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Objective To provide a comprehensive overview of all detected mutations in the ABCA4 gene in Spanish families with autosomal recessive retinal disorders, including Stargardt disease (arSTGD), cone-rod dystrophy (arCRD), and retinitis pigmentosa (arRP). Also, to assess genotype-phenotype correlation and disease progression in 10 years by considering type of variants and age of onset. Design Case series. Participants A total of 420 unrelated Spanish families: 259 arSTGD, 86 arCRD and 75 arRP. Methods Spanish families were analysed through a combination of ABCR400 genotyping microarray, denaturing High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (dHPLC) and High Resolution Melting (HRM) scanning. Direct sequencing was used as confirmation technique for the identified variants. Screening by Multiple Ligation Probe Analysis (MLPA) was used in order to detect possible large deletions or insertions in the ABCA4 gene. Selected families were further analysed by Next Generation Sequencing (NGS). Main Outcome Measures DNA sequence variants, mutation detection rates, haplotypes, age of onset, central or peripheral vision loss, night blindness. Results Overall, we detected 70.5% and 36.6% of all expected ABCA4 mutations in arSTGD and arCRD patient cohorts, respectively. In the fraction of the cohort where the ABCA4 gene was completely sequenced the detection rates reached 73.6% for STGD and 66.7% for CRD. However, the frequency of possibly pathogenic ABCA4 alleles in arRP families was only slightly higher to that in the general population. Moreover, in some families mutations in other known arRP genes segregated with the disease phenotype. Conclusions An increasing understanding of causal ABCA4 alleles in arSTGD and arCRD facilitates disease diagnosis and prognosis and is also paramount in selecting patients for emerging clinical trials of therapeutic interventions. As ABCA4-associated diseases are evolving retinal dystrophies, assessment of age of onset, accurate clinical diagnosis and genetic testing are crucial. We suggest that ABCA4 mutations may be associated with an RP-like phenotype often as a consequence of severe (null) mutations and/or in cases of long-term, advanced disease. Patients with “classical” arRP phenotypes, especially from the onset of the disease, should be first screened for mutations in known arRP genes and not ABCA4.

Background and purpose: Headache is an important manifestation during SARS-CoV-2 infection. In this study, the aim was to identify factors associated with headache in COVID-19 and headache characteristics.Methods: This case-control study includes COVID-19 hospitalized patients with pneumonia during March 2020. Controls comprise COVID-19 patients without headache and the cases are COVID-19 patients with headache. Demographic, clinical and laboratory data were obtained from the medical records. Headache characteristics were evaluated by semi-structured telephonic interview after discharge.Results: Of a total of 379 COVID-19 patients, 48 (13%) developed headache. Amongst these, 30 (62%) were men and the median age was 57.9 (47-73) years. Headache was associated with younger age, fewer comorbidities and reduced mortality, as well as with low levels of C-reactive protein, mild acute respiratory distress syndrome and oropharyngeal symptoms. A logistic multiple regression model revealed that headache was directly associated with D-dimer and creatinine levels, the use of high flow nasal cannula and arthromyalgia, whilst urea levels, beta-lactamic treatment and hypertension were negatively associated with headache. COVID-19-associated headache characteristics were available for 23/48 (48%) patients. Headache was the onset symptom in 8/20 (40%) patients, of mild or moderate intensity in 17/20 (85%) patients, with oppressive characteristics in 17/18 (94%) and of holocranial 8/19 (42%) or temporal 7/19 (37%) localization. Conclusions:Our results show that headache is associated with a more benign SARS-CoV-2 infection. COVID-19-associated headache appears as an early symptom and as a novel headache with characteristics of headache attributed to systemic viral infection.Further research addressing the underlying mechanisms to confirm these findings is warranted.

We have made evident the possibility of detecting an inherited paternal mutation in a non-invasive way at the 13t(hr) weeks of pregnancy. This methodology could be very useful in cases of paternally inherited dominant disorders. The technical improvements in fetal DNA detection and analysis might lead to the development of new applications in the non-invasive prenatal diagnosis field.

