Transcriptional hallmarks of noonan syndrome and noonan‐like syndrome with loose anagen hair

Abstract

Noonan syndrome (NS) is among the most common nonchromosomal disorders affecting development and growth. NS is genetically heterogeneous, being caused by germline mutations affecting various genes implicated in the RAS signaling network. This network transduces extracellular signals into intracellular biochemical and transcriptional responses controlling cell proliferation, differentiation, metabolism, and senescence. To explore the transcriptional consequences of NS-causing mutations, we performed global mRNA expression profiling on peripheral blood mononuclear cells obtained from 23 NS patients carrying heterozygous mutations in PTPN11 or SOS1. Gene expression profiling was also resolved in five subjects with Noonan-like syndrome with loose anagen hair (NS/LAH), a condition clinically related to NS and caused by an invariant mutation in SHOC2. Robust transcriptional signatures were found to specifically discriminate each of the three mutation groups from 21 age- and sex-matched controls. Despite the only partial overlap in terms of gene composition, the three signatures showed a notable concordance in terms of biological processes and regulatory circuits affected. These data establish expression profiling of peripheral blood mononuclear cells as a powerful tool to appreciate differential perturbations driven by germline mutations of transducers involved in RAS signaling and to dissect molecular mechanisms underlying NS and other RASopathies. Hum Mutat 33:703–709, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

The function of Shoc2: A scaffold and beyond

“… 41-47 The biological complexity of Shoc2 S2G patients was explored using transcriptome analysis of peripheral blood mononuclear cells. 48 A large transcriptional signature characterized for the Shoc2 S2G mutation indicated a unique, Shoc2-specific route for the signaling it controls. Interestingly, the alterations in the expression of transcription factors (TFs) found in Shoc2 (S2G) patients had very little overlap with identities of TFs expression affected by the depletion of Shoc2, emphasizing the selective effect point mutation may have on ERK1/2 activity.…”

Cleft palate and hypopituitarism in a patient with Noonan‐like syndrome with loose anagen hair‐1

“…Individuals with NSLH1 are more likely to have intellectual disability, relative macrocephaly, sparse/loose anagen hair, and growth hormone deficiency (GHD) compared to individuals with Noonan syndrome (NS) caused by mutations in other genes. The clinical features of 84 patients with NSLH1 have been described (Table ) (Bader‐Meunier et al, ; Capalbo, Melis, et al, ; Capalbo, Scala, et al, ; Choi et al, ; Cordeddu et al, ; Ekvall, Hagenäs, Allanson, Annerén, & Bondeson, ; Ferrero et al, ; Garavelli et al, ; Gargano et al, ; Gripp et al, ; Hoban, Roberts, Demmer, Jethva, & Shephard, ; Kane et al, ; Komatsuzaki et al, ; Lo, Wang, Wong, & Lee, ; Mazzanti et al, ; Mazzanti et al, ; Şimşek‐Kiper et al, ; Tafazoli, Eshraghi, Koleti, & Abbaszadegan, ; Takenouchi et al, ; Tartaglia, Zampino, & Gelb, ; Tosti et al, ; Tosti et al, ; Tosti & Piraccini, ; Zmolikova et al, ). With the possible exception of one patient with unusual but not well‐defined palatal anatomy (Kumar, Chandar, Koduri, & Sankireddy, ), posterior cleft palate (CP) has not been reported in individuals with NS or with NSLH (Cao, Alrejaye, Klein, Goodwin, & Oberoi, ; Mallineni, Yung Yiu, & King, ).…”

Elucidation of MRAS-mediated Noonan syndrome with cardiac hypertrophy

“…Following Ras/MAPK/ERK signaling activation, phosphorylated Elk1 forms a complex with serum response factor and binds to the serum response element (SRE), resulting in the expression of numerous (27,28).…”