LAMA2 and neuromuscular disease caused by qualitative or quantitative defects of alpha-dystroglycan: In humans, defects in the α2 chain of laminin (also called merosin) and α-dystroglycan underlie merosin-deficient congenital muscular dystrophy type 1A (MDC1A) and the dystroglycanopathies, respectively (Durbeej, 2015; Gawlik and Durbeej, 2011; Saunier et al., 2016).