Project description:Posterior amorphous corneal dystrophy (PACD) is a rare, autosomal dominant disorder affecting the cornea and iris. After next-generation sequencing of the family in which linkage analysis identified a chromosomal locus for PACD on 12q21.33 failed to yield a pathogenic mutation, array-based copy number analysis and qPCR detected a deletion on 12q21.33 containing four genes encoding small leucine-rich proteoglycans (SLRPs): KERA, LUM, DCN, and EPYC. Two other families with PACD also demonstrated deletion of these SLRPs, which together with murine models of KERA, LUM, and DCN deficiency provide convincing evidence that PACD is caused by haploinsufficiency of these SLRPs. Copy number analysis of 750K SNP and 1.9 non-polymorphic probes present on the Affymetrix CytoScan HD array. Samples were separated by affection status. Eight unaffected and 5 affected samples from across 3 families were analyzed. Analysis was performed using the Affymetrix Chromosome Analysis Suite (ChAS) v.2.0 software.
Project description:Posterior amorphous corneal dystrophy (PACD) is a rare, autosomal dominant disorder affecting the cornea and iris. After next-generation sequencing of the family in which linkage analysis identified a chromosomal locus for PACD on 12q21.33 failed to yield a pathogenic mutation, array-based copy number analysis and qPCR detected a deletion on 12q21.33 containing four genes encoding small leucine-rich proteoglycans (SLRPs): KERA, LUM, DCN, and EPYC. Two other families with PACD also demonstrated deletion of these SLRPs, which together with murine models of KERA, LUM, and DCN deficiency provide convincing evidence that PACD is caused by haploinsufficiency of these SLRPs.
Project description:To investigate the molecular basis of posterior polymorphous corneal dystrophy (PPCD) by examining the transcriptome in affected individuals and the effect of decreased ZEB1 expression on corneal endothelial gene expression.
Project description:To investigate the molecular basis of posterior polymorphous corneal dystrophy (PPCD) by examining the transcriptome in an affected individuals with an OVOL2 promoter mutation c.307T>C (PPCD1).
Project description:Chemokines have been suggested to play a role during development of left ventricular failure, but little is known about their role during right ventricular (RV) remodeling and dysfunction. The first aim of this study was to identify chemokines which are regulated during RV pressure overload. We then hypothesized that these chemokines regulate SLRPs (small leucine-rich proteoglycans) A microarray study was performed on 5 pulmonary banded and sham operated wildype mice.
Project description:Chemokines have been suggested to play a role during development of left ventricular failure, but little is known about their role during right ventricular (RV) remodeling and dysfunction. The first aim of this study was to identify chemokines which are regulated during RV pressure overload. We then hypothesized that these chemokines regulate SLRPs (small leucine-rich proteoglycans)
Project description:Proteoglycans are distributed in all animal tissues and play critical, multifaceted, physiological roles. Expressed in a spatially- and temporally-regulated manner, these molecules regulate interactions among growth factors and cell surface receptors and play key roles in basement membranes and other extracellular matrices. Due to the high degree of glycosylation by glycosaminoglycan (GAG), N-glycan and mucin-type O-glycan classes, the peptide sequence coverage of complex proteoglycans is revealed poorly by standard mass spectrometry-based proteomics methods. As a result, there is little information concerning how proteoglycan site specific glycosylation changes during normal and pathological processes. Here, we developed a workflow to improve sequence coverage and identification of glycosylated peptides in proteoglycans. We applied this workflow to the small leucine-rich proteoglycan decorin and the hyalectan proteoglycans; neurocan, brevican, and aggrecan.
Project description:TGFBIp-related corneal dystrophy (CD) is the most common form of stromal corneal dystrophy. Although CD is a group of inheritable and progressive corneal diseases, non-inheritable cases of corneal amyloid deposition are reported. TGFBIp-CD is characterized by the accumulation of insoluble protein deposits consisting smaller proteolytic fragments of TGFBIp in the corneal tissues, eventually leading to progressive corneal opacity. Maximum density of these aggregates is in the corneal center implicating the local absence of amyloid controlling factors. Currently, no other treatment options are available besides the surgical replacement of the affected corneal tissues with a donor’s cornea. Here we show that neuroprotective ATP-independent amyloid β chaperone L-PGDS abundant in cerebrospinal fluid but absent in the corneal tissues can effectively disaggregate amyloids in vitro and in the surgically excised human cornea of patients with TGFBIp-CD.
