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Genetic heterogeneity of heart-hand syndromes.

BACKGROUND: Heart-hand syndromes compose a class of combined congenital cardiac and limb deformities. The proto-typical heart-hand disorder is Holt-Oram syndrome, which is characterized by cardiac septation defects and radial ray limb deformity. We have recently mapped the Holt-Oram syndrome gene defect to the long arm of human chromosome 12 in two families. The role of this disease locus in the pathogenesis of related conditions such as heart-hand syndrome type III (cardiac conduction disease accompanied by skeletal malformations) or familial atrial septal defects is unknown. METHODS AND RESULTS: Clinical evaluations and genetic linkage analyses were performed in five additional kindreds with Holt-Oram syndrome and also in one kindred with heart-hand syndrome type III and one kindred with familial atrial septal defect and conduction disease. Holt-Oram syndrome in all five kindreds mapped to chromosome 12q2. These studies and previous data provide odds of greater than 10(25):1 that the Holt-Oram syndrome disease gene is at chromosome 12q2. In contrast, neither the phenotypically similar disorder heart-hand syndrome type III nor the locus responsible for a familial atrial septal defect with atrioventricular block maps to chromosome 12q2. CONCLUSIONS: We demonstrate that heart-hand syndromes are genetically heterogeneous. Conditions that clinically appear to be partial phenocopies of Holt-Oram syndrome arise from distinct disease genes.

Chromosomes, Human, Pair 12↗

Genetic heterogeneity among kindreds with Alport syndrome.

Twenty-three kindreds were ascertained through patients at renal clinics at University of Utah Associated Hospitals. Urinalysis indicated glomerulonephritis in 231 of 997 examined kindred members; medical records documented kidney disease consistent with glomerulonephritis in 88 unexamined kindred members. Renal biopsies of 35 persons in a subset of 14 kindreds showed ultrastructural changes and absence of immune phenomena consistent with the diagnosis of Alport syndrome. End-stage renal disease (ESRD) had occurred in 72 (49%) of 148 known affected males and in 13 (8%) of 171 known affected females. No father-son affected pairs occurred in any of the kindreds; 84% of daughters of affected fathers were affected, and 49% of sons and 48% of daughters of affected mothers were affected. One of three phenotypes (juvenile Alport syndrome with deafness, adult Alport syndrome with deafness, or adult Alport syndrome without deafness or other defects) occurred in each of the 23 kindreds. We applied likelihood analysis to test for genetic heterogeneity underlying the phenotypic heterogeneity. In the first application (the admixture test), we tested for the occurrence of two forms of the disease without specifying which kindred had which form; we found insufficient evidence of admixture. In the second application (the predivided-sample test), we tested for genetic heterogeneity expressed as phenotypic heterogeneity. Kindreds were successively divided into two subgroups, with admission to the first subgroup dependent upon: (1) having greater than or equal to 2 males with ESRD, (2) occurrence of deafness in most nephrologically affected male family members, and (3) intrakindred mean age of ESRD in males later than age 31. Weak evidence of heterogeneity was found for category (1); stronger evidence of heterogeneity was found for category (3). Penetrance of microscopic hematuria in female heterozygotes was estimated as 82% overall, 85% for adult Alport syndrome, and 28% for juvenile Alport syndrome.

Deafness↗

The Silver syndrome variant of hereditary spastic paraplegia maps to chromosome 11q12-q14, with evidence for genetic heterogeneity within this subtype.

The hereditary spastic paraplegias (HSPs) are a complex group of neurodegenerative disorders characterized by lower-limb spasticity and weakness. Silver syndrome (SS) is a particularly disabling dominantly inherited form of HSP, complicated by amyotrophy of the hand muscles. Having excluded the multiple known HSP loci, we undertook a genomewide screen for linkage of SS in one large multigenerational family, which revealed evidence for linkage of the SS locus, which we have designated "SPG17," to chromosome 11q12-q14. Haplotype construction and analysis of recombination events permitted the minimal interval defining SPG17 to be refined to approximately 13 cM, flanked by markers D11S1765 and D11S4136. SS in a second family was not linked to SPG17, demonstrating further genetic heterogeneity in HSP, even within this clinically distinct subtype.

Adolescent↗

X-linkage in bipolar affective illness. Perspectives on genetic heterogeneity, pedigree analysis and the X-chromosome map.

