Cln3 function is linked to osmoregulation in a Dictyostelium model of Batten disease

Mutations in CLN3 cause a juvenile form of neuronal ceroid lipofuscinosis (NCL), commonly known as Batten disease. Currently, there is no cure for NCL and the mechanisms underlying the disease are not well understood. In the social amoeba Dictyostelium discoideum, the CLN3 homolog, Cln3, localizes predominantly to the contractile vacuole (CV) system. This dynamic organelle functions in osmoregulation, and intriguingly, osmoregulatory defects...