Stuttering associated with a pathogenic variant in the chaperone protein cyclophilin 40

Stuttering is a common speech disorder that interrupts speech fluency and tends to cluster in families. Typically, stuttering is characterized by speech sounds, words or syllables which may be repeated or prolonged and speech that may be further interrupted by hesitations or 'blocks'. Rare variants in a small number of genes encoding lysosomal pathway proteins have been linked to stuttering. We studied a large four-generation family in which persistent stuttering was inherited in an autosomal dominant manner with disruption of the cortico-basal-ganglia-thalamo-cortical network found on imaging. Exome sequencing of three affected family members revealed the PPID c.808C>T (p.Pro270Ser) variant that segregated with stuttering in the family. We generated a Ppid p.Pro270Ser knock-in mouse model and performed ex vivo imaging to assess for brain changes. Diffusion-weighted MRI in the mouse revealed significant microstructural changes in the left corticospinal tract, as previously implicated in stuttering. Quantitative susceptibility mapping also detected changes in cortico-striatal-thalamo-cortical loop tissue composition, consistent with findings in affected family members. This is the first report to implicate a chaperone protein in the pathogenesis of stuttering. The humanized Ppid murine model recapitulates network findings observed in affected family members.

Automated summary

Stuttering is a common speech disorder that may be linked to genetic variants and alterations in brain networks. This study discovered a variant in the PPID gene that is associated with stuttering in a specific family, and successfully developed a mouse model to mimic the brain changes found in affected family members.