The search for genetic markers is a powerful strategy in psychiatric genetics. The present article examines four areas relevant to discrepancies among X-linkage studies in bipolar affective disorder. These are questions of ascertainment, analytic methods, the X-chromosome map and genetic heterogeneity. The following conclusions are reached: (a) Positive linkage findings cannot be attributed to ascertainment bias or association between affective illness and colorblindness. (b) The possibility that falsely positive linkage results were obtained by using inappropriate analytic methods is ruled out. (c) Reported linkages of bipolar illness to colorblind and G6PD loci are compatible with known map distances between X-chromosome loci. Linkage to the Xg antigen remains uncertain. (d) The discrepancy among the various data sets on affective illness and colorblindness is best explained by significant linkage heterogeneity among pedigrees informative for the two traits.

Bipolar Disorder↗

Clinical and genetic heterogeneity of hypochondroplasia.

Hypochondroplasia (HCH) is an autosomal dominant condition characterised by short stature, micromelia, and lumbar lordosis. In a series of 29 HCH probands (13 sporadic cases, 16 familial cases), we tested their DNA for the N540K recurrent mutation previously described in the proximal tyrosine kinase domain of the FGFR3 gene on chromosome 4p16.3, and we detected this mutation in 21/29 HCH patients. Interestingly, three familial cases were clearly unlinked to chromosome 4p16.3. Reviewing the clinical and radiological manifestations of the disease a posteriori, we observed that the N540K mutation was associated with relative macrocrania with a high and large forehead and short hands. By contrast, in the three pedigrees inconsistent with linkage to chromosome 4p16.3, the clinical phenotype was milder, macrocephaly and shortening of the long bones was less obvious, the hands were normal, and no metaphyseal flaring was noted. This study supports the view that HCH is a clinically and genetically heterogeneous condition.

Achondroplasia↗

Autosomal dominant nocturnal frontal-lobe epilepsy: genetic heterogeneity and evidence for a second locus at 15q24.

Autosomal dominant nocturnal frontal-lobe epilepsy (ADNFLE) is a recently identified partial epilepsy in which two different mutations have been described in the alpha4 subunit of the neuronal nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (CHRNA4). An additional seven families are presented in which ADNFLE is unlinked to the CHRNA4 region on chromosome 20q13.2. Seven additional sporadic cases showed no evidence of defective CHRNA4. One of the families showed evidence of linkage to 15q24, close to the CHRNA3/CHRNA5/CHRNB4 cluster (maximum LOD score of 3.01 with D15S152). Recombination between ADNFLE and CHRNA4, linkage to 15q24 in one family, and exclusion from 15q24 and 20q13.2 in others demonstrate genetic heterogeneity with at least three different genes for ADNFLE. The CHRNA4 gene and the two known CHRNA4 mutations are responsible for only a minority of ADNFLE. Although the ADNFLE phenotype is clinically homogeneous, there appear to be a variety of molecular defects responsible for this disorder, which will provide a challenge to the understanding of the basic mechanism of epileptogenesis.

Chromosome Mapping↗

Genetic heterogeneity for autosomal recessive pyridoxine-dependent seizures.

Pyridoxine-dependent seizure (PDS) is a rare autosomal recessive intractable seizure disorder only controlled by a daily supplementation of pharmacological doses of pyridoxine (Vitamin B6). Although glutamate decarboxylase utilizes pyridoxal phosphate as a cofactor during conversion of the excitatory amino acid, glutamate, to the inhibitory neurotransmitter, gamma-amino butyric acid (GABA), several studies have failed to demonstrate a linkage to either of the glutamate-decarboxylase-encoding genes (GAD1 and GAD2) and PDS excluding involvement of this functional candidate. However, in 2000, a locus for PDS was mapped to a 5 cM interval at chromosome 5q31 in four consanguineous and one multisib pedigree (Z(max)=8.43 at theta=0 for marker D5S2017) [Cormier-Daire et al. in Am J Hum Genet 67(4):991-993 2000]. We undertook molecular genetic studies of six nonconsanguineous North American families, using up to ten microsatellite markers to perform haplotype segregation analysis of the 5q31 locus. Assignment to the chromosome 5q PDS locus was excluded in one of the six North American PDS pedigrees, as chromosome 5q31 haplotypes were incompatible with linkage to this locus. The remaining five PDS pedigrees showed haplotype segregation consistent with linkage to 5q31, generating a maximum combined lod score of 1.87 (theta=0) at marker D5S2011. In this study, we establish genetic heterogeneity for PDS, catalog 21 genes within the originally defined PDS interval, and identify additional recombinations that indicate a higher priority interval, containing just 11 genes.

