Medical gendered racism and Black women's experiences of genito-pelvic pain/penetration disorder in the USA - A conceptual exploration.

Medical gendered racism in the USA has been and continues to be a significant issue for Black women across various healthcare domains, including sexual and pelvic healthcare. The experiences of Black women with Genito-Pelvic Pain/Penetration Disorder, characterised by pain with sexual intercourse, are particularly understudied in relation to medical gendered racism. This paper advances existing research on Genito-Pelvic Pain/Penetration Disorder by employing Black feminist thought and intersectionality as theoretical frameworks. We seek to conceptualise how medical gendered racism impacts Black women's experiences with genito-pelvic pain and the quality of their healthcare. We offer a nuanced, culturally sensitive approach to doing so and to clinical practice, and provide actionable recommendations for healthcare professionals. This work aims to equip researchers and healthcare practitioners with the knowledge and tools to acknowledge, understand, and support effective treatment of genito-pelvic pain experienced by Black women in the USA.

COVID-19 impact on facial trauma: Insights from Mississippi's only level 1 trauma center.

PURPOSE: Our primary aim was to understand and describe the impact of COVID-19 on the incidence and etiology of facial trauma in the state of Mississippi. METHODS: Retrospective review of facial trauma-related Emergency Department encounters in Mississippi from March 11, 2019 to March 10, 2021, divided into three time periods using the state of Mississippi's Governor's Office Executive Orders. Chi-square tests and segmented linear regressions were used for analysis. RESULTS: Patients presenting with facial trauma were typically male, 18-44 years old, and lived in urban zip codes. Insurance payors significantly differed across time periods. There were no significant differences in self-inflicted assault or accidental injury between the 3 time periods, with pre- and pandemic patients more likely to be self-pay while patients during recovery being more likely to have private insurance. During the pandemic, facial trauma from a family member, partner or spouse, or other person in the household significantly increased. CONCLUSION: Similar accidental facial trauma trends may reflect lower adherence to social distancing guidelines. The increase in facial trauma perpetrated by family members is consistent with reported increases in domestic violence during the pandemic. While overall facial trauma demographic patterns did not change significantly during the COVID-19 pandemic, there were notable changes in the etiology and insurance payor of facial trauma cases. LAY SUMMARY: The COVID-19 pandemic impacted healthcare systems worldwide, and our study seeks to understand how the pandemic affected incidence of facial trauma.

Barriers to a successful healthcare transition for individuals with urea cycle disorders.

The pediatric to adult healthcare transition (HCT) is a process for individuals with chronic health conditions to gradually shift from a pediatric to an adult-oriented care system. Autonomy and self-management skills required for an individual's HCT readiness can be evaluated through the transition readiness assessment questionnaire (TRAQ). Despite general HCT preparation guidelines, little is known about the HCT experience of individuals with a urea cycle disorder (UCD). This is the first study to report the parent or guardian perception of the HCT process in children with a UCD by investigating the stages of transition readiness and transition outcome. We identify barriers to HCT readiness and planning, along with deficiencies in transition outcome for individuals with a UCD. For children that received special education services compared to those that did not, significantly lower transition readiness scores were identified in the total TRAQ score (p = 0.03) and in the domains of tracking health issues (p = 0.02), talking with providers (p = 0.03), and managing daily activities (p = 0.01). There was a lack of HCT preparation as most subjects did not have a HCT discussion with their healthcare provider before age 26. Deficiencies in HCT outcome are demonstrated by individuals with a UCD reporting delays in needed medical care and dissatisfaction with their healthcare services. Considerations for facilitating a successful HCT for individuals with a UCD include providing individualized education, appointing a transition coordinator, allowing flexibility in HCT timing, and ensuring that the individual recognizes concerning UCD symptoms and knows when to seek medical care.

Parent perspectives on disclosing a pediatric neurofibromatosis type 1 diagnosis.

