Early-onset pulmonary and cutaneous vasculitis driven by constitutively active SRC-family kinase HCK.

BACKGROUND: Inborn errors of immunity are genetic disorders characterized by various degrees of immune dysregulation that can manifest as immune deficiency, autoimmunity, or autoinflammation. The routine use of next-generation sequencing in the clinic has facilitated the identification of an ever-increasing number of inborn errors of immunity, revealing the roles of immunologically important genes in human pathologies. However, despite this progress, treatment is still extremely challenging. OBJECTIVE: We sought to report a new monogenic autoinflammatory disorder caused by a de novo activating mutation, p.Tyr515∗, in hematopoietic cell kinase (HCK). The disease is characterized by cutaneous vasculitis and chronic pulmonary inflammation that progresses to fibrosis. METHODS: Whole-exome sequencing, Sanger sequencing, mass spectrometry, and western blotting were performed to identify and characterize the pathogenic HCK mutation. Dysregulation of mutant HCK was confirmed ex vivo in primary cells and in vitro in transduced cell lines. RESULTS: Mutant HCK lacking the C-terminal inhibitory tyrosine Tyr522 exhibited increased kinase activity and enhanced myeloid cell priming, migration and effector functions, such as production of the inflammatory cytokines IL-1ß, IL-6, IL-8, and TNF-α, and production of reactive oxygen species. These aberrant functions were reflected by inflammatory leukocyte infiltration of the lungs and skin. Moreover, an overview of the clinical course of the disease, including therapies, provides evidence for the therapeutic efficacy of the Janus kinase 1/2 inhibitor ruxolitinib in inflammatory lung disease. CONCLUSIONS: We propose HCK-driven pulmonary and cutaneous vasculitis as a novel autoinflammatory disorder of inborn errors of immunity.

Expanding the phenotype spectrum associated with pathogenic variants in the COL2A1 and COL11A1 genes.

We report the clinical findings of 26 individuals from 16 unrelated families carrying variants in the COL2A1 or COL11A1 genes. Using Sanger and next-generation sequencing, 11 different COL2A1 variants (seven novel), were identified in 13 families (19 affected individuals), all diagnosed with Stickler syndrome (STL) type 1. In nine families, the COL2A1 disease-causing variant arose de novo. Phenotypically, we observed myopia (95%) and retinal detachment (47%), joint hyperflexibility (92%), midface retrusion (84%), cleft palate (53%), and various degrees of hearing impairment (50%). One patient had a splenic artery aneurysm. One affected individual carrying pathogenic variant in COL2A1 showed no ocular signs including no evidence of membranous vitreous anomaly. In three families (seven affected individuals), three novel COL11A1 variants were found. The propositus with a de novo variant showed an ultrarare Marshall/STL overlap. In the second family, the only common clinical sign was postlingual progressive sensorineural hearing impairment (DFNA37). Affected individuals from the third family had typical STL2 signs. The spectrum of disease phenotypes associated with COL2A1 or COL11A1 variants continues to expand and includes typical STL and various bone dysplasias, but also nonsyndromic hearing impairment, isolated myopia with or without retinal detachment, and STL phenotype without clinically detectable ocular pathology.

Plk4 is required for cytokinesis and maintenance of chromosomal stability.

Aneuploidy is a characteristic feature of established cancers and can promote tumor development. Aneuploidy may arise directly, through unequal distribution of chromosomes into daughter cells, or indirectly, through a tetraploid intermediate. The polo family kinase Plk4/Sak is required for late mitotic progression and is haploinsufficient for tumor suppression in mice. Here we show that loss of heterozygosity (LOH) occurs at the Plk4 locus in 50% of human hepatocellular carcinomas (HCC) and is present even in preneoplastic cirrhotic liver nodules. LOH at Plk4 is associated with reduced Plk4 expression in HCC tumors but not with mutations in the remaining allele. Plk4(+/-) murine embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) at early passage show a high incidence of multinucleation, supernumerary centrosomes, and a near-tetraploid karyotype. Underlying these phenotypes is a high rate of primary cytokinesis failure, associated with aberrant actomyosin ring formation, reduced RhoA activation, and failure to localize the RhoA guanine nucleotide exchange factor Ect2 to the spindle midbody. We further show that Plk4 normally localizes to the midbody and binds to and phosphorylates Ect2 in vitro. With serial passaging Plk4(+/-) MEFs rapidly immortalize, acquiring an increasing burden of nonclonal and clonal gross chromosomal irregularities, and form tumors in vivo. Our results indicate that haploid levels of Plk4 disrupt RhoGTPase function during cytokinesis, resulting in aneuploidy and tumorigenesis, thus implicating early LOH at Plk4 as one of the drivers of human hepatocellular carcinogenesis. These findings represent an advance in our understanding of genetic predisposition to HCC, which continues to increase in incidence globally and particularly in North America.

