Hereditary spastic paraplegia:Pathogenesis and pathophysiology

Hereditary spastic paraplegias constitute a larger group of disorders than expected. Autosomal dominant types are mainly composed of SPAST, Atlastin (SPG3A) and REEP1 Genetic testing is suggested mainly for these genes. The most common autosomal recessive type is SPG11, hereditary spastic paraplegia with thin corpus callosum, but SPG15 shares the same clinical features with SPG11. Genetic testing should be done for both if thin corpus callosum is present in patients. How different genes with many different biological functions, including axonal transport, mitochondrial functions, fatty acid and cholesterol pathways and DNA repair defects, cause hereditary spastic paraplegia is still unknown.