Chromosome Disorders↗

Genetic heterogeneity in multiple epiphyseal dysplasia.

Multiple epiphyseal dysplasia (MED) comprises a group of hereditary chondrodysplasias in which there are major anatomic abnormalities of the long tubular bones. The Fairbank and Ribbing types are the most frequently cited types of MED. They are primarily defined radiographically and are autosomal dominant conditions. Recently, MED in one family was shown to map to the pericentromeric region of chromosome 19 and is probably allelic to pseudoachondroplasia. We have tested linkage with six short tandem repeat markers from chromosome 19 to autosomal dominant MED in one four-generation family and to MED in a unique family with three of seven siblings affected and with unaffected parents. Autosomal dominant MED in family 1 was linked with a maximum LOD score, at D19S212, of 3.22 at a recombination fraction (theta) of .00. Linkage to chromosome 19 was excluded with MED in the other family, under both autosomal recessive and autosomal dominant, with either reduced-penetrance or germ line-mosaicism models. Linkage to candidate genes COL9A1, COL9A2, and COL11A2 was tested and excluded for both genetic models in this family. COL11A1 was excluded under a recessive model. We have confirmed linkage of autosomal dominant Fairbank MED to chromosome 19 and have demonstrated that MED is genetically heterogeneous.

Adult↗

NPHS2 mutation analysis shows genetic heterogeneity of steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome and low post-transplant recurrence.

BACKGROUND: Mutations of NPHS2 are causative in familial autosomal-recessive (AR) and sporadic steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome (SRNS). This study aimed to determine the spectrum of NPHS2 mutations and to establish genotype-phenotype correlations. METHODS: NPHS2 mutation analysis was performed in 338 patients from 272 families with SRNS: 81 families with AR SRNS, 172 patients with sporadic SRNS, and 19 patients with diffuse mesangial sclerosis (DMS). RESULTS: Twenty-six different pathogenic NPHS2 mutations were detected, including 13 novel mutations. The mutation detection rate was 43% for familial AR and 10.5% for sporadic SRNS, confirming genetic heterogeneity. No pathogenic NPHS2 mutations were found in DMS patients. Age at onset in patients with two pathogenic mutations was earlier, especially in cases with frameshift, truncating, and the R138Q missense mutations. Patients with only one NPHS2 mutation or variant had late-onset NS. Triallelic inheritance was observed in one patient with a homozygous R138Q mutation and a de novo NPHS1 mutation. Among 32 patients with two NPHS2 mutations who underwent kidney transplantation, only one developed late recurrence of focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS). Among 25 patients with sporadic SRNS and post-transplantation recurrence, we detected a heterozygous NPHS2 mutation in one case, and heterozygous variants/polymorphisms in 3 cases. CONCLUSION: Patients with two pathogenic NPHS2 mutations present with early-onset SRNS and very low incidence of post-transplantation recurrence. Heterozygous NPHS2 variants may play a role in atypical cases with mild, late-onset course, and recurrence after transplantation.

Age of Onset↗

No evidence for linkage of long QT syndrome and chromosome 11p15.5 markers in a Chinese family: evidence for genetic heterogeneity.

Recently the defective gene locus in seven Caucasian families with the Romano-Ward form of long QT syndrome (LQT) has been mapped to chromosome 11p. To understand the molecular basis of LQT in Chinese, a three-generation family was investigated. Fourteen family members were studied and five individuals were diagnosed to be affected, according to electrocardiographic criteria. Two genomic DNA probes (c-Ha-ras-3'-HVR and insulin-5'-HVR) and one tetranucleotide repeat polymorphism (THZ) derived from chromosome 11p15.5 loci and previously demonstrated to be closely linked to LQT were used as probes to analyze this family. A lod score of less than -2 was noted for all three polymorphisms. Our data show that there was no evidence of linkage between these three loci and the gene for LQT in this studied family. We believe that this result provides additional evidence for genetic heterogeneity of LQT.

Adolescent↗

[Genetic heterogeneity and phenotypic variability in 46,XY sex reversal].

