Krabbe disease

Krabbe disease (also known as Kurt Francis Lewis or galactosylceramide lipidosis) is a rare, often fatal degenerative disorder that affects the myelin sheath of the nervous system. This condition is inherited in an autosomal recessive pattern. The disease is named after the Danish neurologist Knud Haraldsen Krabbe. Krabbe disease occurs in about 1 in 100,000 births. A higher incidence, about 1 in 6,000, has been reported in some Arab communities in Israel. Scandinavian countries have comparatively high rates of the disease, reported to be 1 in 50,000 births. Krabbe disease may also be found in cats and in dogs, particularly Westies and Cairn Terriers. Krabbe disease is caused by mutations in the GALC gene located on chromosome 14...