Evidence for a Pathogenic Role of CSMD1 in Childhood Apraxia of Speech

Childhood apraxia of speech (CAS) is a pediatric motor speech disorder. The genetic etiology of this complex neurological condition is not yet well understood, although some genes have been linked to it.We describe the case of a boy with a severe and persistent motor speech disorder, consistent with CAS, and a coexisting language impairment.Whole exome sequencing in our case revealed a de novo and splicing mutation in the CSMD1 gene

Digenic mutational inheritance of the integrin alpha 7 and the myosin heavy chain 7B genes causes congenital myopathy with left ventricular non-compact cardiomyopathy

BACKGROUND: We report an Italian family in which the proband showed a severe phenotype characterized by the association of congenital fiber type disproportion (CFTD) with a left ventricular non-compaction cardiomyopathy (LVNC). This study was focused on the identification of the responsible gene/s. METHODS AND RESULTS: Using the whole-exome sequencing approach, we identified the proband homozygous missense mutations in two genes, the myosin heavy chain 7B (MYH7B) and the integrin alpha 7 (ITGA7). Both genes are expressed in heart and muscle tissues, and both mutations were predicted to be deleterious and were not found in the healthy population. The R890C mutation in the MYH7B gene segregated with the LVNC phenotype in the examined family. It was also found in one unrelated patient affected by LVNC, confirming a causative role in cardiomyopathy. The E882K mutation in the ITGA7 gene, a key component of the basal lamina of muscle fibers, was found only in the proband, suggesting a role in CFTD. CONCLUSIONS: This study identifies two novel disease genes. Mutation in MYH7B causes a classical LVNC phenotype, whereas mutation in ITGA7 causes CFTD. Both phenotypes represent alterations of skeletal and cardiac muscle maturation and are usually not severe. The severe phenotype of the proband is most likely due to a synergic effect of these two mutations. This study provides new insights into the genetics underlying Mendelian traits and demonstrates a role for digenic inheritance in complex phenotypes

Distinct disease phenotypes linked to different combinations of GAA mutations in a large late-onset GSDII sibship

Background: Glycogenosis type II (GSDII or Pompe disease) is an autosomal recessive disease, often characterized by a progressive accumulation of glycogen within lysosomes caused by a deficiency of \u3b1-1,4-glucosidase (GAA; acid maltase), a key enzyme of the glycogen degradation pathway. To date, more than 326 different mutations in the GAA gene have been identified in patients with GSDII but the course of the disease is difficult to be predicted on the basis of molecular genetic changes. Studies on large informative families are advisable to better define how genetics and non genetics factors like exercise and diet may influence the clinical phenotype. Methods and results. In this study, we report on clinical, instrumental, and pathological features as well as on molecular analysis of a family with 10 out of 13 siblings affected by late-onset Pompe disease. Three mutations segregated in the family, two of which are novel mutations. Siblings showing a more severe phenotype were compound heterozygous for c.118C > T [p.R40X] and c.2647-7G > A [p.N882fs] on GAA, whereas, two patients showing a mild phenotype were compound heterozygous c.2647-7G > A [p.N882fs] and c.2276G > C [p.G759A] mutations. Quantitative expression analysis showed, in the patients carrying p.R40X/ p.N882fs, a significant (p 0.01) correlation between the levels of expression of the mutated allele and the age at onset of the disease. Conclusions: As far as we know, this is the largest informative family with late-onset Pompe disease described in the literature showing a peculiar complex set of mutations of GAA gene that may partially elucidate the clinical heterogeneity of this family. \ua9 2013 Sampaolo et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd

A pathogenic variant in the FLCN gene presenting with pure dementia: is autophagy at the intersection between neurodegeneration and cancer?

IntroductionFolliculin, encoded by FLCN gene, plays a role in the mTORC1 autophagy cascade and its alterations are responsible for the Birt–Hogg–Dubé (BHD) syndrome, characterized by follicle hamartomas, kidney tumors and pneumothorax.Patient and resultsWe report a 74-years-old woman diagnosed with dementia and carrying a FLCN alteration in absence of any sign of BHD. She also carried an alteration of MAT1A gene, which is also implicated in the regulation of mTORC1.DiscussionThe MAT1A variant could have prevented the development of a FLCN-related oncological phenotype. Conversely, our patient presented with dementia that, to date, has yet to be documented in BHD. Folliculin belongs to the DENN family proteins, which includes C9orf72 whose alteration has been associated to neurodegeneration. The folliculin perturbation could affect the C9orf72 activity and our patient could represent the first human model of a relationship between FLCN and C9orf72 across the path of autophagy

Common variants in the regulative regions of GRIA1 and GRIA3 receptor genes are associated with migraine susceptibility

