Otosclerosis is a common form of progressive hearing loss, characterized by abnormal bone remodeling in the otic capsule. The etiology of the disease is largely unknown, and both environmental and genetic factors have been implicated. To identify genetic factors involved in otosclerosis, we used a case-control discovery group to complete a genome-wide association (GWA) study with 555,000 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), utilizing pooled DNA samples. By individual genotyping of the top 250 SNPs in a stepwise strategy, we were able to identify two highly associated SNPs that replicated in two additional independent populations. We then genotyped 79 tagSNPs to fine map the two genomic regions defined by the associated SNPs. The region with the strongest association signal, p(combined) = 6.23 x 10(-10), is on chromosome 7q22.1 and spans intron 1 to intron 4 of reelin (RELN), a gene known for its role in neuronal migration. Evidence for allelic heterogeneity was found in this region. Consistent with the GWA data, expression of RELN was confirmed in the inner ear and in stapes footplate specimens. In conclusion, we provide evidence that implicates RELN in the pathogenesis of otosclerosis.

Recent evidence suggests that rare genetic variants within the TREM2 gene are associated with increased risk for Alzheimer’s disease. TREM2 mutations are the genetic basis for a condition characterized by polycystic lipomembranous osteodysplasia with sclerosing leukoencephalopathy (PLOSL) and an early-onset dementia syndrome. TREM2 is important in the phagocytosis of apoptotic neuronal cells by microglia in the brain. Loss of function might lead to an impaired clearance and accumulation of necrotic debris and subsequent neurodegeneration. In this study, we investigated a consanguineous family segregating autosomal recessive behavioral variant FTLD from Antioquia, Colombia. Exome sequencing identified a nonsense mutation in TREM2 (p.Trp198X) segregating with disease. Next, using a cohort of clinically characterized and neuropathologically verified sporadic AD cases and controls we report replication of the AD risk association at rs75932628 within TREM2. These data suggest that mutational burden in TREM2 may serve as a risk factor for neurodegenerative disease in general and that potentially this class of TREM2 variant carriers with dementia should be considered a molecularly distinct form of neurodegenerative disease.

CaBPs are a family of Ca(2+)-binding proteins related to calmodulin and are localized in the brain and sensory organs, including the retina and cochlea. Although their physiological roles are not yet fully elucidated, CaBPs modulate Ca(2+) signaling through effectors such as voltage-gated Ca(v) Ca(2+) channels. In this study, we identified a splice-site mutation (c.637+1G>T) in Ca(2+)-binding protein 2 (CABP2) in three consanguineous Iranian families affected by moderate-to-severe hearing loss. This mutation, most likely a founder mutation, probably leads to skipping of exon 6 and premature truncation of the protein (p.Phe164Serfs(∗)4). Compared with wild-type CaBP2, the truncated CaBP2 showed altered Ca(2+) binding in isothermal titration calorimetry and less potent regulation of Ca(v)1.3 Ca(2+) channels. We show that genetic defects in CABP2 cause moderate-to-severe sensorineural hearing impairment. The mutation might cause a hypofunctional CaBP2 defective in Ca(2+) sensing and effector regulation in the inner ear.

Otosclerosis is a progressive hearing loss characterized by an abnormal bone homeostasis of the otic capsule that leads to stapes fixation. Although its etiology remains unknown, otosclerosis can be considered a complex disease. Transforming growth factor-beta 1 (TGF-beta1) was chosen for a case-control association study, because of several non-genetic indications of involvement in otosclerosis. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) analysis in a large Belgian-Dutch sample set gave significant results (P = 0.0044) for an amino acid changing SNP, T263I. Analysis of an independent French population replicated this association with SNP T263I (P = 0.00019). The results remained significant after multiple testing correction in both populations. Haplotype analysis and the results of an independent effect test using the weighted haplotype (WHAP) computer program in both populations were both compatible with SNP T263I being the only causal variant. The variant I263 is under-represented in otosclerosis patients and hence protective against the disease. Combining the data of both case-control groups for SNP T263I with a Mantel-Haenszel estimate of common odds ratios gave a very significant result (P = 9.2 x 10(-6)). Functional analysis of SNP T263I with a luciferase reporter assay showed that the protective variant I263 of TGF-beta1 is more active than the WT variant T263 (P = 1.6 x 10(-6)). On the basis of very low P-values, replication in an independent population and a functional effect of the protective variant, we conclude that TGF-beta1 influences the susceptibility for otosclerosis, and that the I263 variant is protective against the disease.

We studied the role of polymorphisms in 13 candidate genes on the risk of otosclerosis in two large independent case-control sets. We found significant association in both populations with BMP2 and BMP4, implicating these two genes in the pathogenesis of this disease.Introduction: Otosclerosis is a progressive disorder of the human temporal bone that leads to conductive hearing loss and in some cases sensorineural or mixed hearing loss. In a few families, it segregates as a monogenic disease with reduced penetrance, but in most patients, otosclerosis is more appropriately considered a complex disorder influenced by genetic and environmental factors. Materials and Methods: To identify major genetic factors in otosclerosis, we used a candidate gene approach to study two large independent case-control sets of Belgian-Dutch and French origin. Tag single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in 13 candidate susceptibility genes were studied in a stepwise strategy. Results: Two SNPs were identified that showed the same significant effect in both populations. The first SNP, rs3178250, is located in the 3Ј untranslated region of BMP2. Individuals homozygote for the C allele are protected against otosclerosis (combined populations: p ‫ס‬ 2.2 × 10

We performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) to identify the genes responsible for age-related hearing impairment (ARHI), the most common form of hearing impairment in the elderly. Analysis of common variants, with and without adjustment for stratification and environmental covariates, rare variants and interactions, as well as gene-set enrichment analysis, showed no variants with genome-wide significance. No evidence for replication of any previously reported genes was found. A study of the genetic architecture indicates for the first time that ARHI is highly polygenic in nature, with probably no major genes involved. The phenotype depends on the aggregated effect of a large number of SNPs, of which the individual effects are undetectable in a modestly powered GWAS. We estimated that 22% of the variance in our data set can be explained by the collective effect of all genotyped SNPs. A score analysis showed a modest enrichment in causative SNPs among the SNPs with a P-value below 0.01.

Objective:To determine the phenotypic spectrum caused by mutations in GRIN1 encoding the NMDA receptor subunit GluN1 and to investigate their underlying functional pathophysiology.Methods:We collected molecular and clinical data from several diagnostic and research cohorts. Functional consequences of GRIN1 mutations were investigated in Xenopus laevis oocytes.Results:We identified heterozygous de novo GRIN1 mutations in 14 individuals and reviewed the phenotypes of all 9 previously reported patients. These 23 individuals presented with a distinct phenotype of profound developmental delay, severe intellectual disability with absent speech, muscular hypotonia, hyperkinetic movement disorder, oculogyric crises, cortical blindness, generalized cerebral atrophy, and epilepsy. Mutations cluster within transmembrane segments and result in loss of channel function of varying severity with a dominant-negative effect. In addition, we describe 2 homozygous GRIN1 mutations (1 missense, 1 truncation), each segregating with severe neurodevelopmental phenotypes in consanguineous families.Conclusions:De novo GRIN1 mutations are associated with severe intellectual disability with cortical visual impairment as well as oculomotor and movement disorders being discriminating phenotypic features. Loss of NMDA receptor function appears to be the underlying disease mechanism. The identification of both heterozygous and homozygous mutations blurs the borders of dominant and recessive inheritance of GRIN1-associated disorders.

Ca 2+ -binding protein 2 (CaBP2) inhibits the inactivation of heterologously expressed voltage-gated Ca 2+ channels of type 1.3 (Ca V 1.3) and is defective in human autosomal-recessive deafness 93 (DFNB93). Here, we report a newly identified mutation in CABP2 that causes a moderate hearing impairment likely via nonsense-mediated decay of CABP2-mRNA. To study the mechanism of hearing impairment resulting from CABP2 loss of function, we disrupted Cabp2 in mice (Cabp2 LacZ/LacZ ). CaBP2 was expressed by cochlear hair cells, preferentially in inner hair cells (IHCs), and was lacking from the postsynaptic spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs). Cabp2 LacZ/LacZ mice displayed intact cochlear amplification but impaired auditory brainstem responses. Patch-clamp recordings from Cabp2 LacZ/LacZ IHCs revealed enhanced Ca 2+ -channel inactivation. The voltage dependence of activation and the number of Ca 2+ channels appeared normal in Cabp2 LacZ/LacZ mice, as were ribbon synapse counts. Recordings from single SGNs showed reduced spontaneous and sound-evoked firing rates. We propose that CaBP2 inhibits Ca V 1.3 Ca 2+ -channel inactivation, and thus sustains the availability of Ca V 1.3 Ca 2+ channels for synaptic sound encoding. Therefore, we conclude that human deafness DFNB93 is an auditory synaptopathy.H earing relies on faithful transmission of information at ribbon synapses between inner hair cells (IHCs) and spiral ganglion neurons (SGNs; recently reviewed in refs. 1, 2). Ca 2+ channels at the IHC presynaptic active zone are key signaling elements because they couple the sound-evoked IHC receptor potential to the release of glutamate. IHC Ca 2+ -channel complexes are known to contain Ca V 1.3 α1 subunit (Cav1.3α1) (3-5), betasubunit 2 (Ca V β2) (6), and alpha2-delta subunit 2 (α2δ2) (7) to activate at around −60 mV (8-10), and are partially activated already at the IHC resting potential in vivo [thought to be between −55 and −45 mV (11, 12)], thereby mediating "spontaneous" glutamate release during silence (13).Compared with Ca V 1.3 channels studied in heterologous expression systems, Ca V 1.3 channels in IHCs show little inactivation, which has been attributed to inhibition of calmodulin-mediated Ca 2+ -dependent inactivation (CDI) (14-17) by Ca 2+ -binding proteins (CaBPs) (18,19) and/or the interaction of the distal and proximal regulatory domains of the Ca V 1.3α1 C terminus (20)(21)(22). This "noninactivating" phenotype of IHC Ca V 1.3 enables reliable excitation-secretion coupling during ongoing stimulation (23-25). In fact, postsynaptic spike rate adaptation during ongoing sound stimulation is thought to reflect primarily presynaptic vesicle pool depletion, with minor contributions of Ca V 1.3 inactivation or AMPA-receptor desensitization (23-26). CaBPs are calmodulin-like proteins that use three functional out of four helix-loop-helix domains (EF-hand) for Ca 2+ binding (27). They are thought to function primarily as signaling proteins (28) and differentially modulate calmodulin effectors (29,30). In addition, CaBPs m...