Male monozygotic twins discordant for periventricular nodular heterotopia and epilepsy

Abstract

Purpose: To determine zygosity and study cerebral structure in apparently identical twins with discordant manifestation of focal epilepsy. Methods: Male twins in their fifth decade were scanned by using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to detect structural abnormalities. Zygosity was determined by using 10 microsatellite markers. Results: DNA analysis showed that the twins were >99.99% likely to be monozygous; they were discordant for bilateral symmetric periventricular nodular heterotopia (PNH) and epilepsy. Conclusions: The discordant occurrence of PNH and epilepsy in monozygotic male twins carries implications with respect to somatic mosaicism, currently held to be responsible for PNH in affected male subjects.