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Biomedical subjects

R E Stevenson

Publications and source records attributed to R E Stevenson.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

Brachmann-de Lange syndrome: diagnostic difficulties posed by the mild phenotype.

We describe 4 patients with facial changes of Brachmann-de Lange syndrome but without limb defects. Mental retardation ranged from moderate to severe and the degree of prenatal and postnatal growth deficiency was variable. These patients exemplify the diagnostic difficulties and counseling dilemmas posed by the mild Branchmann-de Lange phenotype. The relationship of the mild phenotype to the full syndrome will not be understood until the pathogenetic or causal factor(s) are delineated.

Adult↗

Recombinant chromosome 9 possibly derived from breakage and reunion of sister chromatids within a paracentric inversion loop.

Chromosomally unbalanced offspring resulting from the recombination of parental paracentric inversions are uncommon. We report on a 20-month-old boy with a partial duplication of 9p due to the recombination of a paternal paracentric inversion. The patient's recombinant chromosome was designated rec(9)(p13-->p24::p12-->p24::p12-->qter). The patient's father and paternal aunt have a paracentric inversion of chromosome 9:inv(9)(p13p24). Although several mechanisms have been proposed to explain the chromosome imbalance generated from paracentric inversions, none of the previously described mechanisms can account for the structure of the recombinant chromosome observed in the propositus. We propose an unusual mechanism of formation involving breakage and unequal reunion of sister chromatids within the inversion loop to explain the structure of the patient's recombinant chromosome.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗

Agenesis of the corpus callosum associated with MASA syndrome.

MASA syndrome includes mental retardation, adducted thumbs, shuffling gait and aphasia or speech delay. MASA syndrome, X-linked hydrocephalus and X-linked spastic paraplegia have been linked to the same markers on Xq28 and perhaps represent variation in the clinical expression of the same gene or manifestations of different mutant alleles. The present family includes five males in two generations with borderline to mild mental retardation (5/5), speech delay (5/5), spastic paraplegia (5/5), adducted thumbs (2/5) and marked hydrocephalus (1/5). Of these males, four were evaluated by MRI or CT scan and all four were determined to have partial to complete agenesis of the corpus callosum (ACC). DNA studies confirm linkage to Xq28 probe St14 (DXS52) with a lod score of 2.86 and no recombination. It is not known if X-linked ACC is linked to the same Xq28 region.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗

Duplication of distal 19q: clinical report and review.

We report on a 20-month-old boy with duplication of the distal part of 19q. His karyotype is 46,XY, -22, + der(22),t(19;22)(q13.3;p11.2)mat. The propositus has multiple minor anomalies, congenital heart defects, seizures, profound psychomotor retardation, and growth impairment. These characteristics are similar to those in the other 10 reported cases of distal 19q duplication and help delineate the phenotype. A review of the literature is presented.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗

Fellowships and career development in dysmorphology and clinical genetics.

This article sets forth some guiding principles for the initiation of a productive and satisfying academic career as a clinical researcher in the areas of dysmorphology, teratology, and clinical genetics. It assumes that the fellow in dysmorphology and clinical genetics is genuinely committed to the pursuit of a career in this area, but these general principles are certainly relevant to other medical specialties. It is important for pediatricians to consider careers in this area because the need for dysmorphologists and clinical geneticists will continue to increase during the foreseeable future, and the current opportunities for such training are limited.

Career Mobility↗

Allan-Herndon syndrome. I. Clinical studies.

A large family with X-linked mental retardation, originally reported in 1944 by Allan, Herndon, and Dudley, has been reinvestigated. Twenty-nine males have been affected in seven generations. Clinical features include severe mental retardation, dysarthria, ataxia, athetoid movements, muscle hypoplasia, and spastic paraplegia with hyperreflexia, clonus, and Babinski reflexes. The facies appear elongated with normal head circumference, bitemporal narrowing, and large, simple ears. Contractures develop at both small and large joint. Statural growth is normal and macroorchidism does not occur. Longevity is not impaired. High-resolution chromosomes, serum creatine kinase, and amino acids are normal. This condition, termed the Allan-Herndon syndrome, appears distinct from other X-linked disorders having mental retardation, muscle hypoplasia, and spastic paraplegia.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗

Allan-Herndon syndrome. II. Linkage to DNA markers in Xq21.