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>Glutamate is the principal excitatory neurotransmitter in the central nervous system which acts by the activation of either ionotropic (AMPA, NMDA and kainate receptors) or G-protein coupled metabotropic receptors. Glutamate is widely accepted to play a major role in the path physiology of migraine as implicated by data from animal and human studies. Genes involved in synthesis, metabolism and regulation of both glutamate and its receptors could be, therefore, considered as potential candidates for causing/predisposing to migraine when mutated.</p> <p>Methods</p> <p>The association of polymorphic variants of <it>GRIA1</it>-<it>GRIA4 </it>genes which encode for the four subunits (GluR1-GluR4) of the alpha-amino-3- hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazole-propionic acid (AMPA) receptor for glutamate was tested in migraineurs with and without aura (MA and MO) and healthy controls.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Two variants in the regulative regions of <it>GRIA1 </it>(rs2195450) and <it>GRIA3 </it>(rs3761555) genes resulted strongly associated with MA (P = 0.00002 and P = 0.0001, respectively), but not associated with MO, suggesting their role in cortical spreading depression. Whereas the rs548294 variant in <it>GRIA1 </it>gene showed association primarily with MO phenotype, supporting the hypothesis that MA and MO phenotypes could be genetically related. These variants modify binding sites for transcription factors altering the expression of <it>GRIA1 </it>and <it>GRIA3 </it>genes in different conditions.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>This study represents the first genetic evidence of a link between glutamate receptors and migraine.</p

Motor neuron degeneration, severe myopathy and TDP-43 increase in a transgenic pig model of SOD1-linked familiar ALS

Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) is a neural disorder gradually leading to paralysis of the whole body. Alterations in superoxide dismutase SOD1 gene have been linked with several variants of familial ALS. Here, we investigated a transgenic (Tg) cloned swine model expressing the human pathological hSOD1G93A allele. As in patients, these Tg pigs transmitted the disease to the progeny with an autosomal dominant trait and showed ALS onset from about 27 months of age. Post mortem analysis revealed motor neuron (MN) degeneration, gliosis and hSOD1 protein aggregates in brainstem and spinal cord. Severe skeletal muscle pathology including necrosis and inflammation was observed at the end stage, as well. Remarkably, as in human patients, these Tg pigs showed a quite long presymptomatic phase in which gradually increasing amounts of TDP-43 were detected in peripheral blood mononuclear cells. Thus, this transgenic swine model opens the unique opportunity to investigate ALS biomarkers even before disease onset other than testing novel drugs and possible medical devices

piR_015520 belongs to Piwi-associated RNAs regulates expression of the human melatonin receptor 1A gene.

Piwi-associated RNAs (piRNAs) are a distinct class of 24- to 30-nucleotide-long RNAs produced by a Dicer-independent mechanism, and are associated with Piwi-class Argonaute proteins. In contrast to the several hundred species of microRNAs (miRNAs) identified thus far, piRNAs consist of more than 30,000 different species in humans. Studies in flies, fish and mice implicate these piRNAs in regulating germ line development, the silencing of selfish DNA elements, and maintaining germ line DNA integrity. Most piRNAs map to unique sites in the human genome, including intergenic, intronic, and exonic sequences. However, the role of piRNAs in humans remains to be elucidated. Here, we uncover an unexpected function of the piRNA pathway in humans. We show for the first time, that the piRNA_015520, located in intron 1 of the human Melatonin receptor 1A (MTNR1A) gene, is expressed in adult human tissues (testes and brain) and in the human cell line HEK 293. Although the role of piR_015520 expression in brain tissue remains unknown, the testes-specific expression is consistent with previous findings in several species. Surprisingly, in contrast to the mechanism known for miRNA-mediated modulation of gene expression, piRNA_015520 negatively regulates MTNR1A gene expression by binding to its genomic region. This finding suggests that changes in individual piRNA levels could influence both autoregulatory gene expression and the expression of the gene in which the piRNA is located. These findings offer a new perspective for piRNAs functioning as gene regulators in humans

The <i>MTNR1A</i> gene is downregulated by a piRNA transcript.

<p><b>a</b>, The 500 bp piRNA genomic cluster was ligated into a linearised XbaI pRL-CMV vector (Promega) at the 3′ end of the Renilla luciferase reporter gene; this plasmid is reported as pRL-PIWI. The histogram shows the renilla/luciferase expression ratio after transfection of HEK 293 cells with increasing concentrations of the pRL-PIWI plasmid and the chemically synthesised piRNA mimic (50 nM, 100 nM, 200 nM, 300 nM). <b>b</b>, The histogram shows the levels of <i>MTNR1A</i> mRNA in HEK 293 cells after transfection with increasing concentrations of the piRNA mimic (50 nM, 100 nM, 200 nM). As controls of transfection we used HEK 293 cells without piRNA mimic and HEK 293 cells trasfected with 200 nM of a dsRNA 30 bp oligo not related with the <i>MTNR1A</i> gene. The bar reported as control is a mean value of these two experiments. <i>GAPDH</i> mRNA was used as a control. The ratio of <i>MTNR1A</i> mRNA/<i>GAPDH</i> mRNA was set to 1 in the control (no piRNA mimic transfection). Quantitation of expression levels was determined by RT-qPCR. <b>c</b>, Western blots of HEK 293 cells transfected with the piRNA mimic in increasing concentrations (50 nM, 100 nM, 200 nM) were probed with an anti-MTNR1A antibody. Beta-actin was used as a loading control. The histogram shows the ratio of MTNR1A/beta-actin. The ratio was normalised to 1 in the control transfection (as described above). The mean value of three quantitations is shown; error bars correspond to s.d.</p