Prospective and parallel assessments of cystic fibrosis newborn screening protocols in the Czech Republic: IRT/DNA/IRT versus IRT/PAP and IRT/PAP/DNA.

UNLABELLED: Cystic fibrosis (CF) is a life-threatening disease for which early diagnosis following newborn screening (NBS) improves the prognosis. We performed a prospective assessment of the immunoreactive trypsinogen (IRT)/DNA/IRT protocol currently in use nationwide, versus the IRT/pancreatitis-associated protein (PAP) and IRT/PAP/DNA CF NBS protocols. Dried blood spots (DBS) from 106,522 Czech newborns were examined for IRT concentrations. In the IRT/DNA/IRT protocol, DNA-testing was performed for IRT ≥ 65 ng/mL. Newborns with IRT ≥ 200 ng/mL and no detected cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator gene (CFTR) mutations were recalled for a repeat IRT. In the same group of newborns, for both parallel protocols, PAP was measured in DBS with IRT ≥ 50 ng/mL. In PAP-positive newborns (i.e., ≥1.8 if IRT 50-99.9 or ≥1.0 if IRT ≥ 100, all in ng/mL), DNA-testing followed as part of the IRT/PAP/DNA protocol. Newborns with at least one CFTR mutation in the IRT/DNA/IRT and IRT/PAP/DNA protocols; a positive PAP in IRT/PAP; or a high repeat IRT in IRT/DNA/IRT were referred for sweat testing. CONCLUSION: the combined results of the utilized protocols led to the detection of 21 CF patients, 19 of which were identified using the IRT/DNA/IRT protocol, 16 using IRT/PAP, and 15 using IRT/PAP/DNA. Decreased cut-offs for PAP within the IRT/PAP protocol would lead to higher sensitivity but would increase false positives. Within the IRT/PAP/DNA protocol, decreased PAP cut-offs would result in high sensitivity, an acceptable number of false positives, and would reduce the number of DNA analyses. Thus, we concluded that the IRT/PAP/DNA protocol would represent the most suitable protocol in our conditions.

The interval between Ins2 and Ascl2 is dispensable for imprinting centre function in the murine Beckwith-Wiedemann region.

Imprinted genes are commonly clustered in domains across the mammalian genome, suggesting a degree of coregulation via long-range coordination of their monoallelic transcription. The distal end of mouse chromosome 7 (Chr 7) contains two clusters of imprinted genes within a approximately 1 Mb domain. This region is conserved on human 11p15.5 where it is implicated in the Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome. In both species, imprinted regulation requires two critical cis-acting imprinting centres, carrying different germline epigenetic marks and mediating imprinted expression in the proximal and distal sub-domains. The clusters are separated by a region containing the gene for tyrosine hydroxylase (Th) as well as a high density of short repeats and retrotransposons in the mouse. We have used the Cre-loxP recombination system in vivo to engineer an interstitial deletion of this approximately 280-kb intervening region previously proposed to participate in the imprinting mechanism or to act as a boundary between the two sub-domains. The deletion allele, Del(7AI), is silent with respect to epigenetic marking at the two flanking imprinting centres. Reciprocal inheritance of Del(7AI) demonstrates that the deleted region, which represents more than a quarter of the previously defined imprinted domain, is associated with intrauterine growth restriction in maternal heterozygotes. In homozygotes, the deficiency behaves as a Th null allele and can be rescued pharmacologically by bypassing the metabolic requirement for TH in utero. Our results show that the deleted interval is not required for normal imprinting on distal Chr 7 and uncover a new imprinted growth phenotype.

Murine Pif1 interacts with telomerase and is dispensable for telomere function in vivo.