The original family with the Allan-Herndon type of X-linked mental retardation has been investigated for linkage by using DNA probes spanning the length of the X chromosome. Available for study, over 3 generations, were 13 affected males, three obligate carriers, and three normal sons of the obligate carriers. Initial disease-to-marker analysis suggested linkage to three markers (DXYS2 [7b], DXS250 [GMGX22], and DXS3 [p19-2]) located in Xq21. All three exhibited the same maximum lod score of 2.3 at a maximum theta of .05. Multipoint analysis using LINKMAP and a set of four DNA markers (DXYS1-DXYS2-DXS3-DXS94) gave a multipoint lod score of 3.58 for a location of the Allan-Herndon syndrome near locus DXYS1 (pDP34). Therefore, our data indicate that the gene for the Allan-Herndon syndrome is likely located in Xq21.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗

Clinical, pathological, and biochemical studies on an infantile case of sulfatide/GM1 activator protein deficiency.

A 28-month-old black male died with severe complications of mental and motor deterioration, seizures, and aspiration. Autopsy demonstrated moderate liver enlargement, normal spleen and kidneys, small testes, and a grossly normal brain. Further examination showed irregular macrogyrae with evidence of a storage or sclerotic process. Thin layer chromatography of the lipids in formalin-fixed tissue demonstrated elevated levels of ceramide trihexoside and possibly sulfatides in liver and a decrease in the ratio of galactosylceramide to sulfatide in brain. Examination of the gangliosides in formalin-fixed brain indicated a slight increase in the percentage of GM1 ganglioside and a clear elevation in GM2 and GM3 gangliosides. Cultured skin fibroblasts had a normal activity for a large number of lysosomal enzymes including arylsulfatase A and galactocerebrosidase. When the cells were loaded with [14C]sulfatide only about 12% of the sulfatide was metabolized after 3 days. Extracts of the cells were subjected to SDS-PAGE and immunoblotting with antisphingolipid activator protein-1 (SAP-1) rabbit antiserum, and no cross-reacting material was detected confirming the diagnosis of metachromatic leukodystrophy caused by SAP-1 deficiency. This patient was clinically more severe than the other patients described previously with this deficiency. Further studies are underway to define the nature of the mutation in this patient.

Autopsy↗

Meeting report: human fetal tissue transplantation research panel.

On September 14 through 16, 1988, a meeting on the use of human fetal tissue in transplantation was held at the National Institutes of Health, Bethesda Maryland, USA. The meeting sponsored by NIH for the Human Fetal Tissue Transplantation Research Panel, a consultant group to the Advisory Committee to the Director. The consultant group was convened to deal with the scientific, judicial and moral questions associated with research involving transplantation of human fetal tissue obtained after induced abortions. The first day of the meeting was devoted to presentations addressing scientific issues. Included among the speakers was Dr. Lars Olson, Professor of Neurobiology, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, who described the use of transplanted human fetal tissue in the treatment of patients with Parkinson's disease and Dr. Eugene Redmond, Professor of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, who showed results of work with transplantation of tissue to correct induced Parkinson-like disease in monkeys. Other speakers addressed the present, past or potential use of fetal tissue in the treatment of diabetes, immune disorders, and other diseases, as well as the use of fetal cells in the production of biologicals. At the conclusion of the meeting the panel did not recommend that research be halted on fetal tissue within the context discussed, although the recommendation of the committee is not binding, and an additional assembly of the panel will probably occur before the final recommendation to an NIH advisory committee is made in November. Other meetings on this subject include a meeting on the use of fetal tissue sponsored by the American Association of Tissue Banks, March 6-7, 1989, in Washington D. C. (Crystal City) and a meeting June 10, 1989, the day before the annual meeting of the Tissue Culture Association, USA, in Orlando, Florida, on fetal cells and ownership of cultured cells and products derived from clinical specimens. Following are statements to the Human Fetal Tissue Transplantation Research Panel presented September 14, 1988, by Dr. David Barnes, Associate Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics in the Environmental Health Sciences Center at Oregon State University, USA, who was asked to address for the panel recent advances in cell culture related to fetal tissue, and Dr. Robert E. Stevenson, Director of the American Type Culture Collection, President of the Tissue Culture Association, USA, and Chairman of the Committee on Cells and Tumors of the American Association of Tissue Banks.