Neurofibromatosis 1 (NF1) is a common genetic disorder typically diagnosed in childhood and characterized by cutaneous findings, nerve sheath tumors, skeletal abnormalities, malignancies, and developmental differences. Due to its variability, NF1 is an unpredictable condition that parents have concerns about discussing with their children. While there are publications addressing the disclosure of genetic conditions in general, no NF1-specific disclosure literature exists. To fill this gap, this mixed methods study sought to evaluate the concerns, barriers, failures, or successes parents or guardians have experienced when they have or have not chosen to tell their child(ren) about an NF1 diagnosis. Parents of children between ages 0 and 17 with a diagnosis of NF1 completed a survey and some parents were selected for an interview invitation. A total of 258 surveys were completed, and 20 parents were interviewed. Interview transcripts were categorized into disclosure and non-disclosure groups. Themes were organized into five categories based on interview questions: disclosure concerns, factors affecting disclosure/non-disclosure, approaches to disclosure, desired resources, and recommendations for disclosure. Sentiment analysis was performed on responses about the disclosure discussion itself. Results indicated that most parents (70.5%) disclosed the NF1 diagnosis to their child and overall felt it was a positive experience. Almost one-third of parents (29.5%) had not disclosed the diagnosis. A strong significance was identified between disclosure and severe presentation of NF1 (p = 0.0008). Parents in both groups shared similar concerns about discussing the diagnosis and multiple factors influenced the disclosure decision. Most parents approached disclosure as a process and emphasized the need to be honest and supportive of their child. Parents highlighted the need for more educational resources for children and guidance on how to disclose. These findings indicate that additional resources and support for parents would facilitate disclosure and the involvement of genetic counselors in the process would be beneficial.

ZMIZ1 Variants Cause a Syndromic Neurodevelopmental Disorder.

ZMIZ1 is a coactivator of several transcription factors, including p53, the androgen receptor, and NOTCH1. Here, we report 19 subjects with intellectual disability and developmental delay carrying variants in ZMIZ1. The associated features include growth failure, feeding difficulties, microcephaly, facial dysmorphism, and various other congenital malformations. Of these 19, 14 unrelated subjects carried de novo heterozygous single-nucleotide variants (SNVs) or single-base insertions/deletions, 3 siblings harbored a heterozygous single-base insertion, and 2 subjects had a balanced translocation disrupting ZMIZ1 or involving a regulatory region of ZMIZ1. In total, we identified 13 point mutations that affect key protein regions, including a SUMO acceptor site, a central disordered alanine-rich motif, a proline-rich domain, and a transactivation domain. All identified variants were absent from all available exome and genome databases. In vitro, ZMIZ1 showed impaired coactivation of the androgen receptor. In vivo, overexpression of ZMIZ1 mutant alleles in developing mouse brains using in utero electroporation resulted in abnormal pyramidal neuron morphology, polarization, and positioning, underscoring the importance of ZMIZ1 in neural development and supporting mutations in ZMIZ1 as the cause of a rare neurodevelopmental syndrome.

Evaluating the Efficacy of Eradicating Gardnerella vaginalis Vaginal Colonization With Amoxicillin: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Phase 2 Study.

BACKGROUND: Research suggests that Gardnerella vaginalis (GV) is the keystone pathogen in bacterial vaginosis (BV). Knowledge gaps exist regarding the role of GV eradication in the development of BV. This study was designed to test the hypothesis that vaginal colonization with GV could be eradicated by treatment of women without BV with amoxicillin, a drug highly active against GV. If GV is necessary for the development of BV, then eradication of GV may prevent the development of BV. METHODS: We conducted a randomized control trial of amoxicillin 500 mg twice daily versus placebo for 7 days in women aged 18 to 45 years without vaginitis who screened positive for vaginal colonization with GV by quantitative polymerase chain reaction. Test-of-cure visit for GV was conducted at day 21. RESULTS: One hundred seventy-two women met preliminary criteria and were screened for enrollment. Ninety-seven GV-positive women were randomized to receive amoxicillin versus placebo. Eradication of GV occurred in 21% of women randomized to amoxicillin versus 16% on placebo (P = 0.757). In the 4 weeks between screening and test-of-cure visit, 16 of 92 (17%) of participants developed Nugent scores greater than 3 with 8 of 92 (9%) having BV. All of these were in participants in whom GV was not eradicated (P = 0.035). CONCLUSIONS: The study failed to show a benefit of treatment with amoxicillin to eradicate GV. No participants in whom GV was eradicated had progression to abnormal vaginal flora during the study period.

Parental perceptions of genetic testing for children with autism spectrum disorders.

Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) routinely undergo genetic testing (GT) to identify the causative genetic etiology of their ASD. As there are questions about the impact of GT beyond clinical diagnosis, we conducted a mixed methods study to assess the perceived benefits of GT by exploring factors that lead parents to pursue these tests and the benefits experienced. Respondents were part of a pretest or posttest group. The pretest group (N = 22) expressed intent to pursue GT and the posttest group (N = 32) had undergone GT and received results at least 3 months prior to completing the survey. Responses were compared between and within groups. Free text responses were coded for themes and selection questions were analyzed using Fisher's exact tests. Our results demonstrate significant differences between the groups with participants in the pretest group more likely to choose "increased access to therapies" (p = 0.026) and "improved healthcare" (p < 0.000) as reasons to pursue testing. Benefits were also significantly different with "improved healthcare" (p = 0.009), "improved access to services" (p = 0.012), and "improved access to therapies" (p = 0.003) more frequently anticipated by the pretest group than reported by the posttest group. A relationship between GT and clinical management changes was reported by 34.4-50.0% of the posttest group. Among that group, genetic result type (positive, negative, or variant of uncertain significance) was associated with differing perceived benefits of testing. Thematic analysis revealed increased knowledge and coping as reported benefits in both groups. Our findings indicate a discrepancy between parental expectations and experiences of GT. Comprehensive pretest and posttest genetic counseling are necessary to improve information retention, address potential outcomes, and set expectations of GT for parents of children with ASD.

