[Genetic analysis of a Chinese pedigree affected with Branchio-oculo-facial syndrome and a literature review].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the genetic etiology of a Chinese pedigree affected with Branchio-oculo-facial syndrome (BOFS) and summarize the prenatal phenotype of BOFS patients. METHODS: A pedigree with BOFS which had presented at the Genetics and Prenatal Diagnosis Center of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University in December 2021 was selected as the study subject. Clinical data of the pedigree was collected. The fetus was subjected to routine prenatal ultrasound scan. Trio-whole exome sequencing (trio-WES) was carried out for the fetus and its parents, and candidate variant was verified by Sanger sequencing. Relevant literature was searched from the database to summarize the prenatal phenotype of BOFS patients. RESULTS: Ultrasound exam suggested the fetus had cleft lip and palate. Its father had presented with high palatal arch, prematurely grayed hair, occult cleft lip, congenital preauricular fistula, red-green color blindness and unilateral renal agenesis. Its grandfather also had high palatal arch, prematurely gray hair, protruding ears, congenital preauricular fistula and hearing disorders. Trio-WES revealed that the fetus and its father had both harbored a heterozygous c.890-1G>A variant of the TFAP2A gene. The same variant was not found in its mother. Sanger sequencing confirmed that its grandfather had also harbored the same variant. Based on the guidelines from the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics (ACMG), the variant was rated as likely pathogenic (PVS1+PM2_Supporting). Combined with 36 similar cases retrieved from the literature, the prenatal phenotypes of BOFS patients had included growth restriction (25/37), renal abnormalities (10/37), cleft lip and palate (5/37) and oligohydramnios (5/37). CONCLUSION: The c.890-1G>A variant of the TFAP2A gene probably underlay the pathogenesis of BOFS in this pedigree. Discovery of the novel variant has enriched the mutational spectrum of the TFAP2A gene. The common prenatal phenotypes of BOFS have included growth restriction, renal abnormalities, cleft lip and palate and oligohydramnios. Delineation of the intrauterine phenotype of BOFS may facilitate its prenatal diagnosis, clinical diagnosis, treatment and genetic counseling.

Genetic analysis of 55 cases with fetal skeletal dysplasia.

BACKGROUND: Fetal skeletal dysplasia (SD) is a common congenital disability comprising a complex group of skeletal disorders with substantial clinical and genetic heterogeneity. Many of these defects are detected prenatally using ultrasound (US). However, the diagnostic accuracy of the US is limited. METHODS: We recruited 55 unrelated fetuses with US-detected skeletal anomalies and performed sequential tests using copy number variation sequencing, targeted skeletal gene panel sequencing, or whole exome sequencing. The detected variants were validated using Sanger sequencing or multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification. We conducted breakpoint analysis and structural modeling of variants possibly involved in fetal SD. RESULTS: A definitive diagnosis was achieved in 81.82% of affected fetuses (45/55). We identified chromosomal abnormalities in seven cases and 36 variants, of which 18 were novel pathogenic or likely pathogenic in 11 genes in 38 cases. De novo variants were identified in 27 cases (71.05%, 27/38), and one gonosomal mosaicism variant was found in the mother of one fetus. Our case examples demonstrated the high heterogeneity of fetal SDs and the rare fetal SD-associated challenges. CONCLUSIONS: Careful clinical evaluation of fetuses with SD can guide appropriate molecular testing. Our study extends the SD-associated pathogenic variant spectrum and provides useful genetic counselling guidance and an accurate prenatal diagnosis strategy.

Molecular analysis and novel variation identification of Chinese pedigrees with mucopolysaccharidosis using targeted next-generation sequencing.