Pif1 is a 5'-to-3' DNA helicase critical to DNA replication and telomere length maintenance in the budding yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae. ScPif1 is a negative regulator of telomeric repeat synthesis by telomerase, and recombinant ScPif1 promotes the dissociation of the telomerase RNA template from telomeric DNA in vitro. In order to dissect the role of mPif1 in mammals, we cloned and disrupted the mPif1 gene. In wild-type animals, mPif1 expression was detected only in embryonic and hematopoietic lineages. mPif1(-/-) mice were viable at expected frequencies, displayed no visible abnormalities, and showed no reproducible alteration in telomere length in two different null backgrounds, even after several generations. Spectral karyotyping of mPif1(-/-) fibroblasts and splenocytes revealed no significant change in chromosomal rearrangements. Furthermore, induction of apoptosis or DNA damage revealed no differences in cell viability compared to what was found for wild-type fibroblasts and splenocytes. Despite a novel association of mPif1 with telomerase, mPif1 did not affect the elongation activity of telomerase in vitro. Thus, in contrast to what occurs with ScPif1, murine telomere homeostasis or genetic stability does not depend on mPif1, perhaps due to fundamental differences in the regulation of telomerase and/or telomere length between mice and yeast or due to genetic redundancy with other DNA helicases.

High definition cytogenetics and oligonucleotide aCGH analyses of cisplatin-resistant ovarian cancer cells.

Array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH) is a key platform to assess cancer genomic profiles. Many structural genomic aberrations cannot be detected by aCGH alone. We have applied molecular cytogenetic analyses including spectral karyotyping, multicolor banding, and fluorescence in situ hybridization with aCGH to comprehensively investigate the genomic aberrations associated with cisplatin resistance in A2780 ovarian cancer cells. A2780 is a well-established model of chemotherapeutic resistance with distinct karyotypic abnormalities in the parental and cisplatin-resistant cells. Cytogenetic analysis revealed that two unbalanced translocations, der(8)t(1;8) and der(X)t(X;1), and loss of chromosome 13 were present only in the resistant line. Our aCGH analyses detected imbalances affecting an additional 10.59% of the genome in the cisplatin-resistant cells compared with the parental. DNA copy number changes included deletions at 1p10-p22.1, 8p23.3, and Xq13.1-pter, and a duplication of 8q11.22-q23. Cryptic genomic aberrations associated with concurrent localized changes of specific gene expression included a homozygous deletion of 0.38 Mb at 1p21.3 adjacent to SNX7, and an insertional transposition of 0.85 Mb from 13q12.12 into chromosome 22. This latter rearrangement led to an overexpression of four contiguous genes that flanked one of the breakpoint regions in chromosome 13. Furthermore, 17 genes showed differential expression correlating with genomic gain or loss between the resistant and parent lines, validated by a second expression array platform. These results highlight the integration of comprehensive profiling to determine relationships of genomic aberrations and genes associated with an in vitro drug resistance model in ovarian cancer. This article contains Supplementary Material available at http://www.interscience.wiley.com/jpages/1045-2257/suppmat.

SD-OCT imaging as a valuable tool to support molecular genetic diagnostics of Usher syndrome type 1.

A girl with profound congenital deafness and balance problems was found at 3.5 years of age to be a carrier of two novel compound heterozygous mutations in MYO7A that were predicted to be disease-causing. She also carried one known pathogenic mutation and one rare variant in USH2A. Fundus examination performed at 4.75 years revealed one small peripheral pigment deposit in the right eye, indicating probable retinal degeneration. Spectral domain optical coherence tomography (SD-OCT) showed a loss of photoreceptors throughout the macular area, except for the foveolar region, clearly confirming a diagnosis of Usher syndrome type 1. This case demonstrates that SD-OCT may be easily used in young children to confirm retinal disease, quantify the extent of retinal damage, and monitor disease progression.

Under the mask of Kabuki syndrome: Elucidation of genetic-and phenotypic heterogeneity in patients with Kabuki-like phenotype.

