Juvenile onset central nervous system folate deficiency and rheumatoid arthritis

Authors

Mary Kay Koenig
Maria Perez
Sheldon Rothenberg
Ian J Butler

Publication Date

1-1-2008

Journal

Journal of Child Neurology

Abstract

Isolated cerebral folate deficiency was detected in a 13-year-old girl with cognitive and motor difficulties and juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. Her serum contains autoantibodies that block membrane-bound folate receptors that are on the choroid plexus and diminish the uptake of folate into the spinal fluid. Whereas her serum folate exceeded 21 ng/mL, her spinal fluid contained 3.2 ng/mL of 5-methyltetrahydrofolate as a consequence of the autoantibodies diminishing the uptake of this folate.

Keywords

Adolescent, Affective Symptoms, Age of Onset, Arthritis, Juvenile Rheumatoid, Autoantibodies, Brain, Brain Diseases, Metabolic, Carrier Proteins, Choroid Plexus, Cognition Disorders, Female, Folate Receptors, GPI-Anchored, Folic Acid, Folic Acid Deficiency, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Motor Skills Disorders, Receptors, Cell Surface, Spinal Cord, Tetrahydrofolates