Project description:The importance of intracellular folate metabolism is illustrated by the severity of symptoms and complications caused by inborn disorders of folate metabolism or by folate deficiency. We examined three children of healthy, distantly related parents presenting with megaloblastic anemia and cerebral folate deficiency causing neurologic disease with atypical childhood absence epilepsy. Genome-wide homozygosity mapping revealed a candidate region on chromosome 5 including the dihydrofolate reductase (DHFR) locus. DHFR sequencing revealed a homozygous DHFR mutation, c.458A>T (p.Asp153Val), in all siblings. The patients' folate profile in red blood cells (RBC), plasma, and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), analyzed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry, was compatible with DHFR deficiency. DHFR activity and fluorescein-labeled methotrexate (FMTX) binding were severely reduced in EBV-immortalized lymphoblastoid cells of all patients. Heterozygous cells displayed intermediate DHFR activity and FMTX binding. RT-PCR of DHFR mRNA revealed no differences between wild-type and DHFR mutation-carrying cells, whereas protein expression was reduced in cells with the DHFR mutation. Treatment with folinic acid resulted in the resolution of hematological abnormalities, normalization of CSF folate levels, and improvement of neurological symptoms. In conclusion, the homozygous DHFR mutation p.Asp153Val causes DHFR deficiency and leads to a complex hematological and neurological disease that can be successfully treated with folinic acid. DHFR is necessary for maintaining sufficient CSF and RBC folate levels, even in the presence of adequate nutritional folate supply and normal plasma folate.
Project description:Pineoblastoma is a rare and highly aggressive brain cancer of childhood, histologically belonging to the spectrum of primitive neuroectodermal tumors. Patients with germline mutations in DICER1, a ribonuclease involved in microRNA processing, have increased risk of pineoblastoma, but genetic drivers of sporadic pineoblastoma remain unknown. Here, we analyzed pediatric and adult pineoblastoma samples (n?=?23) using a combination of genome-wide DNA methylation profiling and whole-exome sequencing or whole-genome sequencing. Pediatric and adult pineoblastomas showed distinct methylation profiles, the latter clustering with lower-grade pineal tumors and normal pineal gland. Recurrent variants were found in genes involved in PKA- and NF-?B signaling, as well as in chromatin remodeling genes. We identified recurrent homozygous deletions of DROSHA, acting upstream of DICER1 in microRNA processing, and a novel microduplication involving chromosomal region 1q21 containing PDE4DIP (myomegalin), comprising the ancient DUF1220 protein domain. Expresion of PDE4DIP and DUF1220 proteins was present exclusively in pineoblastoma with PDE4DIP gain.
Project description:Meningomyelocele (MM) results from lack of closure of the neural tube during embryologic development. Periconceptional folic acid supplementation is a modifier of MM risk in humans, leading toan interest in the folate transport genes as potential candidates for association to MM.This study used the SNPlex Genotyping (ABI, Foster City, CA) platform to genotype 20 single polymorphic variants across the folate receptor genes (FOLR1, FOLR2, FOLR3) and the folate carrier gene (SLC19A1) to assess their association to MM. The study population included 329 trio and 281 duo families. Only cases with MM were included. Genetic association was assessed using the transmission disequilibrium test in PLINK.A variant in the FOLR2 gene (rs13908), three linked variants in the FOLR3 gene (rs7925545, rs7926875, rs7926987), and two variants in the SLC19A1 gene (rs1888530 and rs3788200) were statistically significant for association to MM in our population.This study involved the analyses of selected single nucleotide polymorphisms across the folate receptor genes and the folate carrier gene in a large population sample. It provided evidence that the rare alleles of specific single nucleotide polymorphisms within these genes appear to be statistically significant for association to MM in the patient population that was tested.