Kabuki syndrome is mainly caused by dominant de-novo pathogenic variants in the KMT2D and KDM6A genes. The clinical features of this syndrome are highly variable, making the diagnosis of Kabuki-like phenotypes difficult, even for experienced clinical geneticists. Herein we present molecular genetic findings of causal genetic variation using array comparative genome hybridization and a Mendeliome analysis, utilizing targeted exome analysis focusing on regions harboring rare disease-causing variants in Kabuki-like patients which remained KMT2D/KDM6A-negative. The aCGH analysis revealed a pathogenic CNV in the 14q11.2 region, while targeted exome sequencing revealed pathogenic variants in genes associated with intellectual disability (HUWE1, GRIN1), including a gene coding for mandibulofacial dysostosis with microcephaly (EFTUD2). Lower values of the MLL2-Kabuki phenotypic score are indicative of Kabuki-like phenotype (rather than true Kabuki syndrome), where aCGH and Mendeliome analyses have high diagnostic yield. Based on our findings we conclude that for new patients with Kabuki-like phenotypes it is possible to choose a specific molecular testing approach that has the highest detection rate for a given MLL2-Kabuki score, thus fostering more precise patient diagnosis and improved management in these genetically- and phenotypically heterogeneous clinical entities.

Novel 6p rearrangements and recurrent translocation breakpoints in retinoblastoma cell lines identified by spectral karyotyping and mBAND analyses.

Gain of the short arm of chromosome 6, usually through isochromosome 6p formation, is present in approximately 50% of retinoblastoma tumors. The minimal region of gain maps to chromosome band 6p22. Two genes, DEK and E2F3, are implicated as candidate oncogenes. However, chromosomal translocations have been overlooked as a potential mechanism of activation of oncogenes at 6p22 in retinoblastoma. Here, we report combined spectral karyotyping), 4',6-diamidino-2-phenylindole banding, mBAND, and locus-specific fluorescence in situ hybridization analyses of four retinoblastoma cell lines, RB1021, RB247c, RB383, and Y79. In RB1021 and RB247c, 6p undergoes structural rearrangements involving a common translocation breakpoint at 6p22. These data imply that 6p translocations may represent another mechanism of activation of 6p oncogene(s) in a subset of retinoblastomas, besides the copy number increase. In addition to 6p22, other recurrent translocation breakpoints identified in this study are 4p16, 11p15, 17q21.3, and 20q13. Common regions of gain map to chromosomal arms 1q, 2p, 6p, 17q, and 21q.

Identification of cryptic microaberrations in osteosarcoma by high-definition oligonucleotide array comparative genomic hybridization.

Osteosarcoma (OS) is an aggressive bone tumor characterized by complex abnormal karyotypes and a high level of genomic instability. Using high-resolution array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH), a novel class of localized copy number variations called microaberrations has been detected. These genomic anomalies typically involve DNA imbalances affecting 700 kb to 1 Mb DNA, and are often associated with some type of genetic syndromes. Because the origin of instability in OS is poorly understood, we used aCGH to determine whether microaberrations were a characteristic of four OS cell lines: U-2 OS, HOS, MG-63, and SAOS-2. TP53 is mutated in SAOS-2, a line in which 17 microaberrations were found. In contrast, U-2 OS, which has a wild-type TP53, had only six such anomalies, the lowest incidence. A 500-kb microaberration within a region of gain at 5p15.33 in SAOS-2 was confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization. Significantly, this genomic location is close to the TERT gene, a region of gain in all four cell lines. To our knowledge, this is the first systematic analysis of the incidence of microaberrations in OS. The high levels of these anomalies detected suggest that the instability processes in OS that lead to a highly abnormal karyotypes may also be associated with acquisition of genomic microaberrations.

Prkar1a is an osteosarcoma tumor suppressor that defines a molecular subclass in mice.

Some cancers have been stratified into subclasses based on their unique involvement of specific signaling pathways. The mapping of human cancer genomes is revealing a vast number of somatic alterations; however, the identification of clinically relevant molecular tumor subclasses and their respective driver genes presents challenges. This information is key to developing more targeted and personalized cancer therapies. Here, we generate a new mouse model of genomically unstable osteosarcoma (OSA) that phenocopies the human disease. Integrative oncogenomics pinpointed cAMP-dependent protein kinase type I, alpha regulatory subunit (Prkar1a) gene deletions at 11qE1 as a recurrent genetic trait for a molecularly distinct subclass of mouse OSA featuring RANKL overexpression. Using mouse genetics, we established that Prkar1a is a bone tumor suppressor gene capable of directing subclass development and driving RANKL overexpression during OSA tumorigenesis. Finally, we uncovered evidence for a PRKAR1A-low subset of human OSA with distinct clinical behavior. Thus, tumor subclasses develop in mice and can potentially provide information toward the molecular stratification of human cancers.

