Background-The chromosome 17q21.31 microdeletion syndrome is a novel genomic disorder that has originally been identified using high resolution genome analyses in patients with unexplained mental retardation.

RASopathies are a class of genetic syndromes caused by germline mutations in genes encoding Ras/MAPK pathway components. Cardio-facio-cutaneous (CFC) syndrome is a RASopathy characterized by distinctive craniofacial features, skin and hair abnormalities, and congenital heart defects caused by activating mutations of BRAF, MEK1, MEK2, and KRAS. We define the phenotype of seven patients with de novo deletions of chromosome 19p13.3 including MEK2; they present with a distinct phenotype but have overlapping features with CFC syndrome. Phenotypic features of all seven patients include tall forehead, thick nasal tip, underdeveloped cheekbones, long midface, sinuous upper vermilion border, tall chin, angular jaw, and facial asymmetry. Patients also have developmental delay, hypotonia, heart abnormalities, failure to thrive, obstructive sleep apnea, GE reflux and integument abnormalities. Analysis of EGF stimulated fibroblasts revealed that P-MEK1/2 was ~50% less abundant in cells carrying the MEK2 deletion compared to the control. Significant differences in total MEK2 and Sprouty1 abundance were also observed. Our cohort of seven individuals with MEK2 deletions has overlapping features associated with RASopathies. This is the first report suggesting that, in addition to activating mutations, MEK2 haploinsufficiency can lead to dysregulation of the MAPK pathway.

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Freeman-Sheldon syndrome, or distal arthrogryposis type 2A (DA2A), is an autosomal dominant condition caused by mutations in MYH3 and characterized by multiple congenital contractures of the face and limbs and normal cognitive development. We identified a subset of five simplex cases putatively diagnosed with “DA2A with severe neurological abnormalities” in which the proband had Congenital Contractures of the LImbs and FAce, Hypotonia, and global Developmental Delay often resulting in early death, a unique condition that we now refer to as CLIFAHDD syndrome. Exome sequencing identified missense mutations in sodium leak channel, nonselective (NALCN) in four families with CLIFAHDD syndrome. Using molecular inversion probes to screen NALCN in a cohort of 202 DA cases as well as concurrent exome sequencing of six other DA cases revealed NALCN mutations in ten additional families with “atypical” forms of DA. All fourteen mutations were missense variants predicted to alter amino acid residues in or near the S5 and S6 pore-forming segments of NALCN, highlighting the functional importance of these segments. In vitro functional studies demonstrated that mutant NALCN nearly abolished the expression of wildtype NALCN, suggesting that mutations that cause CLIFAHDD syndrome have a dominant negative effect. In contrast, homozygosity for mutations in other regions of NALCN has been reported in three families with an autosomal recessive condition characterized mainly by hypotonia and severe intellectual disability. Accordingly, mutations in NALCN can cause either a recessive or dominant condition with varied though overlapping phenotypic features perhaps depending on the type of mutation and affected protein domain(s).