BACKGROUND: Mucopolysaccharidosis (MPS) refers to a group of lysosomal storage disorders for which seven types and 11 subtypes are currently recognized. Targeted next-generation sequencing (NGS) offers an important method of disease typing, diagnosis, prenatal diagnosis, and treatment. METHODS: Gene variations in 48 Chinese MPS patients were evaluated using NGS, and the pathogenicity of the DNA alterations was evaluated using PolyPhen2, SIFT, and Mutation Taster. The effect of amino acid substitution on protein structure was also assessed. RESULTS: Four pedigrees with MPS I (8.3%), 28 with MPS II (58.3%), two with MPS IIIA (4.2%), two with MPS IIIB (4.2%), six with MPS IVA (12.5%), one with MPS IVB (2.1%), and five with MPS VI (10.4%) were identified. Of the 69 variations identified, 11 were novel variants (three in IDUA, five in IDS, and three in GALNS), all of which were predicted to be disease-causing except for one, and were associated with impaired protein structure and function. CONCLUSIONS: Targeted NGS technology is effective for the gene-based testing of MPS disorders, which show high allelic heterogeneity. MPS II was the predominant form in Chinese. Our study expands the existing variation spectrum of MPS, which is important for disease management and genetic counseling.

[Genetic testing and prenatal diagnosis of two pedigrees affected with Huntington disease].

OBJECTIVE: To explore the genetic basis for two Chinese pedigrees affected with Huntington disease and provide prenatal diagnosis for them. METHODS: Peripheral venous blood samples were collected from the probands. PCR and capillary gel electrophoresis were used to determine the number of CAG repeats in their IT15 gene. Pre-symptomatic testing was offered to their children and relatives, and prenatal diagnosis was provided to three pregnant women from the two pedigrees. RESULTS: The two probands, in addition with three asymptomatic members, were found to have a (CAG)n repeat number greater than 40. Upon prenatal diagnosis, the numbers of CAG repeats in two fetuses from pedigree 1 were determined as (16, 19) and (18, 19), both were within the normal range. A fetus from pedigree 2 was found to have a CAG repeat number of (15, 41), which exceeded the normal range. CONCLUSION: Genetic testing can facilitate the diagnosis of Huntington disease and avoid further birth of affected children.

Clinical characteristics and prenatal diagnosis for 22 families in Henan Province of China with X-linked agammaglobulinemia (XLA) related to Bruton's tyrosine kinase (BTK) gene mutations.

BACKGROUND: X-linked agammaglobulinaemia (XLA) is a rare immunodeficiency disease for which recurrent severe infection is the major clinical symptom. BTK is the main causative gene, with X chromosome recessive inheritance. However, the mutations reported to date do not fully explain the disorder. METHODS: We detected the percentage of CD19+ B cells and serum immunoglobulin (IgG, IgA, and IgM) levels by flow cytometry and rate scatter immunoturbidimetry, and investigated the BTK mutation profile in 22 XLA patients using Sanger sequencing and real-time PCR . RESULTS: We evaluated the clinical symptoms of 22 XLA patients and investigated genetic mutations present, identifying six novel mutations in the BTK gene: 2 missense mutations (c.23G > T and c.112 T > C), 2 frameshift mutations (c.522_523insC and c.1060delA), 1 large deletion (deletion of exon 2 to 5), and 1 splice-site mutation (c.1631 + 2 T > C). Prenatal diagnoses were performed in six families (F10, F11, F15, F18, F20 and F21), with the following results: the male fetus in Family 10 (F10) did not carry the c.922_923delGA mutation; the male fetus in Family 15 (F15) did not carry the c.1631 + 1G > T splicing mutation; the female fetus in Family 20 (F20) did not carry the c.1931 T > C mutation; the female fetus in Family 21 (F21) did not carry the large deletion mutation. Hence, these four fetuses are not likely to develop XLA. Male fetuses with c.1060delA and c.1684C > T mutations were identified in Family 11 and Family 18, respectively. The pregnant woman in F18 chose to terminate the pregnancy, whereas the pregnant woman in F11 chose to continue the pregnancy. CONCLUSION: We confirmed the diagnosis of 22 XLA patients from 22 unrelated families and detected six new pathogenic mutations. Prenatal diagnosis was performed in six families. Early genetic diagnosis and routine lifelong immunoglobulin replacement therapy can prevent and treat infections in XLA children, saving their lives.

