Molecular characterization of a large cohort of mucopolysaccharidosis patients: Iran Mucopolysaccharidosis RE-diagnosis study (IMPRESsion).

Mucopolysaccharidoses (MPSs) are rare, heterogeneous inborn errors of metabolism (IEM) diagnosed through a combination of clinical, biochemical, and genetic investigations. The aim of this study was molecular characterization of the largest cohort of Iranian MPS patients (302 patients from 289 unrelated families), along with tracking their ethnicity and geographical origins. 185/289 patients were studied using an IEM-targeted NGS panel followed by complementary Sanger sequencing, which led to the diagnosis of 154 MPS patients and 5 non-MPS IEMs (diagnostic yield: 85.9%). Furthermore, 106/289 patients who were referred with positive findings went through reanalysis and confirmatory tests which confirmed MPS diagnosis in 104. Among the total of 258 MPS patients, 225 were homozygous, 90 harbored novel variants, and 9 had copy number variations. MPS IV was the most common type (34.8%) followed by MPS I (22.7%) and MPS VI (22.5%). Geographical origin analysis unveiled a pattern of distribution for frequent variants in ARSB (c.430G>A, c.962T>C [p.Leu321Pro], c.281C>A [p.Ser94*]), GALNS (c.319G>A [p.Ala107Thr], c.860C>T [p.Ser287Leu], c.1042A>G [p.Thr348Ala]), and IDUA (c.1A>C [p.Met1Leu], c.1598C>G [p.Pro533Arg], c.1562_1563insC [p.Gly522Argfs*50]). Our extensive patient cohort reveals the genetic and geographic landscape of MPS in Iran, which provides insight into genetic epidemiology of MPS and can facilitate a more cost-effective, time-efficient diagnostic approach based on the region-specific variants.

Determination of human papillomavirus type 16 genotype and construction of cloning vector pTZ57R encoding HPV16 E7 gene.

OBJECTIVE: To isolate and construct a cloning vector containing the human papillomavirus (HPV)16-E7 gene as a target for application as a DNA vaccine. METHODS: The study was performed in 2005 in Iran. The E7 gene, one of the most important HPV oncoproteins and a target molecule for therapeutic vaccines, was amplified by polymerase chain reaction (PCR). The PCR product was cloned into a suitable cloning vector and confirmed by colony-PCR, restriction enzyme analysis, and sequenced. RESULTS: The desired plasmid was sequenced and indicated 99% homology with those mentioned in the Genbank. CONCLUSION: The Iranian HPV16 E7 gene sequence is very similar to other sequences in the Genbank, and it can be used as a candidate gene in a therapeutic vaccine for Iranian patients with cervical cancer.

Combining mammaglobin and carcinoembryonic mRNA markers for early detection of micrometastases from breast cancers--a molecular study of 59 patients.

INTRODUCTION: As many as 30% of node-negative breast cancer patients relapse within five years, suggesting that current histological detection methods are inadequate for identifying metastatic disease. Detecting small number of cancer cells in the breast tissue or lymph node by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) assays using a combination of tissue and cancer specific markers might be very useful in the early detection or monitoring of the treatment. Mammaglobin is a member of the uteroglobin gene family and appears to be expressed only in breast tissue. Carcinoembryonic antigen has been the preferred molecular marker for detection of micro metastases in lymph nodes in almost all carcinomas. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Samples were collected from randomly chosen breast cancer patients undergoing modified mastectomy or breast conserving surgery between September 2003 and July 2004. RT-PCR was applied to study the expression of MMG and CEA markers. Breast cancer micrometastases in axillary lymph nodes were also assessed. RESULTS: The MMG marker was positive in 9/10 normal breast tissues, 3/3 breast fibroadenomas and 37/39 of breast carcinoma tissues, giving an overall sensitivity of 94%. The sensitivity was 80% for metastatic lymph node samples. On the other hand CEA showed 95% sensitivity for malignant breast tumors and 100% sensitivity for metastatic lymph nodes. CONCLUSIONS: RT-PCR using a combination of MMG and CEA markers is a powerful tool to complement current routine histopathology techniques for detection of breast cancer metastasis in axillary nodes.