Project description:The reduced folate carrier (RFC, SLC19A1), thiamine transporter-1 (ThTr1, SLC19A2) and thiamine transporter-2 (ThTr2, SLC19A3) evolved from the same family of solute carriers. SLC19A1 transports folates but not thiamine. SLC19A2 and SLC19A3 transport thiamine but not folates. SLC19A1 and SLC19A2 deliver their substrates to systemic tissues; SLC19A3 mediates intestinal thiamine absorption. The proton-coupled folate transporter (PCFT, SLC46A1) is the mechanism by which folates are absorbed across the apical-brush-border membrane of the proximal small intestine. Two folate receptors (FOLR1 and FOLR2) mediate folate transport across epithelia by an endocytic process. Folate transporters are routes of delivery of drugs for the treatment of cancer and inflammatory diseases. There are autosomal recessive disorders associated with mutations in genes encoded for SLC46A1 (hereditary folate malabsorption), FOLR1 (cerebral folate deficiency), SLC19A2 (thiamine-responsive megaloblastic anemia), and SLC19A3 (biotin-responsive basal ganglia disease).
Project description:Low folate status may be a consequence of suboptimal intake, transport or cellular utilization of folate and, together with elevated homocysteine, is a recognized risk factor or marker for several human pathologies. As folate transport across cell membranes is mediated in part by the reduced folate carrier (RFC1), variants within SLC19A1, the gene that encodes RFC1, may influence disease risk via an effect on folate and/or homocysteine levels. The present study was undertaken to assess the association between the SLC19A1 c.80G>A polymorphism and folate/homocysteine concentrations in healthy young adults from Northern Ireland. The SLC19A1 c.80G>A polymorphism was not strongly associated with either serum folate or homocysteine concentrations in either men or women. However, in women, but not in men, this polymorphism explained 5% of the variation in red blood cell (RBC) folate levels (P= 0.02). Relative to women with the SLC19A1 c.80GG genotype, women with the GA and AA genotypes had higher RBC folate concentrations. Consequently, compared to women with the SLC19A1 c.80GA and AA genotypes, women who are homozygous for the 80G allele may be at increased risk of having a child affected with a neural tube defect and of developing pathologies that have been associated with folate insufficiency, such as cardiovascular disease.
Project description:Globozoospermia is a rare but severe teratozoospermia, characterized by ejaculates consisting completely of round-headed spermatozoa that lack an acrosome or, in partial globozoospermia, containing a variable proportion (20.0-90.0%) of acrosomeless spermatozoa. Men that are affected with total globozoospermia are infertile, and even the application of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) has met with disappointingly low success rates. In humans, several case reports of globozoospermia have demonstrated that two or more siblings were affected in each family, which suggested a genetic component to this disease. Currently, three genes are known to be associated with total globozoospermia in humans, SPATA16 , PICK1 and DPY19L2 genes. Mutations in SPATA16 and PICK1 are rare causes of globozoospermia, found in only one patient each. Several studies have suggested that DPY19L2 mutations are the major cause of globozoospermia in patients from different ethnic origins and different geographic regions. The most common DPY19L2 mutation is the 200 kb deletion arising from a nonallelic homologous recombination (NAHR) between the flanking low copy repeats (LCRs). Here we describe the presence of a homozygous deletion of the DPY19L2 gene in two infertile Macedonian patients with 100.0% round headed spermatozoa, thus suggesting that this deletion represents a major cause of globozoospermia among Macedonian men.
Project description:ObjectiveTo determine causative mutations and clinical status of 7 previously unreported kindreds with TRMA syndrome, (thiamine-responsive megaloblastic anemia, online Mendelian inheritance in man, no. 249270), a recessive disorder of thiamine transporter Slc19A2.Study designGenomic DNA was purified from blood, and SLC19A2 mutations were characterized by sequencing polymerase chain reaction-amplified coding regions and intron-exon boundaries of all probands. Compound heterozygotes were further analyzed by sequencing parents, or cloning patient genomic DNA, to ascertain that mutations were in trans.ResultsWe detected 9 novel SLC19A2 mutations. Of these, 5 were missense, 3 were nonsense, and 1 was insertion. Five patients from 4 kindreds were compound heterozygotes, a finding not reported previously for this disorder, which has mostly been found in consanguineous kindreds.ConclusionSLC19A2 mutation sites in TRMA are heterogeneous; with no regional "hot spots." TRMA can be caused by heterozygous compound mutations; in these cases, the disorder is found in outbred populations. To the extent that heterozygous patients were ascertained at older ages, a plausible explanation is that if one or more allele(s) is not null, partial function might be preserved. Phenotypic variability may lead to underdiagnosis or diagnostic delay, as the average time between the onset of symptoms and diagnosis was 8 years in this cohort.
