateral involvement. Disease progression varies significantly among individuals and is related to age of onset.
Nonmotor features may appear prior to the movement disorder or emerge with motor disease progression. They include the following [Healy et al 2008, Saunders-Pullman et al 2011, Alcalay et al 2013, Gaig et al 2014, Alcalay et al 2015]:
Risk of malignancy
An association between melanoma and PD of any etiology has been reported [
Huang et al 2015,
Dalvin et al 2017]. Compared to individuals without PD, those with PD due to any cause have a 3.8-fold increased likelihood of having a preexisting melanoma [
Dalvin et al 2017]. The rate of melanoma in individuals with
LRRK2-PD who have a heterozygous
p.Gly2019Ser pathogenic variant is similar or increased compared to the risk of melanoma in individuals with other forms of Parkinson disease [
Agalliu et al 2015,
Agalliu et al 2019].
Atypical Parkinson disease phenotypes. For a small number of individuals with a LRRK2 pathogenic variant, clinical features and/or pathology support an atypical parkinsonian syndrome. These atypical phenotypes include progressive supranuclear palsy (PSP), multiple-system atrophy, corticobasal syndrome, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis-like signs, and frontotemporal dementia [Zimprich et al 2004a, Ross et al 2006, Dächsel et al 2007, Chen-Plotkin et al 2008, Santos-Rebouças et al 2008, Lee et al 2018b]. See also Neuropathology (below).
DaT and PET scanning. In general, PET scan results in individuals with LRRK2-PD are similar to those in others with adult-onset PD from a variety of causes.
Infrequently, normal PET scanning early in the disease course has been observed in both LRRK2-PD and non-LRRK2-PD and does not preclude a PD diagnosis [Wile et al 2016].
Neuropathology. The hallmark pathologic features of the common idiopathic form of PD are neuronal loss and gliosis in the substantia nigra and the presence of intracytoplasmic inclusions (or Lewy bodies). The majority of individuals with LRRK2-PD exhibit these characteristics [Ross et al 2006]. However, a significant subset of individuals with LRRK2-PD, particularly those with the p.Gly2019Ser pathogenic variant, have substantia nigra dopaminergic neuronal loss and gliosis without accompanying Lewy body inclusion. Of great interest, the pathology correlates with the extent of nonmotor clinical features. Kalia et al [2015] correlated the presence of Lewy bodies with nonmotor features of cognitive impairment / dementia, anxiety, orthostatic hypotension, and the absence of Lewy bodies with a predominantly motor phenotype.
LRRK2-PD has also been documented with alternate pathologies. Of particular note, three out of six individuals with parkinsonism and a heterozygous LRRK2 pathogenic variant identified in a large brain bank series were found to have pathology suggestive of PSP or pre-PSP with tau-positive neurons, neuropil threads, and tufted astrocytes [Blauwendraat et al 2019]. Additional series include those with PSP pathology and neurofibrillary tangles, as well as ubiquitin-immunopositive inclusions (Marinesco bodies) and TDP-43 inclusions [Wszolek et al 2004, Zimprich et al 2004b, Funayama et al 2005, Ross et al 2006, Covy et al 2009, Ujiie et al 2012].
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Phenotype Correlations by Cause
Among the confirmed pathogenic variants in LRRK2, the pathogenic p.Gly2019Ser variant is the most common. The numerous published reports related to its associated clinical features are the focus of this section. See Genotype-Phenotype Correlations for differences associated with other LRRK2 variants.
Most studies have shown that individual clinical features are indistinguishable between individuals with LRRK2-PD and idiopathic PD (IPD) [Healy et al 2008, Alcalay et al 2013]. However, mild differences are observed in many studies. These cluster overall on a slightly milder clinical motor course for individuals with LRRK2-PD who have the p.Gly2019Ser variant compared to those with IPD. Some of the difference in nonmotor features may be attributable to neuropathologic heterogeneity, as individuals with fewer or less severe nonmotor features are more likely to have isolated nigral degeneration without associated Lewy bodies [Kalia et al 2015].
Reported Clinical Differences Between Individuals with LRRK2-PD and IPD
While LRRK2-PD typically has late-onset disease (mean of 58 years [Marder et al 2015] or 61.6 years [San Luciano et al 2017]), a subset of individuals have very early-onset disease (in the 20s). This may be related to other genes that modify the expression of LRRK2 [Trinh et al 2016].
Affected male-to-female ratio is similar, compared to 60% male and 40% female for IPD [Gan-Or et al 2015, San Luciano et al 2017].
Overall survival is longer in those with LRRK2-PD [Thaler et al 2018].
Motor features
Nonmotor features
Constipation is less severe in the Tunisian Berber cohort with
LRRK2-PD [
Trinh et al 2014a] compared to those with IPD.
Possibly a slightly lower risk of
depression in those with
LRRK2-PD [
Marras et al 2016]
Sleep-onset insomnia may occur more frequently in those with
LRRK2-PD, although the frequency of excessive daytime sleepiness may not differ [
Pont-Sunyer et al 2015].
Co-Occurring Pathogenic Variants in LRRK2 and GBA1
Among 12 Ashkenazi Jewish individuals who had both the LRRK2 pathogenic p.Gly2019Ser variant and a heterozygous pathogenic GBA1 (formerly GBA) variant, no significant differences in phenotype were observed when compared to those with just the LRRK2 variant [Yahalom et al 2019].