Mutations in DNAJB13, Encoding an HSP40 Family Member, Cause Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia and Male Infertility.

Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is an autosomal-recessive disease due to functional or ultra-structural defects of motile cilia. Affected individuals display recurrent respiratory-tract infections; most males are infertile as a result of sperm flagellar dysfunction. The great majority of the PCD-associated genes identified so far encode either components of dynein arms (DAs), which are multiprotein-ATPase complexes essential for ciliary motility, or proteins involved in DA assembly. To identify the molecular basis of a PCD phenotype characterized by central complex (CC) defects but normal DA structure, a phenotype found in ∼15% of cases, we performed whole-exome sequencing in a male individual with PCD and unexplained CC defects. This analysis, combined with whole-genome SNP genotyping, identified a homozygous mutation in DNAJB13 (c.833T>G), a gene encoding a HSP40 co-chaperone whose ortholog in the flagellated alga Chlamydomonas localizes to the radial spokes. In vitro studies showed that this missense substitution (p.Met278Arg), which involves a highly conserved residue of several HSP40 family members, leads to protein instability and triggers proteasomal degradation, a result confirmed by the absence of endogenous DNAJB13 in cilia and sperm from this individual. Subsequent DNAJB13 analyses identified another homozygous mutation in a second family; the study of DNAJB13 transcripts obtained from airway cells showed that this mutation (c.68+1G>C) results in a splicing defect consistent with a loss-of-function mutation. Overall, this study, which establishes mutations in DNAJB13 as a cause of PCD, unveils the key role played by DNAJB13 in the proper formation and function of ciliary and flagellar axonemes in humans.

RSPH3 Mutations Cause Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia with Central-Complex Defects and a Near Absence of Radial Spokes.

Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is a rare autosomal-recessive condition resulting from structural and/or functional defects of the axoneme in motile cilia and sperm flagella. The great majority of mutations identified so far involve genes whose defects result in dynein-arm anomalies. By contrast, PCD due to CC/RS defects (those in the central complex [CC] and radial spokes [RSs]), which might be difficult to diagnose, remains mostly unexplained. We identified non-ambiguous RSPH3 mutations in 5 of 48 independent families affected by CC/RS defects. RSPH3, whose ortholog in the flagellated alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii encodes a RS-stalk protein, is mainly expressed in respiratory and testicular cells. Its protein product, which localizes within the cilia of respiratory epithelial cells, was undetectable in airway cells from an individual with RSPH3 mutations and in whom RSPH23 (a RS-neck protein) and RSPH1 and RSPH4A (RS-head proteins) were found to be still present within cilia. In the case of RSPH3 mutations, high-speed-videomicroscopy analyses revealed the coexistence of immotile cilia and motile cilia with movements of reduced amplitude. A striking feature of the ultrastructural phenotype associated with RSPH3 mutations is the near absence of detectable RSs in all cilia in combination with a variable proportion of cilia with CC defects. Overall, this study shows that RSPH3 mutations contribute to disease in more than 10% of PCD-affected individuals with CC/RS defects, thereby allowing an accurate diagnosis to be made in such cases. It also unveils the key role of RSPH3 in the proper building of RSs and the CC in humans.

Mutations in GAS8, a Gene Encoding a Nexin-Dynein Regulatory Complex Subunit, Cause Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia with Axonemal Disorganization.

Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is an autosomal recessive disease characterized by chronic respiratory infections of the upper and lower airways, hypofertility, and, in approximately half of the cases, situs inversus. This complex phenotype results from defects in motile cilia and sperm flagella. Among the numerous genes involved in PCD, very few-including CCDC39 and CCDC40-carry mutations that lead to a disorganization of ciliary axonemes with microtubule misalignment. Focusing on this particular phenotype, we identified bi-allelic loss-of-function mutations in GAS8, a gene that encodes a subunit of the nexin-dynein regulatory complex (N-DRC) orthologous to DRC4 of the flagellated alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Unlike the majority of PCD patients, individuals with GAS8 mutations have motile cilia, which, as documented by high-speed videomicroscopy, display a subtle beating pattern defect characterized by slightly reduced bending amplitude. Immunofluorescence studies performed on patients' respiratory cilia revealed that GAS8 is not required for the proper expression of CCDC39 and CCDC40. Rather, mutations in GAS8 affect the subcellular localization of another N-DRC subunit called DRC3. Overall, this study, which identifies GAS8 as a PCD gene, unveils the key importance of the corresponding protein in N-DRC integrity and in the proper alignment of axonemal microtubules in humans.

Loss-of-function mutations in RSPH1 cause primary ciliary dyskinesia with central-complex and radial-spoke defects.

Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is a rare autosomal-recessive respiratory disorder resulting from defects of motile cilia. Various axonemal ultrastructural phenotypes have been observed, including one with so-called central-complex (CC) defects, whose molecular basis remains unexplained in most cases. To identify genes involved in this phenotype, whose diagnosis can be particularly difficult to establish, we combined homozygosity mapping and whole-exome sequencing in a consanguineous individual with CC defects. This identified a nonsense mutation in RSPH1, a gene whose ortholog in Chlamydomonas reinhardtii encodes a radial-spoke (RS)-head protein and is mainly expressed in respiratory and testis cells. Subsequent analyses of RSPH1 identified biallelic mutations in 10 of 48 independent families affected by CC defects. These mutations include splicing defects, as demonstrated by the study of RSPH1 transcripts obtained from airway cells of affected individuals. Wild-type RSPH1 localizes within cilia of airway cells, but we were unable to detect it in an individual with RSPH1 loss-of-function mutations. High-speed-videomicroscopy analyses revealed the coexistence of different ciliary beating patterns-cilia with a normal beat frequency but abnormal motion alongside immotile cilia or cilia with a slowed beat frequency-in each individual. This study shows that this gene is mutated in 20.8% of individuals with CC defects, whose diagnosis could now be improved by molecular screening. RSPH1 mutations thus appear as a major etiology for this PCD phenotype, which in fact includes RS defects, thereby unveiling the importance of RSPH1 in the proper building of CCs and RSs in humans.

A new workflow for proteomic analysis of urinary exosomes and assessment in cystinuria patients.

Cystinuria is a purely renal, rare genetic disease caused by mutations in cystine transporter genes and characterized by defective cystine reabsorption leading to kidney stones. In 14% of cases, patients undergo nephrectomy, but given the difficulty to predict the evolution of the disease, the identification of markers of kidney damage would improve the follow-up of patients with a higher risk. The aim of the present study is to develop a robust, reproducible, and noninvasive methodology for proteomic analysis of urinary exosomes using high resolution mass spectrometry. A clinical pilot study conducted on eight cystinuria patients versus 10 controls highlighted 165 proteins, of which 38 were up-regulated, that separate cystinuria patients from controls and further discriminate between severe and moderate forms of the disease. These proteins include markers of kidney injury, circulating proteins, and a neutrophil signature. Analysis of selected proteins by immunobloting, performed on six additional cystinuria patients, validated the mass spectrometry data. To our knowledge, this is the first successful proteomic study in cystinuria unmasking the potential role of inflammation in this disease. The workflow we have developed is applicable to investigate urinary exosomes in different renal diseases and to search for diagnostic/prognostic markers. Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD001430.

Loss-of-function mutations in LRRC6, a gene essential for proper axonemal assembly of inner and outer dynein arms, cause primary ciliary dyskinesia.

Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is a group of autosomal-recessive disorders resulting from cilia and sperm-flagella defects, which lead to respiratory infections and male infertility. Most implicated genes encode structural proteins that participate in the composition of axonemal components, such as dynein arms (DAs), that are essential for ciliary and flagellar movements; they explain the pathology in fewer than half of the affected individuals. We undertook this study to further understand the pathogenesis of PCD due to the absence of both DAs. We identified, via homozygosity mapping, an early frameshift in LRRC6, a gene that encodes a leucine-rich-repeat (LRR)-containing protein. Subsequent analyses of this gene mainly expressed in testis and respiratory cells identified biallelic mutations in several independent individuals. The situs inversus observed in two of them supports a key role for LRRC6 in embryonic nodal cilia. Study of native LRRC6 in airway epithelial cells revealed that it localizes to the cytoplasm and within cilia, whereas it is absent from cells with loss-of-function mutations, in which DA protein markers are also missing. These results are consistent with the transmission-electron-microscopy data showing the absence of both DAs in cilia or flagella from individuals with LRRC6 mutations. In spite of structural and functional similarities between LRRC6 and DNAAF1, another LRR-containing protein involved in the same PCD phenotype, the two proteins are not redundant. The evolutionarily conserved LRRC6, therefore, emerges as an additional player in DA assembly, a process that is essential for proper axoneme building and that appears to be much more complex than was previously thought.

GSH monoethyl ester rescues mitochondrial defects in cystic fibrosis models.

Cystic fibrosis (CF), a multisystem disease caused by CFTR (cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator) gene mutations, is associated with an abnormal inflammatory response and compromised redox homeostasis in the airways. Recent evidence suggests that dysfunctional CFTR leads to redox imbalance and to mitochondrial reduced glutathione (mtGSH) depletion in CF models. This study was designed to investigate the consequences of mtGSH depletion on mitochondrial function and inflammatory response. mtGSH depletion was confirmed in colonic epithelium of CFTR-null mice and in CFTR-mutated human epithelial cells. GSH uptake experiments performed on isolated mitochondria suggest that mtGSH depletion is not due to a defective GSH transport capacity by CF mitochondria, despite the decreased expression of two mtGSH carriers, oxoglutarate carrier and dicarboxylate carrier. CM-H(2)DCFDA [5 (and 6)-chloromethyl-2',7'-dichlorodihydrofluorescein diacetate, acetyl ester] fluorescence and aconitase activity showed an increase in reactive oxygen species levels in CFTR-defective cells and a pro-oxidative environment within CF mitochondria. The activities of respiratory chain complexes were further examined. Results showed a selective loss of Complex I (CI) function in CF models associated with an altered mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψ(m)). CI analysis showed normal expression but an overoxidation of its NADH-ubiquinone oxidoreductase Fe-S protein 1 subunit. GSH monoethyl ester (GSH-EE) significantly enhanced mtGSH levels in the IB3-1/C38 model and reversed CI inhibition, suggesting that mtGSH depletion is responsible for the loss of CI activity. Furthermore, GSH-EE attenuated Δψ(m) depolarization and restored normal IL-8 secretion by CFTR-defective cells. These studies provide evidence for a critical role of a mtGSH defect in mitochondrial dysfunction and abnormal IL-8 secretion in CF cells and reveal the therapeutic potential of mitochondria-targeted antioxidants in CF.