Construction of a Pichia pastoris strain efficiently secreting irisin and assessment of its bioactivity in HepG2 cells.

Irisin, a circulating myokine, has been shown to effectively ameliorate insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes mellitus by administration of the recombinant protein. Therefore, it is important to efficiently produce active irisin protein and further characterize its potential mechanism against hepatic insulin resistance. In this study, we obtained a multi-copy irisin-expressing P. pastoris strain through an optimized method, which is pH 5.5, 1.8% methanol for 96 h, for producing a high amount of recombinant irisin protein following a series of screening and optimization procedures. The higher-glycosylated irisin, which is supposed to be the active form was obtained by dialysis and ion-exchange chromatography purification method. Both of the laser scanning confocal microscope and the atomic force microscope not only detected the high-effectiveness entering cells of FITC-irisin but also localized it on the membrane of HepG2 cells. Immunofluorescence staining further suggested that irisin could localize in the cytoplasm but not in the nucleus. We further showed that glycosylated irisin rescued palmitate-induced reduction in Glut2 expression and cell viability, inhibited the apoptosis, potentially by activating PI3K/AKT pathway. In summary, we developed an efficient irisin-expressing P. pastoris strain and optimal expression condition, visualized its distribution, demonstrated biological activity and potential mechanisms in hepatic cells.

Non-invasive prenatal testing of pregnancies at risk for phenylketonuria.

BACKGROUND: Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a common metabolic disorder caused predominately by mutations in the phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) gene. The aim of the study was to design and validate the performance of a non-invasive prenatal test (NIPT) for PKU using circulating single molecule amplification and resequencing technology (cSMART). METHODS: A total of 18 couples at genetic risk for having a child with PKU were recruited to the study. Gold standard invasive prenatal diagnosis (IPD) was performed on amniocyte or villus cell DNA by Sanger sequencing, targeting the known parental PAH mutations. Retrospectively, NIPT was also performed on stored maternal plasma samples from the 18 pregnancies by a multiplex cSMART assay designed to target all known DNA variants in the PAH gene. RESULTS: Benchmarking against IPD results, NIPT correctly genotyped all fetuses, including six compound heterozygotes with PKU, four normal non-carriers of PKU and eight heterozygote carriers of PKU comprising five cases of a maternally inherited mutation and three cases of a paternally inherited mutation. CONCLUSIONS: The NIPT cSMART PKU assay was highly sensitive and specific for mutation detection and correct assignment of fetal genotypes. Based on comprehensive mutation coverage across the PAH gene, the assay may initially have clinical utility as a pregnancy screening test for high-risk carrier couples.

Acute toxicity, twenty-eight days repeated dose toxicity and genotoxicity of vanadyl trehalose in kunming mice.

A new trend has been developed using vanadium and organic ligands to form novel compounds in order to improve the beneficial actions and reduce the toxicity of vanadium compounds. In present study, vanadyl trehalose was explored the oral acute toxicity, 28 days repeated dose toxicity and genotoxicity in Kunming mice. The Median Lethal Dose (LD50) of vanadyl trehalose was revealed to be 1000 mg/kg body weight in fasted Kunming mice. Stomach and intestine were demonstrated to be the main target organs of vanadyl trehalose through 28 days repeated dose toxicity study. And vanadyl trehalose also showed particular genotoxicity through mouse bone marrow micronucleus and mouse sperm malformation assay. In brief, vanadyl trehalose presented certain, but finite toxicity, which may provide experimental basis for the clinical application.

Pharmacological Effects and Pharmacokinetic Properties of a Dual-Function Peptide 5rolGLP-HV.

