PurposeThis study aimed to identify the underlying genetic cause(s) of inherited retinal dystrophy (IRD) in 12 families of Kuwaiti origin affected by macular dystrophy and four Spanish patients affected by retinitis pigmentosa (RP).MethodsClinical diagnoses were based on standard ophthalmic evaluations (best-corrected visual acuity, retinography, fundus autofluorescence imaging, optical coherence tomography, electroretinography and visual field tests). Panel-based whole exome sequencing was used to simultaneously analyse 224 IRD genes in one affected member of each family. The putative causative variants were confirmed by Sanger sequencing and cosegregation analyses. Haplotype analysis was performed using single nucleotide polymorphisms.ResultsA homozygous missense mutation c.606C>A (p.Asp202Glu) in RP1 was found to be the molecular cause of IRD in all 12 families from Kuwait. These patients exhibited comparable symptoms, including progressive decline in visual acuity since adolescence. Fundus autofluorescence images revealed bilateral macular retinal pigment epithelium disturbances, with neither perimacular flecks nor peripheral alterations. A shared haplotype spanning at least 1.1 Mb was identified in all families, suggesting a founder effect. Furthermore, RP1 variants involving nonsense and/or frameshifting mutations (three of them novel) were identified in three Spanish autosomal-recessive RP families and one dominant RP pedigree.ConclusionThis study describes, for the first time, a macular dystrophy phenotype caused by an RP1 mutation; establishing a new genotype-phenotype correlation in this gene, expanding its mutation spectrum and further highlighting the clinical heterogeneity associated with IRD.
Ubiquitination is a relevant cell regulatory mechanism to determine protein fate and function. Most data has focused on the role of ubiquitin as a tag molecule to target substrates to proteasome degradation, and on its impact in the control of cell cycle, protein homeostasis and cancer. Only recently, systematic assays have pointed to the relevance of the ubiquitin pathway in the development and differentiation of tissues and organs, and its implication in hereditary diseases. Moreover, although the activity and composition of ubiquitin ligases has been largely addressed, the role of the deubiquitinating enzymes (DUBs) in specific tissues, such as the retina, remains mainly unknown. In this work, we undertook a systematic analysis of the transcriptional levels of DUB genes in the adult mouse retina by RT-qPCR and analyzed the expression pattern by in situ hybridization and fluorescent immunohistochemistry, thus providing a unique spatial reference map of retinal DUB expression. We also performed a systematic phylogenetic analysis to understand the origin and the presence/absence of DUB genes in the genomes of diverse animal taxa that represent most of the known animal diversity. The expression landscape obtained supports the potential subfunctionalization of paralogs in those families that expanded in vertebrates. Overall, our results constitute a reference framework for further characterization of the DUB roles in the retina and suggest new candidates for inherited retinal disorders.
BSTRACTSumoylation is a reversible post-translational modification that regulates different cellular processes by conjugation/deconjugation of SUMO moieties to target proteins. Most work on the functional relevance of SUMO has focused on cell cycle, DNA repair and cancer in cultured cells, but data on the inter-dependence of separate components of the SUMO pathway in highly specialized tissues, such as the retina, is still scanty. Nonetheless, several retinal transcription factors (TFs) relevant for cone and rod fate, as well as some circadian rhythm regulators, are regulated by sumoylation. Here we present a comprehensive survey of SUMO pathway gene expression in the murine retina by quantitative RT-PCR and in situ hybridization (ISH). The mRNA expression levels were quantified in retinas obtained under four different light/dark conditions, revealing distinct levels of gene expression. In addition, a SUMO pathway retinal gene atlas based on the mRNA expression pattern was drawn. Although most genes are ubiquitously expressed, some patterns could be defined in a first step to determine its biological significance and interdependence. The wide expression of the SUMO pathway genes, the transcriptional response under several light/dark conditions, and the diversity of expression patterns in different cell layers clearly support sumoylation as a relevant post-translational modification in the retina. This expression atlas intends to be a reference framework for retinal researchers and to depict a more comprehensive view of the SUMO-regulated processes in the retina.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.