Report of the committee on the genetic constitution of chromosome 3.
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Biomedical subjects
Publications and source records attributed to D T Bishop.
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Both hereditary and nonhereditary factors have a decided influence on plasma sex steroid concentrations in men. We studied the relative contributions of genetic and nongenetic factors on the production rate (PR) and MCR of testosterone and dihydrotestosterone (DHT) and their conversion ratios to other metabolites in monozygotic (MZ; n = 22) and dizygotic (DZ; n = 24) male twins. Zygosity was determined by measurement of 10 blood proteins and enzymes. The kinetic studies were conducted with isotope dilution techniques. The genetic effect was determined from the equation: 2[rMZ - rDZ], where r is intraclass correlation. A heritability of over 40% was found for the PRs of DHT/body surface area and of testosterone/body surface area. Nongenetic factors accounted for 50% or more of the variation of the conversion ratios for testosterone/3 alpha-androstanediol and DHT/3 alpha-androstanediol. The results suggest that genetic factors markedly influence the PRs of testosterone and DHT, suggesting that the PR of these potent androgens is under genetic control despite the decided influence of environmental factors on their clearance.
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Linkage analysis of 15 Utah kindreds demonstrated that a gene responsible for von Recklinghausen neurofibromatosis (NF) is located near the centromere on chromosome 17. The families also gave no evidence for heterogeneity, indicating that a significant proportion of NF cases are due to mutations at a single locus. Further genetic analysis can now refine this localization and may lead to the eventual identification and cloning of the defective gene responsible for this disorder.
Our initial attempt to map NF was directed towards chromosomes 4 and 19, both of which had provided positive evidence for linkage in previous reports. This analysis showed no evidence in support of either hypothesis. Our second attempt at mapping NF was a general search of the genome, analysing a set of markers selected according to their degree of polymorphism, chromosomal location, ease of use, and availability. Data for linkage analysis were obtained from 17 multiplex families which are segregating a gene for NF. Linkage analyses were performed using PAP. Of note is the lod score of +1.17 at a recombination fraction of 0.1 between NF and the centromere of chromosome 17.
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The complete likelihood analysis is required to obtain the evidence for the gene order. Since the number of candidate orders increases rapidly with the number of loci and the complete analysis requires considerable computer time, a method for rapidly screening order is required. To this end, we used the program MAP83 for the initial investigation of order. This method provided a subset of orders to be further investigated by the complete likelihood method. We used PAP for these subsequent analyses. The advantage of algorithms such as MAP83 is that the basic unit of analysis is the set of pairwise LOD scores which are routinely calculated at the beginning of a linkage analysis. However, the magnitude of the log likelihood differences between orders can only be suggestive for two reasons. First, the usual assumptions for MAP83 regarding independence of the recombination fraction estimate are not met by these data and, therefore, no attempt can be made to interpret the log likelihood differences statistically. Secondly, pairwise information precludes identifying the specific inheritance pattern of each gamete, thus the information content of obligatory multiple recombinants is lost. For example, the order HBBC-ADJ-HRAS1-INS requires five double recombinants for the Utah data while the order HBBC-ADJ-INS- HRAS1 does not require any (White et al, 1985). The support for the former order over the latter is a log likelihood difference of 3.73 for the complete likelihood analysis when the HBBC locus is ignored.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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We have observed that familial factors have a decided influence on the plasma content of sex steroids in men both in the general population and in men of families with prostatic cancer. The contribution of genetic and nongenetic familial factors on the variation of plasma sex steroid content and action has now been investigated in 75 pairs of normal male monozygotic (MZ) twins and 88 pairs of dizygotic (DZ) twins. Zygosity was determined by measuring ten blood proteins and enzymes. The mean plasma values for testosterone (T), dihydrotestosterone (DHT), estradiol (E2), estrone (E1), and 3 alpha-androstanediol glucuronide (3 alpha-diol G), free T, LH, FSH, SHBG, age, and degree of adiposity were all similar between the groups of twins. Familial factors (P less than 0.01) accounted for 50% or more of the variation in plasma hormone levels in MZ twins (3 alpha-diol G, 84%; T/DHT, 70%; T, 63%; E1, 63%; free T, 61%; E2, 57%; DHT, 56%; LH, 55%; and FSH, 54%) except for SHBG, which was 30%. The familial influence was greater in MZ twins than in DZ twins for all measurements except for SHBG. The heritability of the variation of hormone levels in plasma was determined from the equation: 2[rMZ(intraclass correlation) - rDZ]. Genes regulate 25% to 76% of the total variation of plasma content of the hormones except for DHT (12%) and SHBG (less than 1%). Genetic regulation of tissue DHT formation was suggested by observing a 48% genetic effect on the plasma content of 3 alpha-diol G.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
Ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) is an autosomal recessive neurological syndrome of considerable interest because homozygotes are highly predisposed to cancer. Vigorous casefinding in the United States in 1970-72 and 1980-84 identified 231 white, 29 black, and three Oriental A-T cases that provide information about the incidence and gene frequency of A-T. White patients identified in this study were born at the rate of 3.0 per million live births in the U.S. in the years 1965-69. The highest observed incidence was in the state of Michigan for 1965-69, where identified white A-T patients were born at the rate of 11.3 per million births. Based on the incidence data, the minimum frequency of a single hypothetical A-T gene in the U.S. white population was estimated to be .0017. Pedigree analysis, which estimates the gene frequency from the proportion of affected close blood relatives of homozygous probands, estimated the most likely gene frequency to be .007 on the assumption that A-T is a single homogeneous genetic syndrome, with 95% confidence limits of .0012-.02. Given that complementation analysis has demonstrated the genetic heterogeneity of A-T, the A-T heterozygote frequency will probably fall between 0.68% and 7.7%, with 2.8% being the most likely estimate.