De Novo Missense Variants in TRAF7 Cause Developmental Delay, Congenital Anomalies, and Dysmorphic Features.

TRAF7 is a multi-functional protein involved in diverse signaling pathways and cellular processes. The phenotypic consequence of germline TRAF7 variants remains unclear. Here we report missense variants in TRAF7 in seven unrelated individuals referred for clinical exome sequencing. The seven individuals share substantial phenotypic overlap, with developmental delay, congenital heart defects, limb and digital anomalies, and dysmorphic features emerging as key unifying features. The identified variants are de novo in six individuals and comprise four distinct missense changes, including a c.1964G>A (p.Arg655Gln) variant that is recurrent in four individuals. These variants affect evolutionarily conserved amino acids and are located in key functional domains. Gene-specific mutation rate analysis showed that the occurrence of the de novo variants in TRAF7 (p = 2.6 × 10-3) and the recurrent de novo c.1964G>A (p.Arg655Gln) variant (p = 1.9 × 10-8) in our exome cohort was unlikely to have occurred by chance. In vitro analyses of the observed TRAF7 mutations showed reduced ERK1/2 phosphorylation. Our findings suggest that missense mutations in TRAF7 are associated with a multisystem disorder and provide evidence of a role for TRAF7 in human development.

Truncating Variants in NAA15 Are Associated with Variable Levels of Intellectual Disability, Autism Spectrum Disorder, and Congenital Anomalies.

N-alpha-acetylation is a common co-translational protein modification that is essential for normal cell function in humans. We previously identified the genetic basis of an X-linked infantile lethal Mendelian disorder involving a c.109T>C (p.Ser37Pro) missense variant in NAA10, which encodes the catalytic subunit of the N-terminal acetyltransferase A (NatA) complex. The auxiliary subunit of the NatA complex, NAA15, is the dimeric binding partner for NAA10. Through a genotype-first approach with whole-exome or genome sequencing (WES/WGS) and targeted sequencing analysis, we identified and phenotypically characterized 38 individuals from 33 unrelated families with 25 different de novo or inherited, dominantly acting likely gene disrupting (LGD) variants in NAA15. Clinical features of affected individuals with LGD variants in NAA15 include variable levels of intellectual disability, delayed speech and motor milestones, and autism spectrum disorder. Additionally, mild craniofacial dysmorphology, congenital cardiac anomalies, and seizures are present in some subjects. RNA analysis in cell lines from two individuals showed degradation of the transcripts with LGD variants, probably as a result of nonsense-mediated decay. Functional assays in yeast confirmed a deleterious effect for two of the LGD variants in NAA15. Further supporting a mechanism of haploinsufficiency, individuals with copy-number variant (CNV) deletions involving NAA15 and surrounding genes can present with mild intellectual disability, mild dysmorphic features, motor delays, and decreased growth. We propose that defects in NatA-mediated N-terminal acetylation (NTA) lead to variable levels of neurodevelopmental disorders in humans, supporting the importance of the NatA complex in normal human development.

Outcomes of prior authorization requests for genetic testing in outpatient pediatric genetics clinics.

PURPOSE: Genetic testing is an important diagnostic tool in pediatric genetics clinics, yet many patients face barriers to testing. We describe the outcomes of prior authorization requests (PARs) for genetic tests, one indicator of patient access to clinically recommended testing, in pediatric genetics clinics. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed PARs for genetic tests (n = 4,535) recommended for patients <18 years of age (n = 2,798) by pediatric medical geneticists at two children's hospitals in Texas, 2017-2018. We described PAR outcomes, accompanying diagnostic codes, and diagnostic yield. RESULTS: The majority (79.9%) of PARs received a favorable outcome. PARs submitted to public payers were more likely to receive a favorable outcome compared with private payers (85.5% vs. 70.3%, respectively; p < 0.001). No diagnostic codes were associated with higher likelihood of PAR approval for exome sequencing. Among the 2,685 tests approved and completed, 522 (19.4%) resulted in a diagnosis. CONCLUSION: Though there was a high PAR approval rate, our findings suggest that insurance coverage remains one barrier to genetic testing. When completed, genetic testing had a high yield in our sample. Further evidence of clinical utility and development of clinical practice guidelines may inform payer medical policy development and improve access to testing in the future.

