Mutations in the COL5A1 coding sequence are not common in patients with spontaneous cervical artery dissections

Abstract

Background and Purpose - The dermal connective tissue of most patients with spontaneous cervical artery dissections (sCAD) contains abnormal collagen fibers. This suggests a predisposing connective tissue defect. The ultrastructural abnormalities in the skin of patients with sCAD have similarity with the morphological alterations in patients with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome type II, a dominant hereditary disorder that has been correlated in some patients to mutations within the genes encoding type V collagen. The aim of this study was to assess the alpha 1 chain of type V collagen (COL5A1) as a candidate gene for sCAD. Methods - We searched for mutations in the COL5A1 gene in cDNA from cultured fibroblasts of 19 patients with sCAD using single- strand conformational polymorphism analysis and nucleotide sequence analysis of polymerase chain reaction-amplified fragments of the whole COL5A1 coding sequence. Results - We detected 1 missense mutation leading to a predicted amino acid (192D/N) substitution within the N-terminal propeptide in 2 siblings. All other patients showed regular COL5A1 sequences with some silent polymorphisms. Conclusions - Mutations in the COL5A1 gene do not appear to be a major factor in the etiology of sCAD.