Our results suggest that exon 7 skipping in the BSCL2 gene due to the c.985C>T mutation is responsible for a novel early onset, fatal neurodegenerative syndrome involving cerebral cortex and basal ganglia.

We report the clinical and molecular analysis in a consanguineous family in which the skeletal dysplasias Léri-Weill dyschondrosteosis (LWD) and Langer mesomelic dysplasia (LMD) both segregate. A newborn male and his mother, both with Langer mesomelic dysplasia, are described. A homozygous SHOX homeobox point mutation, C517T, was identified by direct sequencing in the proband and his mother. The same mutation was present in the heterozygous state in the proband's father and in the maternal grandmother, both of whom had features of LWD. This C to T transition is predicted to cause an arginine to cysteine amino acid change in a highly conserved region of the recognition helix of the homeodomain, which may reduce the stability of the interaction between the SHOX protein and its target DNA. In addition, the mutation may disrupt a nuclear localization signal in SHOX. This is the first SHOX point mutation identified in a case of LMD, and the first case in which parent to child transmission of LMD has been described.

BackgroundMucopolysaccharidosis type II (MPS II) is an inherited X-linked disease associated with a deficiency in the enzyme iduronate 2-sulfatase due to iduronate 2-sulfatase gene (IDS) mutations. Recent studies in MPS II carriers did not find clinical involvement, but these were mainly performed by anamnesis and patients’ self-reported description of signs and symptoms. So although it is rare in heterozygous carriers, investigations in other types of inherited X-linked disorders suggest that some clinical manifestations may be a possibility. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical pattern in female carriers of MPS II and to determine whether clinical symptoms were associated with the X-chromosome inactivation (XCI) pattern and age.MethodsFemale carriers of MPS II were genetically identified by molecular analysis of IDS. The clinical evaluation protocol included pedigree analysis, a comprehensive anamnesis, complete physical examination, ophthalmological evaluation, brain-evoked auditory response, electrocardiogram, echocardiogram, pulmonary function tests, abdominal sonogram, skeletal survey, neurophysiological studies, blood cell counts and biochemistry, urine glycosaminoglycan (GAGs) quantification, karyotype and pattern of XCI.ResultsTen women were included in the study. The mean age of the participants was 40.2 ± 13.1 years. Six carriers presented a skewed XCI pattern, 3 of whom (aged 38, 42 and 52 years) had increased levels of GAGs in the urine and showed typical MPS II clinical manifestations, such as skeletal anomalies, liver abnormalities, carpal tunnel syndrome, recurrent ear infection, hypoacusia and more frequent severe odontological problems without coarse facial features.ConclusionsThis is the first study performing a comprehensive evaluation of heterozygous MPS II carriers. Our results provide evidence of possible progressive, age-dependent, mild clinical manifestations in MPS II female carriers with a skewed XCI pattern, most likely affecting the normal allele. Further comparative studies with systematized clinical examinations in larger age-stratified populations of MPS II female carriers are required.

Lipodystrophies are a group of diseases mainly characterized by a loss of adipose tissue and frequently associated with insulin resistance, hypertriglyceridemia, and hepatic steatosis. In uncommon lipodystrophies, these complications frequently are difficult to control with conventional therapeutic approaches. This retrospective study addressed the effectiveness of recombinant methionyl leptin (metreleptin) for improving glucose metabolism, lipid profile, and hepatic steatosis in patients with genetic lipodystrophic syndromes. We studied nine patients (five females and four males) with genetic lipodystrophies [seven with Berardinelli-Seip syndrome, one with atypical progeroid syndrome, and one with type 2 familial partial lipodystrophy (FPLD)]. Six patients were children under age 9 years, and all patients had baseline triglycerides levels [2.26 mmol/L and hepatic steatosis; six had poorly controlled diabetes mellitus. Metreleptin was self-administered subcutaneously daily at a final dose that ranged between 0.05 and 0.24 mg/(kg day) [median: 0.08 mg/ (kg day)] according to the body weight. The duration of treatment ranged from 9 months to 5 years, 9 months (median: 3 years). Plasma glucose, hemoglobin A1c (Hb A1c), lipid profile, plasma insulin and leptin, and hepatic enzymes were evaluated at baseline and at least every 6 months. Except for the patient with FPLD, metreleptin replacement significantly improved metabolic control (Hb A1c: from 10.4 to 7.1 %, p \ 0.05). Plasma triglycerides were reduced 76 % on average, and hepatic enzymes decreased more than 65 %. This study extends knowledge about metreleptin replacement in genetic lipodystrophies, bearing out its effectiveness for long periods of time.

The rate of disease progression may be useful to diagnose vJNCL or cJNCL, which should be confirmed by molecular studies in CLN1/CLN3 genes. Further studies of genotype/phenotype correlation will be helpful for understanding the pathogenesis of this disease.

Tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) deficiency is an inborn error of dopamine biosynthesis and a cause of early parkinsonism. Two clinical phenotypes have been described. Type "B": early onset severe encephalopathy; type "A": later onset, less severe and better response to L-dopa. We aimed to study the expression of several key dopaminergic and gabaergic synaptic proteins in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of a series of patients with TH deficiency and their possible relation with the clinical phenotype and response to L-DOPA. Dopamine transporter (DAT), D2-receptor and vesicular monoamine transporter (VMAT2) were measured in the CSF of 10 subjects with TH deficiency by Western blot analysis. In 3 patients, data of pre-and post-treatment with L-DOPA were available, and in one of them, GABA vesicular transporter was determined. Results were compared to an age-matched control population. The concentration of D2-receptors in CSF was significantly higher in patients with TH deficiency than in controls. Similarly, DAT and vesicular monoamine transporter type 2 were up-regulated. Studies performed before L-DOPA, and on L-DOPA therapy showed a paradoxical response with D2 receptor expression increase as L-Dopa doses and homovanillic concentration gradually raised in a B phenotype patient. The opposite results were found in two patients with A phenotype. However, this is a very small sample, and further studies are needed to conclude robust differences between phenotypes. Synaptic proteins are detectable in the CSF and their quantification can be useful for understanding the pathophysiology of neurotransmitter defects and potentially to adjust and personalize treatments in the future.

We describe a girl with a previously unreported de novo duplication of chromosome 4q involving segment q21‐q28. Clinical manifestations included growth and psychomotor retardation, facial asymmetry, hypotelorism, epicanthic folds, mongoloid slant of palpebral fissures, apparently low‐set auricles, high nasal bridge, long philtrum, small mouth, short neck, low‐set thumbs, and bilateral club foot. This phenotype is compared with that of previously reported cases of duplication 4q. © 1996 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.

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