CRB1 is the main gene responsible for LCA in the Spanish population. Sequence changes p.Asp1114Gly (RPGRIP1), p.Pro701Ser (GUCY2D), and p.Tyr134Phe (AIPL1) were found at similar frequencies in patients and control subjects. The authors therefore suggest that these changes be considered as polymorphism or modifier alleles, rather than as disease-causing mutations. The LCA microarray is a quick and reasonably low-cost first step in the molecular diagnosis of LCA. The diagnosis should be completed by conventional laboratory analysis as a second step. This stepwise proceeding permits detection of novel disease-causing mutations and identification of cases involving potential digenism/triallelism. Previous accurate ophthalmic diagnosis was found to be indispensable.

Abstract. There is growing evidence of a link between lipid and bone metabolism, although data on this association in European men are scarce. This cross-sectional study from a community-based prospective cohort aims to explore the association of serum lipids with different aspects of bone metabolism in spanish men. Demographic and anthropometric measurements, biochemical parameters including serum lipids, bone remodelling markers and calciotropic hormones, bone mineral density (BMD) assessed by dual X-ray absorptiometry and heel quantitative ultrasound, and prevalent vertebral and non-vertebral fractures, were evaluated in 289 men. Calciotropic hormones or bone markers were not associated with serum lipids. serum total (TC) and LDL cholesterol, as well as LDL/HDL ratio were positively correlated to BMD at lumbar spine and hip. No significant correlation was noted for triglycerides or HDL. We observed a positive association between triglycerides, LDL/HDL ratio and Bua, and between TC/HDL ratio and both, Qui and Bua. BMD at the femoral neck and total hip was significantly higher in men with hypercholesterolemia after controlling for all the covariates (p=0.007). We did not observe any association between serum lipids and prevalent vertebral fractures. However, we found that TC (p=0.03) and LDL (p=0.04) were lower in subjects with non-vertebral fractures. in conclusion, we have found that a more unfavorable lipid profile (mainly higher LDL-C levels) is associated with higher BMD at lumbar spine and hip in spanish men. Moreover, we did not observe any association between hypercholesterolemia and prevalent vertebral fractures, but we found lower serum TC and LDL-C levels in men with prevalent non-vertebral fractures.

3 -48 Full affiliations can be seen as electronic supplementIn a search for potential infertility loci, which might be revealed by clustering of chromosomal breakpoints, we compiled 464 infertile males with a balanced rearrangement from Mendelian Cytogenetics Network database (MCNdb) and compared their karyotypes with those of a Danish nation-wide cohort. We excluded Robertsonian translocations, rearrangements involving sex chromosomes and common variants. We identified 10 autosomal bands, five of which were on chromosome 1, with a large excess of breakpoints in the infertility group. Some of these could potentially harbour a male-specific infertility locus. However, a general excess of breakpoints almost everywhere on chromosome 1 was observed among the infertile males: 26.5 versus 14.5% in the cohort. This excess was observed both for translocation and inversion carriers, especially pericentric inversions, both for published and unpublished cases, and was significantly associated with azoospermia. The largest number of breakpoints was reported in 1q21; FISH mapping of four of these breakpoints revealed that they did not involve the same region at the molecular level. We suggest that chromosome 1 harbours a critical domain whose integrity is essential for male fertility.

The discovery of fetal DNA in maternal plasma from early pregnancies has led to new opportunities for clinical application. In the last few years there have been numerous reported applications, mainly fetal gender and RhD genotyping. The prenatal diagnosis of some inherited genetic diseases such as Huntington disease is also very frequently required in the prenatal diagnosis routine. We have successfully diagnosed, with a non-invasive procedure, an unaffected HD fetus at the 13th week of gestation using fetal DNA from maternal plasma and the quantitative fluorescent PCR method, which is one of the most sensitive ways to detect fetal DNA in maternal plasma at such an early time of gestation.