Transcript variants of CIZ1 have been reported in a range of adult and pediatric cancers, as well as in neurological disorders including dystonias (Xiao et al., 2014a) and Alzheimer’s disease (Dahmcke et al., 2008), all of which could be affected via the same primary mechanism of weakened heterochromatin. The gene discussed is CIZ1; the disease is Alzheimer disease.