Intraperitoneal bladder rupture in a young child with vascular Ehlers-Danlos syndrome.

In this report, we present the case of a 3-year-old child with vascular Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (vEDS) previously known as Ehlers-Danlos syndrome type IV. After experiencing a minor traumatic injury to the abdomen, consisting of falling over a bathroom stool on the way to the restroom with a full bladder, the child developed acute abdominal pain. He was found to have an intraperitoneal bladder rupture that was successfully repaired with management techniques tailored to his known diagnosis of vEDS. While tissue fragility and internal organ rupture occurring with minor trauma are known complications of vEDS, this is the first case in the literature of a bladder rupture in a child with vEDS with a confirmed variant in the COL3A1 gene, to our knowledge. This case broadens the clinical presentation of vEDS, demonstrates that children can have life-threatening organ rupture at a young age, and may alert providers to consider this diagnosis when a child presents with bladder rupture.

Retrospective Diagnosis of Ataxia-Telangiectasia in an Adolescent Patient With a Remote History of T-Cell Leukemia.

Ataxia-telangiectasia (A-T) is a rare autosomal recessive disorder characterized by progressive cerebellar degeneration that is typically diagnosed in early childhood. A-T is associated with a predisposition to malignancies, particularly lymphoid tumors in childhood and early adulthood. An adolescent girl with minimal neurologic symptoms was diagnosed with A-T 8 years after completing therapy for T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, following a diagnosis of ATM-mutated breast cancer in her mother. We highlight the importance of recognizing ATM mutations in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia, appreciating the phenotypic heterogeneity of A-T, and defining optimal cancer screening in A-T patients.

Associations of public water system trihalomethane exposure during pregnancy with spontaneous preterm birth and the cervicovaginal microbial-immune state.

BACKGROUND: Water total trihalomethanes (TTHMs) are disinfectant byproducts found in municipal water supplies. TTHM exposure has been linked to cancer and may be associated with adverse reproductive outcomes. A non-optimal cervicovaginal microbiota and low cervicovaginal beta-defensin-2 levels are associated with increased risk of spontaneous preterm birth. Whether TTHM exposure increases the risk of spontaneous preterm birth or alters the cervicovaginal microbial or immune state is unknown. OBJECTIVE: Investigate associations of water TTHM levels with spontaneous preterm birth, a non-optimal cervicovaginal microbiota, and beta-defensin-2 levels in a completed, diverse, urban pregnancy cohort. We hypothesized that higher TTHM levels would be associated with spontaneous preterm birth, a non-optimal cervicovaginal microbiota, and lower beta-defensin-2 levels. DESIGN: Methods: This was a secondary analysis of participants (n = 474) in the Motherhood & Microbiome (M&M) study (n = 2000), who lived in Philadelphia and had cervicovaginal samples analyzed for cervicovaginal microbiota composition and beta-defensin-2 levels. The microbiota was classified into community state types (CSTs). CST IV (non-optimal microbiota) is characterized by a paucity of Lactobacillus species and wide array of anaerobes. Municipal water TTHM levels were obtained from 16 sites monthly across the city of Philadelphia to establish mean residential water supply levels for each participant for the first four months of pregnancy (prior to vaginal swab collection at 16-20 weeks' gestation). Associations of water TTHM levels with spontaneous preterm birth and a non-optimal cervicovaginal microbiota birth were analyzed using multivariable logistic regression. Multivariable linear regression was used to model associations of water TTHM levels with log-transformed cervicovaginal beta-defensin-2 levels. Since water TTHM levels vary by season and beta-defensin-2 levels have been shown to differ by race, stratified models by warm (April-September) and cold (October-March) seasons as well as by self-identified race were utilized. RESULTS: Participants' water supply TTHM levels (mean µg/L [SD]) were higher in the warm (53.5 [9.4]) than cold (33.4 [7.5]) season (p < 0.0001). TTHM levels were non-significantly higher among Black participants than non-Black participants (44.8 [13.5] vs. 41.8 [11.8], p = 0.07). No associations were detected between TTHM with spontaneous preterm birth (per SD increment of TTHM, aOR 0.94, 95%CI: 0.66, 1.34) or with CST IV (aOR 0.94, 95%CI: 0.86, 1.16). Counter to our hypothesis, we observed positive associations of water TTHM with log-transformed cervicovaginal beta-defensin-2 levels in unadjusted models (ß 0.20 [95%CI: 0.02, 0.39]) per SD increment of TTHM), but the association was null after adjustment for season. However, in models adjusted for covariates including season and stratified by race, TTHM was significantly associated with lower beta-defensin-2 levels among non-Black participants (ß -0.75 [95%CI: -1.43, -0.08]) but not among Black participants (ß 0.17 [95%CI: -0.15, 0.49]), interaction p = 0.013). CONCLUSION: We did not detect associations of water TTHM levels with spontaneous preterm birth or the structure of the cervicovaginal microbiota. However, the finding of a significant interaction between TTHM and race on beta-defensin-2 levels suggest that environmental exposures may contribute to differences in reproductive tract innate immune function by race. Future studies to delineate environmental contributions to the cervicovaginal microbial-immune state, a potentially important biologic underpinning for preterm birth, are warranted.

