Aspa - aspartoacylase

This gene encodes an enzyme that deacteylates N-acetyl-L-aspartic acid (NAA) in the brain to yield acetate and L-aspartate. In humans, alterations in neuronal NAA concentration are associated with many neurodegenerative diseases (decrease associated with epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, myotrophic lateral sclerosis, and Alzheimer's disease; increase associated with Canavan disease). In mouse, mutations in this gene, which cause accumulation of NAA, result in demyelination and spongy degeneration in the CNS and serve as a pathophysiological model for Canavan disease. [provided by RefSeq, Dec 2012]