Project description:The molecular mechanism of C3 deficiency in an Afrikaans patient with recurrent pyogenic infections was studied. Restriction enzyme analysis showed a gene deletion of 800 base pairs (bp) mapping to the alpha chain of C3. Amplification of genomic DNA, using the PCR, demonstrated that the deletion included exons 22 and 23 of the C3 gene. Truncated mRNA was shown in an Epstein-Barr virus-transformed B-cell line by PCR amplification of first-strand cDNA. A consequence of this deletion was that the RNA transcribed 3' to the deletion was out of frame, resulting in formation of a stop codon 19 bp downstream from the deletion. The molecular basis of the deletion was compatible with homologous recombination between two Alu sequences located in introns 21 and 23. An unrelated nonconsanguineous relative and two of a sample of 174 Afrikaans-speaking individuals were heterozygous carriers of the same gene deletion. The wide prevalence of this null allele in this population is probably due to the effects of a small founder population. The presence of this deletion in the C3 gene is not compatible with production of any functional C3, supporting the idea that study of such patients offers a valid model for understanding physiological activities of C3 in vivo in humans.
Project description:We have previously shown that amino acid changes in the human Kruppel-Like Factor (KLF) 11 protein is associated with the development of maturity onset diabetes of the young VII, whereas complete inactivation of this pathway by the -331 human insulin mutation causes neonatal diabetes mellitus. Here, we report that Klf11-/- mice have decreased circulating insulin levels, alterations in the control of blood glucose and body weight, as well as serum dyslipidemia, but do not develop diabetes. Functional assays using ex vivo liver tissue sections demonstrate that Klf11-/- mice display increased insulin sensitivity. Genome-wide experiments validated by pathway-specific quantitative PCR arrays reveal that the Klf11-/- phenotype associates to alterations in the regulation of gene networks involved in lipid metabolism, in particular those regulated by peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-?. Combined, these results demonstrate that the major phenotype given by the whole-body deletion of Klf11 in mouse is not diabetes but increased insulin sensitivity, likely due to altered transcriptional regulation in target tissues. The absence of diabetes in the Klf11-/- mouse either indicates an interspecies difference for the role of this transcription factor in metabolic homeostasis between mouse and humans, or potentially highlights the fact that other molecular factors can compensate for its absence. Nevertheless, the data of this study, gathered at the whole-organism level, further support a role for KLF11 in metabolic processes like insulin sensitivity, which regulation is critical in several forms of diabetes.
Project description:The congenital dyserythropoietic anemias are a heterogeneous group of rare disorders primarily affecting erythropoiesis with characteristic morphological abnormalities and a block in erythroid maturation. Mutations in the CDAN1 gene, which encodes Codanin-1, underlie the majority of congenital dyserythropoietic anemia type I cases. However, no likely pathogenic CDAN1 mutation has been detected in approximately 20% of cases, suggesting the presence of at least one other locus. We used whole genome sequencing and segregation analysis to identify a homozygous T to A transversion (c.533T>A), predicted to lead to a p.L178Q missense substitution in C15ORF41, a gene of unknown function, in a consanguineous pedigree of Middle-Eastern origin. Sequencing C15ORF41 in other CDAN1 mutation-negative congenital dyserythropoietic anemia type I pedigrees identified a homozygous transition (c.281A>G), predicted to lead to a p.Y94C substitution, in two further pedigrees of SouthEast Asian origin. The haplotype surrounding the c.281A>G change suggests a founder effect for this mutation in Pakistan. Detailed sequence similarity searches indicate that C15ORF41 encodes a novel restriction endonuclease that is a member of the Holliday junction resolvase family of proteins.