Recurrence risk due to germ line mosaicism: Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophy.

The presence of multiple affected offspring from apparently non-carrier parents is caused by germ line mosaicism. Although germ line mosaicism has been reported for many diseases, figures for recurrence risks are known for only a few of them. In X-linked Duchenne and Becker muscular dystrophies (DMD/BMD), the recurrence risk for non-carrier females due to germ line mosaicism has been estimated to be between 14% and 20% (95% confidence interval 3-30) if the risk haplotype is transmitted. In this study, we have analyzed 318 DMD/BMD cases in which the detected mutation was de novo with the aim of obtaining a better estimate of the 'true' number of germ line mosaics and a more precise recurrence risk. This knowledge is essential for genetic counseling. Our data indicate a recurrence risk of 8.6% (4.8-12.2) if the risk haplotype is transmitted, but there is a remarkable difference between proximal (15.6%) (4.1-27.0) and distal (6.4%) (2.1-10.6) deletions. Overall, most mutations originated in the female. Deletions occur more often on the X chromosome of the maternal grandmother, whereas point mutations occur on the X chromosome of the maternal grandfather. In unhaplotyped de novo DMD/BMD families, the risk of recurrence of the mutation is 4.3%.

Duplications in the DMD gene.

The detection of duplications in Duchenne (DMD)/Becker Muscular Dystrophy (BMD) has long been a neglected issue. However, recent technological advancements have significantly simplified screening for such rearrangements. We report here the detection and analysis of 118 duplications in the DMD gene of DMD/BMD patients. In an unselected patient series the duplication frequency was 7%. In patients already screened for deletions and point mutations, duplications were detected in 87% of cases. There were four complex, noncontiguous rearrangements, with two also involving a partial triplication. In one of the few cases where RNA was analyzed, a seemingly contiguous duplication turned out to be a duplication/deletion case generating a transcript with an unexpected single-exon deletion and an initially undetected duplication. These findings indicate that for clinical diagnosis, duplications should be treated with special care, and without further analysis the reading frame rule should not be applied. As with deletions, duplications occur nonrandomly but with a dramatically different distribution. Duplication frequency is highest near the 5' end of the gene, with a duplication of exon 2 being the single most common duplication identified. Analysis of the extent of 11 exon 2 duplications revealed two intron 2 recombination hotspots. Sequencing four of the breakpoints showed that they did not arise from unequal sister chromatid exchange, but more likely from synthesis-dependent nonhomologous end joining. There appear to be fundamental differences therefore in the origin of deletions and duplications in the DMD gene.

Somatic mosaicism of a point mutation in the dystrophin gene in a patient presenting with an asymmetrical muscle weakness and contractures.

We describe a patient with somatic mosaicism of a point mutation in the dystrophin gene causing benign muscular dystrophy with an unusual asymmetrical distribution of muscle weakness and contractures. To our knowledge this is the first patient with asymmetrical weakness and contractures in an ambulatory patient with a dystrophinopathy.

Familial Paget's disease in The Netherlands: occurrence, identification of new mutations in the sequestosome 1 gene, and their clinical associations.

OBJECTIVE: To estimate the occurrence of familial Paget's disease of bone in The Netherlands, to examine the prevalence of mutations of the sequestosome 1 gene (SQSTM1) in identified families, and to assess potential genotype-phenotype associations. METHODS: We performed a case-control study of patients with Paget's disease and a mutation analysis of the SQSTM1 gene of index patients with familial disease and of the relatives of those with a mutation. Serum alkaline phosphatase (AP) activity was assessed, and bone scintigraphy was performed. RESULTS: Five percent of patients had at least 1 first-degree relative with the disease, compared with 0.5% of the controls (relative risk 10; 95% confidence interval 1.3-75.6). In 38.9% of patients with familial disease, heterozygous mutations in the SQSTM1 gene were identified. These were the previously described P392L mutation, which was present in 22.2% of patients, and 3 new mutations, S399P, G425R, M404T, 9 of which were present in 3 different families. All mutations were located in the ubiquitin-associated domain of the gene. There was a relationship between serum AP activity, as a marker of the disease, and the presence or absence of the G425R and P392L mutations, the subject's age, and the presence of Paget's disease. CONCLUSION: Our data provide further evidence of a causal role of SQSTM1 gene mutations in the pathogenesis of Paget's disease and allow the design of a strategy based on measurements of serum AP activity and age for investigating asymptomatic relatives of patients with familial Paget's disease of bone.

Use of two multiplex (PCR) reactions as an initial delection screening method for DMD and BMD patients

O gene da distrofina, localizado em Xp21, é um loco gênico enorme, ocupando uma regiäo de mais de 2,3 Mb. Mutaçöes neste gene resultam na distrofia muscular Duchenne (DMD) ou distrofia muscular Becker (DMB). Cerca de 60% das mutaçöes säo deleçöes com um tamanho médio de 200 kb e säo detectáveis por análise de Southern blot usando sondas cDNA. Em 1988 Chamberlain et al. descreveram uma reaçäo multiplex para uma amplificaçäo simultânea de 9 exons do gene da distrofina, o que permitiu detectar cerca de 80% de todas as deleçöes. Recentemente Beggs et al. descreveram um conjunto adicional de primers para um teste multiplex de mais 9 exons. Usamos no Rio de Janeiro ambas as reaçöes multiplex no estudo de 27 pacientes DMD e 4 DMB. A síntese dos primers e o preparo dos kits foram realizados em Leiden. Com a reaçäo multiplex de Vhamberlain detectamos 10 deleçöes. A segunda reaçäo multiplex (Beggs) confirmou 7 dessas deleçöes e detectou mais 2 pacientes com deleçöes, uma para o exon 50 e outra para o exon 52. A análise Southern blot e a hibridizaçäo cDNA foram usadas para confirmar as deleçöes e determinar-lhes a extensäo. As sondas cDNA confirmaram as 12 deleçöes detectadas usando as duas reaçöes multiplex. Nossa experiência é a de que a abordagem multiplex para triagem inicial de deleçöes é um método bom e confiável