In order to better understand the therapeutic mechanism of dual-function peptide 5rolGLP-HV in treatment of treat diabetes and its complication of thrombosis, the pharmacological effects and pharmacokinetic properties of 5rolGLP-HV were conducted in this study. 5rolGLP-HV was orally administered to diabetic mice, and the hypoglycemic mechanism was investigated. Thrombotic mice were applied to study the thrombus dissolving ability of 5rolGLP-HV. The concentration of rolGLP and rHV in rat plasma following single oral dose or intravenous injection of 5rolGLP-HV was measured. Treatment with 5rolGLP-HV decreased insulin resistance (2.96 ± 1.43 vs. 9.35 ± 1.51, p < 0.05) of diabetic mice. 5rolGLP-HV shortened the length of thrombus in thrombosis mice (2.92 ± 0.74 vs. 5.92 ± 1.16 cm, p < 0.01) and extended the thrombin time (15.35 ± 1.22 vs. 8.67 ± 0.89 s, p < 0.01) of normal mice. Meanwhile, 5rolGLP-HV restored the damage of pancreatic, liver, kidney, and adipose tissues induced in the diabetic mice. 5rolGLP-HV exhibited a fast absorption and slow elimination phase after digested into rolGLP-1 and rHV in vivo. These results suggested that 5rolGLP-HV had an ideal therapeutic potential in the prevention of ß cell dysfunction in type 2 diabetes and delay of the thrombus.

Effect of Vanadyl Rosiglitazone, a New Insulin-Mimetic Vanadium Complexes, on Glucose Homeostasis of Diabetic Mice.

Diabetes has been cited as the most challenging health problem in the twenty-first century. Accordingly, it is urgent to develop a new type of efficient and low-toxic antidiabetic medication. Since vanadium compounds have insulin-mimetic and potential hypoglycemic activities for type 1 and type 2 diabetes, a new trend has been developed using vanadium and organic ligands to form a new compound in order to increase the intestinal absorption and reduce the toxicity of vanadium compound. In the current investigation, a new organic vanadium compounds, vanadyl rosiglitazone, was synthesized and determined by infrared spectra. Vanadyl rosiglitazone and three other organic vanadium compounds were administered to the diabetic mice through oral administration for 5 weeks. The results of mouse model test indicated that vanadyl rosiglitazone could regulate the blood glucose level and relieve the symptoms of polydipsia, polyphagia, polyuria, and weight loss without side effects and was more effective than the other three organic vanadium compounds including vanadyl trehalose, vanadyl metformin, and vanadyl quercetin. The study indicated that vanadyl rosiglitazone presents insulin-mimetic activities, and it will be a good potential candidate for the development of a new type of oral drug for type 2 diabetes.

Toxicology Assessment of a Dual-Function Peptide 5rolGLP-HV in Mice.

5rolGLP-HV had an ideal therapeutic potential in the prevention of hyperglycemia in type 2 diabetes and delay of the thrombosis. The objective of the study was to investigate the toxicology effects of 5rolGLP-HV and guarantee its safety. In acute toxicity test, the mice were orally receiving 5rolGLP-HV at a single dose of 300 mg/kg or 2000 mg/kg. For sub-chronic toxicity study, the mice received 5rolGLP-HV at doses of 800 mg/kg or 1600 mg/kg for 9 weeks. No significant adverse effects were evident in acute and sub-chronic toxicity tests, indicating that the LD50 value is greater than 2000 mg/kg. Although the liver and kidney exhibited a little abnormal in sub-chronic toxicity study, they could recovery to normal after withdrawal 5rolGLP-HV for 2 weeks. In micronucleus assay, the mice received 5rolGLP-HV at doses of 250, 500, or 1000 mg/kg for two consecutive days. The micronucleus numbers and the polychromatic erythrocytes to normochromatic erythrocytes (PCE/NCE) ratios among 5rolGLP-HV groups were within the normal range. Similarly, sperm aberration test demonstrated that 5rolGLP-HV had no teratogenic effect on the mice sperm. In conclusion, the combined results clearly demonstrated the safety of 5rolGLP-HV and support its use as a drug to treat diabetes and thrombosis.