Except in the rare polyposis syndromes, the contribution of heritable factors to the genesis of colorectal cancer and adenomatous polyps is not well understood. We examined the inheritance of susceptibility to colonic polyps and cancer in a large Utah pedigree with multiple cases of common colorectal cancer but no recognizable inheritance pattern among them. Inheritance was clarified, however, by systematic screening for colonic polyps in pedigree members and spouse controls, using flexible proctosigmoidoscopy. One or more adenomatous polyps were found in 21 per cent of family members (41 of 191) but in only 9 per cent of controls (12 of 132) (P less than 0.005). Pedigree analysis was performed with likelihood methods that compared random occurrence of cancer and polyps with autosomal recessive and autosomal dominant patterns of inheritance. The analysis suggested that the observed excess of discrete adenomatous polyps and colorectal cancers was the result of an inherited autosomal dominant gene for susceptibility, rather than an inherited recessive gene for susceptibility or a chance occurrence. This type of inheritance of colorectal polyps and cancer may be more common than previously recognized.
This analysis evaluates the amount of linkage information that can be obtained for for ordering three loci. The information contents of data collected on three independent pairwise samples of two loci, and data obtained jointly from three loci in a single set of individuals are compared. The level of support of the maximum likelihood order and the interpretation of that support are also examined.
Two kindreds of lattice corneal dystrophy (LCD) [McKusick, 1983, catalog No. 12220] were studied for linkage. Fifty-one relatives were examined clinically, and 27 affected and 24 normal persons were ascertained. Tight linkage could be excluded for 15 informative markers with LOD scores of less than -2.0. The largest positive LOD score was 0.56 at 0 = 0.17 for linkage between haptoglobin and LCD. Combined with a previous study, the combined LOD score is 0.96.
Data stimulated for Genetic Analysis Workshop II were analyzed using PAP. Segregation analysis showed a simple recessive mode of inheritance for data set 2 while no conclusions could be made about the mode of inheritance for data set 3. Pairwise linkage analysis suggested three linkage groups, but three-locus analysis did not provide strong evidence for the gene order within these groups. For three of the four three-locus comparisons performed, three-locus analysis suggested the simulated order. In only one case did the pairwise analysis suggest the simulated order, indicating the necessity for multi-locus analysis for gene order.
We present evidence of a pedigree in which a major gene for breast cancer-susceptibility appears to segregate in a dominant fashion. Linkage analysis suggests that the breast cancer-susceptibility locus in this family may be linked to the ABO locus, which is located on band q34 of chromosome 9. At an early stage in the analysis, a LOD score of 3.0 for zero recombination was obtained for linkage between ABO and the susceptibility locus, but a single recombinant reduced the LOD score to 1.72 at a recombination fraction of 0.06. A final observation of a nonrecombinant brings the LOD score for this pedigree to 1.99 at theta = 0.05. We attempt to put these results in perspective by discussing the sensitivity of the LOD score to the next observation. Examples of the volatility of LOD scores are given. These simple calculations show that tight linkage represents the worst case for the interpretation of a LOD score of 3.0. Finally, we discuss the linkage between the breast cancer-susceptibility locus and the ABO blood group and approaches to confirming or denying this result.
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Variation in sister chromatid exchange (SCE) frequency in lymphocytes of 125 persons was compared using a multivariate general linear model. The study was performed to determine whether SCE frequency differs with respect to age, sex, smoking, and breast cancer status. Study subjects were divided into: members of two branches of families having an excess of cancer (primarily breast) including a brother and sister in one family who developed nonbreast malignancies within 1 yr of the study; women in both families successfully treated for breast cancer (all at least 5 yr posttreatment); and women from the general population with confirmed breast cancer. Controls consisted of spouses who married into the high-risk kindreds, hospital personnel, and others (primarily tradesmen without history of occupational exposure). Results show that: (1) Women with active breast cancer have a significantly higher mean SCE frequency than control women or women greater than 5 yr posttreatment for breast cancer; (2) Cigarette smokers show a significantly higher number of SCEs than was observed in nonsmokers; (3) The increase in SCE level in smokers is dose-related to exposure as measured by cumulative pack-years; (4) SCE values in both high-risk families are not significantly different from controls; (5) Neither the age nor sex of the individual affects SCE frequency; and (6) The observed distribution of exchanges agrees with that expected based on the proportion of the genome represented by each chromosome group.