Canavan disease
noun
Can·a·van disease
ˈka-nə-ˌvan- 
variants
or less commonly
: a rare, usually fatal, demyelinating disease of infancy that is characterized by spongy degeneration of the brain caused by an enzyme deficiency and that typically affects individuals of eastern European Jewish ancestry
… was diagnosed before he turned 5 months old with Canavan disease—a rare neurological disorder in which genes don't produce the protective myelin in the brain, causing the brain's white matter to degenerate into spongy tissue riddled with microscopic fluid-filled spaces.—
Burt Constable
Burt ConstableNote: Canavan disease is inherited as an autosomal recessive trait requiring that both parents pass on a copy of the defective gene on a chromosome other than a sex chromosome.
Examples of Canavan disease in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Ekstein went after the other recessive diseases affecting his community, such as Niemann-Pick, familial dysautonomia and Canavan disease.
—Jeff Wheelwright, Discover Magazine, 20 May 2012
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Jeff Wheelwright, Discover Magazine, 20 May 2012
Dictionary Entries Near Canavan disease
Cite this Entry
“Canavan disease.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Canavan%20disease. Accessed 26 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationMedical Definition
Canavan disease
noun
Can·a·van disease
ˈkan-ə-ˌvan-
variants
also
: a rare usually fatal demyelinating disease of infancy that is characterized by spongy degeneration of the brain caused by an enzyme deficiency inherited as an autosomal recessive trait and that typically affects individuals of eastern European Jewish ancestry
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share