Frontiers in Congenital Disorders of Glycosylation Consortium

Steven Sloan, MD, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Human Genetics at the Emory University School of Medicine, as well as a member of the Frontiers in Congenital Disorders of Glycosylation Consortium (FCDGC). His research focuses on glial development and the role these cells play in neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric diseases, including congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG). Here, he shares his start in rare disease research, exciting discoveries, and future goals.

The Frontiers in Congenital Disorders of Glycosylation Consortium (FCDGC) has named Jehan Mousa and Diederik De Graef as their 2021 Career Enhancement Fellows.

A new genetic cause of Congenital Disorders of Glycosylation (CDG) has been identified, according to a recent study in The American Journal of Human Genetics. This means a blood sample can now confirm diagnosis of this form of CDG, notes Andrew C. Edmondson, MD, PhD, an attending physician in Human Genetics and Metabolism at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and co-author on the study. Edmondson is one of the founding members of Frontiers in Congenital Disorders of Glycosylation (FCDGC).

Challenges in conducting clinical research in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic are spotlighted in an article from three consortia of the Rare Diseases Clinical Research Network (RDCRN). Their contribution was featured in the latest issue of Rare Neurological Diseases Special Report.

A natural history study by the Frontiers in Congenital Disorders of Glycosylation Consortium (FCDGC) is uncovering new insights on liver function in patients with congenital disorders of glycosylation (CDG). A paper published recently in the Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases based on findings from the study recommends that all CDG patients have at least yearly comprehensive screening for liver disease, including physical exam, lab work, and imaging with ultrasound and elastography.

Health care providers now have a road map for treating two types of congenital disorders of glycosylation: MPI-CDG and PGM1-CDG. A team of international experts from the Frontiers in Congenital Disorders of Glycosylation Consortium (FCDGC) published new guidelines for the diagnosis and management of MPI-CDG and PGM1-CDG in the Journal of Inherited Metabolic Disease.