Psychiatric and cognitive phenotype in children and adolescents with myotonic dystrophy

Myotonic dystrophy type 1 (DM1) is the most frequent inherited neuromuscular disorder. The juvenile form has been associated with cognitive and psychiatric dysfunction, but the phenotype remains unclear. We reviewed the literature to examine the psychiatric phenotype of juvenile DM1 and performed an admixture analysis of the IQ distribution of our own patients, as we hypothesised a bimodal distribution. Two-thirds of the patients had at least one DSM-IV diagnosis, mainly attention deficit/ hyperactivity disorder and anxiety disorder. Two-thirds had learning disabilities comorbid with mental retardation on one hand, but also attention deficit, low cognitive speed and visual spatial impairment on the other. IQ showed a bi-modal distribution and was associated with parental transmission. The psychiatric phenotype in juvenile DM1 is complex. We distinguished two different phenotypic subtypes: one group characterised by mental retardation, severe developmental delay and maternal transmission; and another group characterised by borderline full scale IQ, subnormal development and paternal transmission

PGD for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer:the route to universal tests for BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers

<p>Preimplantation Genetic Diagnosis (PGD) is a method of testing in vitro embryos as an alternative to prenatal diagnosis with possible termination of pregnancy in case of an affected child. Recently, PGD for hereditary breast and ovarian cancer caused by BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutations has found its way in specialized labs. We describe the route to universal single-cell PGD tests for carriers of BRCA1/2 mutations. Originally, mutation-specific protocols with one or two markers were set up and changed when new couples were not informative. This route of changing protocols was finalized after 2 years with universal tests for both BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers based on haplotyping of, respectively, 6 (BRCA1) and 8 (BRCA2) microsatellite markers in a multiplex PCR. Using all protocols, 30 couples had a total of 47 PGD cycles performed. Eight cycles were cancelled upon IVF treatment due to hypostimulation. Of the remaining 39 cycles, a total of 261 embryos were biopsied and a genetic diagnosis was obtained in 244 (93%). In 34 of the 39 cycles (84.6%), an embryo transfer was possible and resulted in 8 pregnancies leading to a fetal heart beat per oocyte retrieval of 20.5% and a fetal heart beat per embryonic transfer of 23.5%. The preparation time and costs for set-up and validation of tests are minimized. The informativity of microsatellite markers used in the universal PGD-PCR tests is based on CEPH and deCODE pedigrees, making the tests applicable in 90% of couples coming from these populations.</p>

Peutz-Jeghers syndrome and family planning: the attitude towards prenatal diagnosis and pre-implantation genetic diagnosis

Peutz-Jeghers syndrome (PJS) is a hereditary disorder caused by LKB1 gene mutations, and is associated with considerable morbidity and decreased life expectancy. This study was conducted to assess the attitude of PJS patients towards family planning, prenatal diagnosis (PND) and pregnancy termination, and pre-implantation genetic diagnosis (PGD). In a cross-sectional study, 61 adult PJS patients were asked to complete a questionnaire concerning genetic testing, family planning, PND and PGD. The questionnaire was completed by 52 patients (85% response rate, 44% males) with a median age of 44 (range 18-74) years. A total of 37 (71%) respondents had undergone genetic testing. In all, 24 respondents (46%, 75% males) had children. A total of 15 (29%) respondents reported that their diagnosis of PJS had influenced their decisions regarding family planning, including 10 patients (19%, 9/10 females) who did not want to have children be