Delineation of CCDC39/CCDC40 mutation spectrum and associated phenotypes in primary ciliary dyskinesia.

BACKGROUND: CCDC39 and CCDC40 genes have recently been implicated in primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) with inner dynein arm (IDA) defects and axonemal disorganisation; their contribution to the disease is, however, unknown. Aiming to delineate the CCDC39/CCDC40 mutation spectrum and associated phenotypes, this study screened a large cohort of patients with IDA defects, in whom clinical and ciliary phenotypes were accurately described. METHODS: All CCDC39 and CCDC40 exons and intronic boundaries were sequenced in 43 patients from 40 unrelated families. The study recorded and compared clinical features (sex, origin, consanguinity, laterality defects, ages at first symptoms and at phenotype evaluation, neonatal respiratory distress, airway infections, nasal polyposis, otitis media, bronchiectasis, infertility), ciliary beat frequency, and quantitative ultrastructural analyses of cilia and sperm flagella. RESULTS: Biallelic CCDC39 or CCDC40 mutations were identified in 30/34 (88.2%) unrelated families with IDA defects associated with axonemal disorganisation (22 and eight families, respectively). Fourteen of the 28 identified mutations are novel. No mutation was found in the six families with isolated IDA defects. Patients with identified mutations shared a similar phenotype, in terms of both clinical features and ciliary structure and function. The sperm flagellar ultrastructure, analysed in 4/7 infertile males, showed evidence of abnormalities similar to the ciliary ones. CONCLUSIONS: CCDC39 and CCDC40 mutations represent the major cause of PCD with IDA defects and axonemal disorganisation. Patients carrying CCDC39 or CCDC40 mutations are phenotypically indistinguishable. CCDC39 and CCDC40 analyses in selected patients ensure mutations are found with high probability, even if clinical or ciliary phenotypes cannot prioritise one analysis over the other.

X-linked primary ciliary dyskinesia due to mutations in the cytoplasmic axonemal dynein assembly factor PIH1D3.

By moving essential body fluids and molecules, motile cilia and flagella govern respiratory mucociliary clearance, laterality determination and the transport of gametes and cerebrospinal fluid. Primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) is an autosomal recessive disorder frequently caused by non-assembly of dynein arm motors into cilia and flagella axonemes. Before their import into cilia and flagella, multi-subunit axonemal dynein arms are thought to be stabilized and pre-assembled in the cytoplasm through a DNAAF2-DNAAF4-HSP90 complex akin to the HSP90 co-chaperone R2TP complex. Here, we demonstrate that large genomic deletions as well as point mutations involving PIH1D3 are responsible for an X-linked form of PCD causing disruption of early axonemal dynein assembly. We propose that PIH1D3, a protein that emerges as a new player of the cytoplasmic pre-assembly pathway, is part of a complementary conserved R2TP-like HSP90 co-chaperone complex, the loss of which affects assembly of a subset of inner arm dyneins.

Proteomic analysis of nasal epithelial cells from cystic fibrosis patients.

The pathophysiology of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease remains incompletely understood. New explanations for the pathogenesis of CF lung disease may be discovered by studying the patterns of protein expression in cultured human nasal epithelial cells (HNEC). To that aim, we compared the level of protein expressions in primary cultures of HNEC from nasal polyps secondary to CF (CFNP, n = 4), primary nasal polyps (NP, n = 8) and control mucosa (CTRL, n = 4) using isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantification (iTRAQ) labeling coupled with liquid chromatography (LC)-MS-MS. The analysis of the data revealed 42 deregulated protein expressions in CFNP compared to NP and CTRL, suggesting that these alterations are related to CF. Overall, AmiGo analysis highlighted six major pathways important for cell functions that seem to be impaired: metabolism, G protein process, inflammation and oxidative stress response, protein folding, proteolysis and structural proteins. Among them, glucose and fatty acid metabolic pathways could be impaired in CF with nine deregulated proteins. Our proteomic study provides a reproducible set of differentially expressed proteins in airway epithelial cells from CF patients and reveals many novel deregulated proteins that could lead to further studies aiming to clarify the involvement of such proteins in CF pathophysiology.