Construction of a Fusion Peptide 5rolGLP-HV and Analysis of its Therapeutic Effect on Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Thrombosis in Mice.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), is currently used to treat type 2 diabetes mellitus and hirudin (HV), plays an important role in controlling thrombosis and cardiovascular diseases. This investigation aimed to develop a fusion peptide 5rolGLP-HV which combined functions of rolGLP-1 and rHV to treat diabetes and thrombosis. In this study, we constructed a fusion gene including five copies of rolGLP-1 and one copy of rHV (5rolGLP-HV). The optimum expression conditions of 5rolGLP-HV in a soluble form were 0.8 mM IPTG induction when OD600 reached 0.6-0.8 and further growing at 25 °C for 9 h. Isolated rolGLP-1 and rHV were acquired by trypsin digestion in vitro, and the concentration of them was determined by HPLC in vivo. Oral administration of 5rolGLP-HV significantly decreased the levels of blood glucose, GHbA1C, TC, and TG in diabetic mice at the time of 3 weeks compared to the saline-treated group (p < 0.05), while the insulin level was reversed significantly (p < 0.05). 5rolGLP-HV treatment significantly shortened the length of thrombus in thrombosis mice compared to the saline-treated group (p < 0.01). These results indicated that 5rolGLP-HV had dual-function in treating diabetes and preventing thrombosis.

Anti-diabetic activity of recombinant irisin in STZ-induced insulin-deficient diabetic mice.

In order to investigate the hypoglycemic effects and potential mechanism of recombinant irisin on diabetes, STZ-induced diabetic mice were established and treated with irisin. The results showed that daily water and food intake, and blood glucose significantly decreased after various concentrations of recombinant irisin treatment by intraperitoneal injection, of which 1.0 mg/kg was the optimal dose for lowering blood glucose. However, the body weight exhibited no significant difference during the treatment within groups, although the 0.9% NaCl treated group showed a trend of decreased body weight and the irisin treated groups showed a tendency of increasing weight. The oral glucose tolerance was improved, and serum insulin and circulating irisin content were significantly elevated in diabetic mice after 1.0 mg/kg irisin-injection treatment, compared to diabetic mice treated with 0.9% NaCl. 1.0 mg/kg irisin-injection also significantly increased the expression of energy and metabolism-related genes. In addition, oral administration of irisin lowered the blood glucose in diabetic mice. Our data suggested that irisin could lower blood glucose in insulin-deficient diabetic mice, to some extent, through irisin-mediated induction of energy and metabolic genes expression. These observations laid a foundation for the development of irisin-based therapy.

Codon optimization and expression of irisin in Pichia pastoris GS115.

Irisin is a novel hormone which is related to many metabolic diseases. In order to illuminate the function and therapeutic effect of irisin, gaining active irisin is necessary. In this work, a codon-optimized irisin gene was designed according to Pichia pastoris synonymous codon usage bias and cloned into the pPIC9K expression vector. Sequencing result indicating that the sequence of irisin was consistent with the modified irisin and the irisin was in frame with α-factor secretion signal ATG. The plasmid pPIC9K-irisin was transformed into GS115 P. pastoris cells through electroporation. The positive transformants were screened on MD medium and analyzed by PCR. Five recombinant GS115/pPIC9K-irisin strains were obtained, but only one strain expressed irisin successfully. SDS-PAGE and Western blot were used to assess the expression level and purity of irisin. The irisin was also simply purified and the effect of pH value, methanol concentration and induction time on the production of irisin was investigated. The results showed that the best conditions of irisin expression were as follows: pH 6.0, 2.0% methanol and induction for 96 h. This work laid the basis for further investigation into the therapeutic and pharmacological effects of irisin, as well as development of irisin-based therapy.

Expression of CTB-10×rolGLP-1 in E. coli and its therapeutic effect on type 2 diabetes.

Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) is a short peptide that can significantly reduce blood glucose level. Recombination oral long-acting glucagon-like peptide-1 (rolGLP-1), is a GLP-1 analog generated from site-specific mutation of GLP-1. CTB is a non-toxic portion of the cholera toxin and an ideal protein antigen carrier. In this study, we firstly constructed a vector pET-22b (+)-CTB-10×rolGLP-1 to express a fusion protein composed of CTB and ten tandem repeated rolGLP-1 in BL21 (DE3) line of E. coli. The CTB-10×rolGLP-1 was expressed efficiently in the inclusion bodies. The expression product was analyzed by SDS-PAGE electrophoresis and Western blotting. The inclusion bodies were then denatured, refolded and purified by ion exchange chromatography to obtain a high-purity CTB- 10×rolGLP-1. The therapeutic effect of CTB-10×rolGLP-1 was assessed in comparison with 10×rolGLP-1 alone by daily oral-gavage administration up to 10 days in streptozotocin-induced type 2 diabetic mice. The results showed that the level of blood glucose was reduced more effectively and the oral glucose tolerance of mice was improved more significantly with the administration of CTB-10×rolGLP-1. Our results provided a potentially promising oral biological drug for the treatment of type 2 diabetes.

Liver histone H3 methylation and acetylation may associate with type 2 diabetes development.

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) is a complicated systemic disease, and the exact pathogenetic molecular mechanism is unclear. Distinct histone modifications regulate gene expression in certain diseases, but little is known about histone epigenetics in diabetes. In the current study, C57BL/6 J mice were used to build T2D model, then treated with exendin-4 (10 µg/kg). Histone H3K9 and H3K23 acetylation, H3K4 monomethylation and H3K9 dimethylation were explored by Western blotting of liver histone extracts. Real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used to examine expression levels of diabetes-related genes, while chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) was applied to analyze H3 and H3K9 acetylation, H3K4 monomethylation, and H3K9 dimethylation in the promoter of facilitated glucose transporter member 2 (Glut2) gene. The results showed that liver's total H3K4 monomethylation and H3K9 dimethylation was increased in diabetic mice, which was abrogated with the treatment of exendin-4. In contrast, H3K9 and H3K23 acetylation were reduced in diabetic mice, while exendin-4 only alleviated the reduction of H3K9 acetylation. Our data indicated that the progression of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) is associated with global liver histone H3K9 and H3K23 acetylation, H3K4 monomethylation, and H3K9 dimethylation. Exploiting exact histone modify enzyme inhibitors, which may represent a novel strategy to prevent T2D.

[Construction of yeast strains expressing long-acting glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) and their therapeutic effects on type 2 diabetes mellitus mouse model].

Probiotics, i.e., bacteria expressing therapeutic peptides (protein), are used as a new type of orally administrated biologic drugs to treat diseases. To develop yeast strains which could effectively prevent and treat type 2 diabetes mellitus, we firstly constructed the yeast integrating plasmid pNK1-PGK which could successfully express green fluorescent protein (GFP) in Saccharomyces cerevisiae. The gene encoding ten tandem repeats of glucagon-like peptide-1(10 × GLP-1) was cloned into the vector pNK1-PGK and the resulting plasmids were then transformed into the S. cerevisiae INVSc1. The long-acting GLP-1 hypoglycemic yeast (LHY) which grows rapidly and expresses 10 × GLP-1 stably was selected by nutrition screening and Western blotting. The amount of 10 × GLP-1 produced by LHY reached 1.56 mg per gram of wet cells. Moreover, the oral administration of LHY significantly reduced blood glucose level in type 2 diabetic mice induced by streptozotocin plus high fat and high sugar diet.

Identification of quantitative trait loci controlling high Calcium response in Arabidopsis thaliana.

Natural variation for primary root growth response to high Ca stress in Arabidopsis thaliana was studied by screening a series of accessions (ecotypes) under high Calcium (40 mM CaCl2) conditions. The genetic basis of this variation was further investigated by QTL analysis using recombinant inbred lines from Landsberg erecta (Ler) × Cape Verde Islands (Cvi) cross. Four QTLs were identified in chromosome 1, 2 and 5,and named response to high Calcium (RHCA) 1-4. The three QTLs (RHCA1, RHCA2 and RHCA4) were further confirmed by analysis of near isogenic lines harboring Cvi introgression fragments in Ler background. Real-time PCR analysis showed that several genes associated with high Ca response including SMT1 and XHT25 have changed expression pattern between Ler and near isogenic lines. These results were useful for detecting molecular mechanisms of plants for high Ca adaption.