The discordance between the chromosomic and the gonadal-phenotypic sex is known as sex reversal (XX males and XY females). We review the XY pure gonadal dysgenesis characterized by female phenotype, primary amenorrhea and absence of secondary sexual development. Bilateral streak gonads are always present in the complete form of this syndrome, while variable degrees of virilization are found in the partial forms, depending on the severity of the testicular damage. A plausible explanation for this pathology are SRY mutations that interfere with the testicular differentiation. However, only 10-15% of the patients with the complete form show SRY mutations, particularly in the HMG box. The remaining cases are probably due to mutations in different autosomal or X-linked genes which are also involved in the sex differentiation cascade. Recently, it has been shown that mutations in several genes responsible of well known genetic entities as WT1, SOX9, DSS and SF1, result in sex reversal. These findings reveal the genetic heterogeneity and clinical variability of XY sex reversal and provide the basis establishing a hierarchy of genes and their participation in the sex determination pathway.

Female↗

Genetic heterogeneity in familial malignant melanoma.

Following reports of linkage to chromosome 9p in families with malignant melanoma, we have been studying a series of UK families. Six families were selected with three or more cases of malignant melanoma. We have used a total of twelve markers mapping in the interval 9p13-p23 and constructed a set of haplotypes to study the inheritance of the disease chromosome. Of the six families, three were consistent with linkage to the short arm of 9, although their limited size precluded confirmation of linkage. One family was clearly unlinked, one family was either unlinked, or contains a sporadic case, or delimits the location of the melanoma gene, and one family was essentially uninformative. This is strong evidence for genetic heterogeneity in families with the malignant melanoma phenotype. We have also sequenced exon 2 of the recently identified candidate tumour suppressor gene, p16, in six individuals and found no evidence for germline mutations in this region of the p16 gene in our families with inherited malignant melanoma.

Adolescent↗

Proof of genetic heterogeneity in the proximal myotonic myopathy syndrome (PROMM) and its relationship to myotonic dystrophy type 2 (DM2).

Recently, myotonic dystrophy type 2 has been described as a separate disease entity that is distinctive from classical Steinert's disease since it lacks a CTG repeat expansion on chromosome 19q. A gene locus for myotonic dystrophy type 2 has been mapped to chromosome 3q. Independently, proximal myotonic myopathy has been recognized as yet another form of a multisystem myotonic disorder. Its relationship to myotonic dystrophy type 2 remains to be clarified. In our linkage study of 17 German proximal myotonic myopathy families nine of them mapped to the myotonic dystrophy type 2 locus (LOD score 18.9). However, two families with a typical proximal myotonic myopathy phenotype were excluded from this locus (LOD score -7.4). These results confirm genetic heterogeneity in the proximal myotonic myopathy syndrome. Furthermore, in the majority of the proximal myotonic myopathy families the disease phenotype may be caused by allelic mutations in the putative myotonic dystrophy type 2 gene.

Chromosomes, Human, Pair 3↗

Primary, nonsyndromic vesicoureteric reflux and its nephropathy is genetically heterogeneous, with a locus on chromosome 1.

Primary vesicoureteric reflux (VUR) affects 1%-2% of whites, and reflux nephropathy (RN) causes up to 15% of end-stage renal failure in children and adults. There is a 30-50-fold increased incidence of VUR in first-degree relatives of probands, compared with the general population. We report the results of the first genomewide search of VUR and RN; we studied seven European families whose members exhibit apparently dominant inheritance. We initially typed 387 polymorphic markers spaced, on average, at 10 cM throughout the genome; we used the GENEHUNTER program to provide parametric and nonparametric linkage analyses of affected individuals. The most positive locus spanned 20 cM on 1p13 between GATA176C01 and D1S1653 and had a nonparametric LOD score (NPL) of 5.76 (P=.0002) and a parametric LOD score of 3.16. Saturation with markers at 1-cM intervals increased the NPL to 5.94 (P=.00009). Hence, VUR maps to a locus on chromosome 1. There was evidence of genetic heterogeneity at the chromosome 1 locus, and 12 additional loci were identified genomewide, with P<.05. No significant linkage was found to 6p, where a renal and ureteric malformation locus has been reported, or to PAX2, mutations of which cause VUR in renal-coloboma syndrome. Our results support the hypothesis that VUR is a genetic disorder.

Chromosome Mapping↗

Linkage of a gene causing familial focal segmental glomerulosclerosis to chromosome 11 and further evidence of genetic heterogeneity.

Focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) is a pathological entity characterized by proteinuria, nephrotic syndrome, and the progressive loss of renal function. It is a common cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Recently, familial forms of FSGS have been identified. Two families with autosomal dominant FSGS were evaluated for linkage using 351 genomic microsatellite markers. Linkage, multipoint analysis, and tests for heterogeneity were performed on the subsequent results. In addition, three small families were used for haplotype analysis. Evidence for linkage was found on chromosome 11q21-q22 for the largest family, with a maximum lod score of 9.89. The gene is currently localized to an 18-cM area between flanking markers D11S2002 and D11S1986. The disease in a second family was not linked to this locus or to a previously described locus on chromosome 19q13. There were no shared haplotypes among affected individuals in the three smaller families. Our findings demonstrate that genetic heterogeneity is prevalent in FSGS in that at least three genes cause the FSGS phenotype. Identification of the genes that cause familial FSGS will provide valuable insights into the molecular basis and pathophysiology of FSGS.

Adolescent↗

Evidence favoring genetic heterogeneity for febrile convulsions.

PURPOSE: Two large Canadian kindreds appearing to segregate febrile convulsions as an autosomal dominant trait were evaluated for linkage to three known FC loci, as well as other epilepsy loci. METHODS: Members of the two families were genotyped with microsatellite markers linked to the previously identified febrile convulsion loci, FEB1, FEB2, and GEFS+, and we performed two-point linkage analyses by assuming an autosomal dominant mode of inheritance. RESULTS: We report the exclusion of the FC trait in our families to FEB1 on 8q13-21 and to a second febrile convulsion locus on 19p13. Furthermore, we also excluded the GEFS+ locus on 19q13.1 as the cause of febrile convulsions in both kindreds. Microsatellite markers linked to juvenile myoclonic epilepsy (EJM1), benign neonatal familial convulsions EBN1 and EBN2, autosomal dominant nocturnal frontal lobe epilepsy (ADNFLE), idiopathic generalized epilepsy (EGI), progressive myoclonic epilepsy of Unverricht-Lundborg (EPM1), and partial epilepsy with auditory features (EPT), were also excluded as potential loci linked to the FC trait in our families. CONCLUSIONS: These findings favor considerable genetic heterogeneity for febrile convulsions.

Age of Onset↗

Genetic heterogeneity in patients with pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration and classic magnetic resonance imaging eye-of-the-tiger pattern.

We performed a detailed molecular study in two unrelated families with pantothenate kinase-associated neurodegeneration (PKAN) and the specific magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) eye-of-the-tiger pattern. In the first family with classic PKAN, linkage analysis using polymorphic markers from the PANK2 region ruled out linkage with this locus, and no mutation of the PANK2 gene was found. In the second family with atypical PKAN, we identified a novel homozygous C-to-T transition at nucleotide 1069 of the PANK2 gene, which resulted in an arginine to tryptophane substitution at codon 357. As far as we are aware, this is the first case of classic PKAN with the specific MRI eye-of-the-tiger pattern not carrying a PANK2 mutation. Therefore, the present observation reinforces the notion of the phenotypic and genetic heterogeneity in PKAN.

Adult↗

[Genetic heterogeneity for familial recurrent hydatidiform mole].

OBJECTIVE: To determine the parental origin of the genome in the molar pregnancies of two familes with familial recurrent hydatidiform mole (FRHM) and to investigate whether the gene responsible for FRHM is likely to be located within the 19q13.4 region in these familes. METHODS: The features of complete hydatidiform mole (CHM) were confirmed by pathological examination. DNA of CHM was prepared from sections of formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded blocks of molar tissue following laser capture microdissection. The polymerace chain reaction was used to amplify microsatellite polymorphisms in DNA from the patients, their husbands and the captured molar tissue. Parental contributions to the molar tissue were determined using ABI 310 GeneScan software. Genotyping and haplotype analysis of the candidate region on 19q13.4 was performed for members of both families using 25 microsatellite markers. RESULTS: One CHM from each family was identified as a biparental complete hydatidiform mole. All patients were heterozygous for most of the markers in the chromosome region of interest. In addition the two affected sisters in one of the families had different genotypes for the 19q13.4 region, suggesting that mutations in a different locus might be responsible for the disorder in this family. CONCLUSION: The location of the gene responsible for FRHM is unlikely to be located in the 19q13.4 chromosomal region in these two families suggesting that FRHM shows genetic heterogeneity.

Family Health↗