"Familial" versus "sporadic" intellectual disability: contribution of subtelomeric rearrangements.

BACKGROUND: Cryptic subtelomeric rearrangements have been proposed as a significant cause of sporadic intellectual disability (ID) but the role of such aberrations in familial ID has not yet been studied. As positive family history of ID had been proposed as an important and significant predicting factor of subtelomeric rearrangements, it was assumed that the contribution of subtelomeric aberrations in familial ID would be much more than the sporadic ones. Three hundred and twenty two patients from 102 unrelated families with more than two ID patients in the first degree relatives have been investigated. Assessment of subtelomeric rearrangements were carried out using Multiplex Ligation-Dependent Probe Amplification (MLPA) technique. Detected aberrations were then confirmed by Fluorescence in Situ Hybridization (FISH) method. RESULTS: Among the families studied, 27.4% had 4-12, 36.3% had 3 and 36.3% had 2 affected individuals in the first degree relatives. One unbalanced translocation and 4 polymorphic changes were detected. The prevalence of clinically significant subtelomeric rearrangements was 0.98%. CONCLUSION: This is the first investigation of subtelomeric aberrations in a large sample set of familial ID patients. Our results show that the contribution of subtelomeric rearrangements to familial ID is not as much as what had been determined for sporadic ones in the literature. Moreover, this study shows that the positive family history by alone, cannot be the most important and determining indicator of subtelomeric aberrations while it would be a good predicting factor when associated with dysmorphism or congenital malformations. These findings propose that other cryptic chromosomal abnormalities or even single gene disorders may be the main cause of familial ID rather than subtelomeric aberrations.

"Familial" versus "Sporadic" intellectual disability: contribution of common microdeletion and microduplication syndromes.

BACKGROUND: Interstitial Microdeletion and Microduplication syndromes have been proposed as a significant cause of sporadic intellectual disability (ID) but the role of such aberrations in familial ID has not yet been investigated. As the balanced chromosomal abnormalities commonly lead to the recurrent ID or multiple congenital anomalies, this study was designed to evaluate whether it was justified to investigate such aberrations in familial ID patients. Three hundred and twenty eight patients from 101 unrelated Iranian families with more than two ID patients in the first-degree relatives, have been investigated. Assessment of a panel of 21 common Microdeletion and Microduplication syndromes (CMMS) was carried out using Multiplex Ligation-Dependent Probe Amplification (MLPA) technique. RESULTS: Among the families studied, 27.7% had 4-12, 35.6% had 3 and 36.6% had 2 affected individuals in the first-degree relatives. An autosomal dominant inheritance of Williams-Beuren syndrome (WBS) was detected in a family with no clinical suspicion of WBS. The prevalence of CMMS was therefore,0.99%. CONCLUSION: This is the first investigation of a panel of CMMS in a large sample set of "familial ID patients". The findings of this study showed the low prevalence of CMMSs in "familial ID" patients in spite of the significant contribution of such aberrations in "sporadic ID" which has a very useful practical impact by avoiding unnecessary diagnostic tests in "familial ID" patients.

Comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) analysis of chromosomal aberrations in Iranian patients with invasive ductal carcinoma breast cancer.

INTRODUCTION: Breast cancer is one of the most common cancers in women; however, due to the complexity of chromosomal changes, limited data are available regarding chromosomal constitution. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this study, Comparative Genomic Hybridization (CGH) was used on 16 Iranian patients diagnosed with invasive ductal breast carcinomas. RESULTS: 12 samples had abnormal CGH results (75%), including 21 types of chromosomal imbalance. The most prevalent were chromosomal gain of +1q, +17q, +8q and chromosomal loss of -13q. All three cases with DNA loss at chromosome 13q (-13q) had lymph node metastasis. CONCLUSIONS: CGH is able to detect chromosomal abnormalities which are difficult to identify by conventional cytogenetic techniques. More studies on a larger sample size may help to confirm or rule out any possible correlation between 13q monosomy and lymph node metastasis, which could result in establishing new strategies for prevention and early detection of invasive breast tumors.