Distinct patterns of structural and numerical chromosomal instability characterize sporadic ovarian cancer.

Sporadic ovarian cancer is a particularly aggressive tumor characterized by highly abnormal karyotypes exhibiting many features of genomic instability. More complex genomic changes in tumors arise as a consequence of chromosomal instability (CIN), which can generate both numerical [(N)-CIN] and structural chromosomal instability [(S)-CIN]. In this study, molecular cytogenetic analysis was used to evaluate the relative levels of both (N)-CIN and (S)-CIN. Six tumors had a near-diploid chromosome number, two were near-tetraploid, and two were near-triploid. (N)-CIN levels increased as a function of overall tumor genomic content, with near-diploid tumors exhibiting numerical instability indices ranging from 7.0 to 21.0 and near-tetraploid and triploid tumors exhibiting instability indices ranging from 24.9 to 54.9. In contrast, the extent of (S)-CIN was generally more evident in the diploid tumors compared with the near-tetraploid tumors. To determine whether the associated chromosomal constitution and/or ploidy changes were influenced by mitotic segregation errors, centrosome analyses were performed on all 10 tumors. The near-diploid tumors, with the lowest numerical change, were observed to possess fewer cells with centrosome abnormalities (5.5% to 14.0%), whereas the near-tetraploid tumors possessed much higher levels of (N)-CIN and were characterized by a trend of elevating percentages of cells with abnormal centrosomes (16.0% to 20.5%). These observations suggest that two distinct processes governing genome stability may be disrupted in ovarian cancer: those that impact on numerical segregation and ploidy of chromosomes and those that affect the fidelity of DNA repair and lead to structural aberrations.

Epigenetic and phenotypic consequences of a truncation disrupting the imprinted domain on distal mouse chromosome 7.

The distal end of mouse chromosome 7 (Chr 7) contains a large cluster of imprinted genes. In this region two cis-acting imprinting centers, IC1 (H19 DMR) and IC2 (KvDMR1), define proximal and distal subdomains, respectively. To assess the functional independence of IC1 in the context of Chr 7, we developed a recombinase-mediated chromosome truncation strategy in embryonic stem cells and generated a terminal deletion allele, DelTel7, with a breakpoint in between the two subdomains. We obtained germ line transmission of the truncated Chr 7 and viable paternal heterozygotes, confirming the absence of developmentally required paternally expressed genes distal of Ins2. Conversely, maternal transmission of DelTel7 causes a midgestational lethality, consistent with loss of maternally expressed genes in the IC2 subdomain. Expression and DNA methylation analyses on DelTel7 heterozygotes demonstrate the independent imprinting of IC1 in absence of the entire IC2 subdomain. The evolutionarily conserved linkage between the subdomains is therefore not required for IC1 imprinting on Chr 7. Importantly, the developmental phenotype of maternal heterozygotes is rescued fully by a paternally inherited deletion of IC2. Thus, all the imprinted genes located in the region and required for normal development are silenced by an IC2-dependent mechanism on the paternal allele.

The breakage-fusion-bridge (BFB) cycle as a mechanism for generating genetic heterogeneity in osteosarcoma.

Osteosarcoma (OS) is characterized by chromosomal instability and high copy number gene amplification. The breakage-fusion-bridge (BFB) cycle is a well-established mechanism of genome instability in tumors and in vitro models used to study the origins of complex chromosomal rearrangements and cancer genome amplification. To determine whether the BFB cycle could be increasing the de novo rate of formation of cytogenetic aberrations in OS, the frequency of anaphase bridge configurations and dicentric chromosomes in four OS cell lines was quantified. An increased level of anaphase bridges and dicentrics was observed in all the OS cell lines. There was also a strong association between the frequencies of anaphase bridges, dicentrics, centrosomal anomalies, and multipolar mitotic figures in all the OS cell lines, indicating a possible link in the mechanisms that led to the structural and numerical instabilities observed in OS. In summary, this study has provided strong support for the role of the BFB cycle in generating the extensive structural chromosome aberrations, as well as cell-to-cell cytogenetic variation observed in OS, thus conferring the genetic diversity for OS tumor progression.