Alzheimer's disease shares gene expression aberrations with purinergic dysregulation of HPRT deficiency (Lesch-Nyhan disease)

Transcriptomic studies of murine D3 embryonic stem (ES) cells deficient in the purinergic biosynthetic function hypoxanthine guanine phosphoribosyltransferase (HPRT) and undergoing dopaminergic neuronal differentiation has demonstrated a marked shift from neuronal to glial gene expression and aberrant expression of multiple genes also known to be aberrantly expressed in Alzheimer's and other CNS disorders. Such genetic dysregulations may indicate some shared pathogenic metabolic mechanisms in diverse CNS diseases.