Mutant alleles of HspB1, HspB3 and HspB8 primarily associate with neuropathies with a spectrum of symptoms ranging from the clinical characteristics 'Distal Hereditary Motor Neuropathy' and 'Charcot-Marie-Tooth Disease' to some forms of 'Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis,' although a small number of mutations in these sHSPs associate also with some forms of myopathies. Here, HSPB1 is linked to myopathy.