Hereditary papillary renal carcinoma (HPRC) is a recently recognized form of inherited kidney cancer characterized by a predisposition to develop multiple, bilateral papillary renal tumours. The pattern of inheritance of HPRC is consistent with autosomal dominant transmission with reduced penetrance. HPRC is histologically and genetically distinct from two other causes of inherited renal carcinoma, von Hippel-Lindau disease (VHL) and the chromosome translocation (3;8). Malignant papillary renal carcinomas are characterized by trisomy of chromosomes 7, 16 and 17, and in men, by loss of the Y chromosome. Inherited and sporadic clear cell renal carcinomas are characterized by inactivation of both copies of the VHL gene by mutation, and/or by hypermethylation. We found that the HPRC gene was located at chromosome 7q31.1-34 in a 27-centimorgan (cM) interval between D7S496 and D7S1837. We identified missense mutations located in the tyrosine kinase domain of the MET gene in the germline of affected members of HPRC families and in a subset of sporadic papillary renal carcinomas. Three mutations in the MET gene are located in codons that are homologous to those in c-kit and RET, proto-oncogenes that are targets of naturally-occurring mutations. The results suggest that missense mutations located in the MET proto-oncogene lead to constitutive activation of the MET protein and papillary renal carcinomas.

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Hereditary papillary renal carcinoma (HPRC) is characterized by multiple, bilateral papillary renal carcinomas. Previously, we demonstrated missense mutations in the tyrosine kinase domain of the MET proto-oncogene in HPRC and a subset of sporadic papillary renal carcinomas. In this study, we screened a large panel of sporadic papillary renal carcinomas and various solid tumors for mutations in the MET protooncogene. Summarizing these and previous results, mutations of the MET proto-oncogene were detected in 17/129 sporadic papillary renal carcinomas but not in other solid tumors. We detected ®ve novel missense mutations; three of ®ve mutations were located in the ATP-binding region of the tyrosine kinase domain of MET. One novel mutation in MET, V1110I, was located at a codon homologous to an activating mutation in the c-erbB proto-oncogene. These mutations caused constitutive phosphorylation of MET when transfected into NIH3T3 cells. Molecular modeling studies suggest that these activating mutations interfere with the intrasteric mechanism of tyrosine kinase autoinhibition and facilitate transition to the active form of the MET kinase. The low frequency of MET mutations in noninherited papillary renal carcinomas (PRC) suggests that noninherited PRC may develop by a dierent mechanism than hereditary papillary renal carcinoma.

Abstract. Except for hereditary disease, genetic factors that contribute to the development of renal epithelial tumors are unknown. There is a possibility that the MDR1 encoded plasma membrane transporter P-glycoprotein (PGP) influences the risk of development of renal neoplasms. PGP is known to be involved in uptake, binding, transport, and distribution of xenobiotics. There is evidence that the MDR1 C3435T polymorphism drives expression and modulates disease risk. In an explorational case-control study, constitutional genotype frequencies were established at MDR1 C3435T of 537 healthy control subjects and compared with those of 212 patients with renal epithelial tumors. There were 179 clear cell renal cell carcinoma (CCRCC) and 33 tumors collectively assigned as non-CCRCC. In a second study, genotypes of another 150 healthy control subjects and 50 patients with three non-CCRCC types (26 papillary RCC, 11 chromophobe RCC, and 13 renal oncocytic adenoma) were compared. PCR-restriction fragment length polymorphism-based analysis of constitutional DNA, and statistical analysis were applied. PGP expression was analyzed by quantitative immunohistochemistry. The explorational study showed a significant association between T allele frequency and the occurrence of tumors (P ϭ 0.007). When tumors were histopathologically distinguished into frequent CCRCC and less frequent non-CCRCC, both patient groups contributed to this effect with a seemingly strong influence by the latter (P ϭ 0.0419). The second study established the T allele as a risk factor especially for non-CCRCC (P ϭ 0.0005) with the highest risk for homozygote TT allele carriers (P Ͻ 0.0001). Independently, MDR1C3435T genotype associated variations in PGP expression were shown in normal renal parenchyma with a 1.5-fold difference of median values (TT, 1.9; CC, 2.8; P ϭ 0.0065). The data provide evidence for PGP to influence the susceptibility to develop renal epithelial tumors by virtue of its MDR1 C3435T polymorphism and changes in expression. Especially T and TT carriers are at risk for developing non-CCRCC, i.e., papillary and chromophobe RCC as well as oncocytic adenomas.Renal epithelial tumors contribute approximately 3% to the overall cancer incidence and mortality. Renal cell carcinomas (RCC) compose clear cell RCC (CCRCC) in 75% to 80%, papillary (chromophilic) RCC in 10%, and chromophobe RCC in 5%. Others include granular cell carcinoma, spindle cell carcinoma, and duct Bellini and unclassified carcinomas (1). There are also benign oncocytic and papillary adenomas, which account for approximately 5% of all renal epithelial neoplasms. Although the molecular origins of these histologic subentities have been identified, i.e., mutations and hypermethylations of the VHL and RASSF1A tumor suppressor genes in CCRCC (2-5), mutations of the MET proto-oncogene in papillary RCC (6,7), and loci for hereditary chromophobe RCC and oncocytic adenoma on chromosome 17p11.2 (8), their cause and interindividual differences in susceptibility remain elusive.It is interes...