Cells, Cultured↗

The parental origin and mechanism of formation of three dicentric X chromosomes.

Cytogenetic and molecular analyses of three dicentric X chromosomes were performed in an attempt to identify the parental origin and mechanism of formation of the aberrant chromosomes. Results indicate that, in these three cases, the dicentric chromosomes were formed by chromatid breakage and reunion of sister chromatids at the breakpoint. In two cases the abnormal chromosomes were paternal in origin; in the third case the dicentric originated from the maternal X chromosome.

Cells, Cultured↗

Molecular and cytogenetic characterization of a de novo t(5p;21q) in a patient previously diagnosed as monosomy 21.

Genomic single-copy DNA fragments were used to characterize an undetected chromosome translocation in an individual whose metaphase chromosome analysis revealed apparent monosomy 21. Eight RFLPs detected by six probes were used to identify homologous sequences from chromosome 21 in DNA digests from the proband and her parents. These family studies showed that the proband was disomic for the distal region of 21q. Reverse banding and in situ hybridization of chromosome 21-specific probes to metaphase chromosomes from the proband revealed a de novo translocation with breakpoints at 5p13 or 14 and 21q11 or 21. In situ hybridization permitted orientation of the translocated portion of chromosome 21 on the derivative chromosome 5 and, in conjunction with molecular analysis and previous mapping studies, refined the physical map for the long arm of chromosome 21.

Child↗

Vascular basis for neural tube defects: a hypothesis.

A hypothesis is set forth that neural tube defects are produced by inadequate nutrient supply to the rapidly growing neural folds. According to this hypothesis, a delay in establishing blood flow or an aberration of blood supply to neural tissue may interfere with nutrition and prevent neural tube closure. The hypothesis was tested by examining the vasculature of fetuses with spinal neural tube defects. In each case, the arterial supply to the region of the neural tube defect was disturbed. Because development of arterial supply to the neural folds predates neural tube closure, these vascular abnormalities are considered to be primary malformations that lead to neural tube defects rather than secondary morphologic disturbances resulting from neural tube defects.

Blood Vessels↗

Vascular steal: the pathogenetic mechanism producing sirenomelia and associated defects of the viscera and soft tissues.

Dissection of the abdominal vasculature in 11 cases of sirenomelia has demonstrated a pattern of vascular abnormalities that explains the defects usually found in this condition. The common feature is the presence of a single large artery, arising from high in the abdominal cavity, which assumes the function of the umbilical arteries and diverts nutrients from the caudal end of the embryo distal to the level of its origin. The steal vessel derives from the vitelline artery complex, an early embryonic vascular network that supplies the yolk sac. Arteries below the level of this steal vessel are underdeveloped and tissues dependent upon them for nutrient supply fail to develop, are malformed, or arrest in some incomplete stage. In contrast to the prevailing view that sirenomelia arises by posterior fusion of the two developing lower limbs, these studies suggest that the single lower extremity in sirenomelia arises from failure of the lower limb bud field to be cleaved into two lateral masses by an intervening allantois.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