Neurofibrillary lesions of abnormal Tau are hallmarks of Alzheimer´s disease and frontotemporal dementias. Our regulatable (Tet-OFF) mouse models of tauopathy express variants of human fulllength Tau in the forebrain (CaMKIIα promoter) either with mutation ΔK280 (pro-aggregant) or ΔK280/I277P/I308P (anti-aggregant). Co-expression of luciferase enables in vivo quantification of gene expression by bioluminescence imaging. Pro-aggregant mice develop synapse loss and Tau pathology including missorting, phosphorylation and early pretangle formation, whereas antiaggregant mice do not. We correlated hippocampal Tau pathology with learning/memory performance and synaptic plasticity. Pro-aggregant mice at 16 months of gene expression exhibited severe cognitive deficits in Morris water-maze and in passive-avoidance paradigms, whereas anti-aggregant mice were comparable to controls. Cognitive impairment of pro-aggregant mice was accompanied by loss of hippocampal LTP in CA1 and CA3 areas and by a reduction of synaptic proteins and dendritic spines, although no neuronal loss was observed. Remarkably, memory and LTP recovered when pro-aggregant Tau was switched-OFF for ∼4 months, Tau phosphorylation and missorting were reversed, and synapses recovered. Moreover soluble and insoluble pro-aggregant hTau40 disappeared while insoluble mouse Tau was still present. This study links early Tau pathology without neurofibrillary tangles and neuronal death to cognitive decline and synaptic dysfunction. It demonstrates that Tau-induced impairments are reversible after switching-OFF pro-aggregant Tau. Therefore our mouse model may mimic an early phase of AD when the hippocampus does not yet suffer from irreversible cell death but cognitive deficits are already striking. It offers potential to evaluate drugs with regard to learning and memory performance. § corresponding author: Eva-Maria Mandelkow,

Background:Mutations and deletions of the homeobox transcription factor gene SHOX are known to cause short stature. The authors have analysed SHOX enhancer regions in a large cohort of short stature patients to study the importance of regulatory regions in developmentally relevant genes like SHOX.Methods:The authors tested for the presence of copy number variations in the pseudoautosomal region of the sex chromosomes in 735 individuals with idiopathic short stature and compared the results to 58 cases with Leri–Weill syndrome and 100 normal height controls, using fluorescence in situ hybridisation (FISH), single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP), microsatellites, and multiplex ligand dependent probe amplification (MLPA) analysis.Results:A total of 31/735 (4.2%) microdeletions were identified in the pseudoautosomal region in patients with idiopathic short stature; eight of these microdeletions (8/31; 26%) involved only enhancer sequences residing a considerable distance away from the gene. In 58 Leri–Weill syndrome patients, a total of 29 microdeletions were identified; almost half of these (13/29; 45%) involve enhancer sequences and leave the SHOX gene intact. These deletions were absent in 100 control persons.Conclusion:The authors conclude that enhancer deletions in the SHOX gene region are a relatively frequent cause of growth failure in patients with idiopathic short stature and Leri–Weill syndrome. The data highlights the growing recognition that regulatory sequences are of crucial importance in the genome when diagnosing and understanding the aetiology of disease.

We report on a novel transgenic mouse model expressing human full-length Tau with the Tau mutation A152T (hTau AT ), a risk factor for FTD-spectrum disorders including PSP and CBD. Brain neurons reveal pathological Tau conformation, hyperphosphorylation, mis-sorting, aggregation, neuronal degeneration, and progressive loss, most prominently in area CA3 of the hippocampus. The mossy fiber pathway shows enhanced basal synaptic transmission without changes in short-or long-term plasticity. In organotypic hippocampal slices, extracellular glutamate increases early above control levels, followed by a rise in neurotoxicity. These changes are normalized by inhibiting neurotransmitter release or by blocking voltage-gated sodium channels. CA3 neurons show elevated intracellular calcium during rest and after activity induction which is sensitive to NR2B antagonizing drugs, demonstrating a pivotal role of extrasynaptic NMDA receptors. Slices show pronounced epileptiform activity and axonal sprouting of mossy fibers. Excitotoxic neuronal death is ameliorated by ceftriaxone, which stimulates astrocytic glutamate uptake via the transporter EAAT2/GLT1. In summary, hTau AT causes excitotoxicity mediated by NR2B-containing NMDA receptors due to enhanced extracellular glutamate.

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