BAZ2B haploinsufficiency as a cause of developmental delay, intellectual disability, and autism spectrum disorder.

The bromodomain adjacent to zinc finger 2B gene (BAZ2B) encodes a protein involved in chromatin remodeling. Loss of BAZ2B function has been postulated to cause neurodevelopmental disorders. To determine whether BAZ2B deficiency is likely to contribute to the pathogenesis of these disorders, we performed bioinformatics analyses that demonstrated a high level of functional convergence during fetal cortical development between BAZ2B and genes known to cause autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and neurodevelopmental disorder. We also found an excess of de novo BAZ2B loss-of-function variants in exome sequencing data from previously published cohorts of individuals with neurodevelopmental disorders. We subsequently identified seven additional individuals with heterozygous deletions, stop-gain, or de novo missense variants affecting BAZ2B. All of these individuals have developmental delay (DD), intellectual disability (ID), and/or ASD. Taken together, our findings suggest that haploinsufficiency of BAZ2B causes a neurodevelopmental disorder, whose cardinal features include DD, ID, and ASD.

Clinical spectrum of individuals with pathogenic NF1 missense variants affecting p.Met1149, p.Arg1276, and p.Lys1423: genotype-phenotype study in neurofibromatosis type 1.

We report 281 individuals carrying a pathogenic recurrent NF1 missense variant at p.Met1149, p.Arg1276, or p.Lys1423, representing three nontruncating NF1 hotspots in the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) cohort, together identified in 1.8% of unrelated NF1 individuals. About 25% (95% confidence interval: 20.5-31.2%) of individuals heterozygous for a pathogenic NF1 p.Met1149, p.Arg1276, or p.Lys1423 missense variant had a Noonan-like phenotype, which is significantly more compared with the "classic" NF1-affected cohorts (all p < .0001). Furthermore, p.Arg1276 and p.Lys1423 pathogenic missense variants were associated with a high prevalence of cardiovascular abnormalities, including pulmonic stenosis (all p < .0001), while p.Arg1276 variants had a high prevalence of symptomatic spinal neurofibromas (p < .0001) compared with "classic" NF1-affected cohorts. However, p.Met1149-positive individuals had a mild phenotype, characterized mainly by pigmentary manifestations without externally visible plexiform neurofibromas, symptomatic spinal neurofibromas or symptomatic optic pathway gliomas. As up to 0.4% of unrelated individuals in the UAB cohort carries a p.Met1149 missense variant, this finding will contribute to more accurate stratification of a significant number of NF1 individuals. Although clinically relevant genotype-phenotype correlations are rare in NF1, each affecting only a small percentage of individuals, together they impact counseling and management of a significant number of the NF1 population.

A Recurrent De Novo Nonsense Variant in ZSWIM6 Results in Severe Intellectual Disability without Frontonasal or Limb Malformations.

A recurrent de novo missense variant within the C-terminal Sin3-like domain of ZSWIM6 was previously reported to cause acromelic frontonasal dysostosis (AFND), an autosomal-dominant severe frontonasal and limb malformation syndrome, associated with neurocognitive and motor delay, via a proposed gain-of-function effect. We present detailed phenotypic information on seven unrelated individuals with a recurrent de novo nonsense variant (c.2737C>T [p.Arg913Ter]) in the penultimate exon of ZSWIM6 who have severe-profound intellectual disability and additional central and peripheral nervous system symptoms but an absence of frontonasal or limb malformations. We show that the c.2737C>T variant does not trigger nonsense-mediated decay of the ZSWIM6 mRNA in affected individual-derived cells. This finding supports the existence of a truncated ZSWIM6 protein lacking the Sin3-like domain, which could have a dominant-negative effect. This study builds support for a key role for ZSWIM6 in neuronal development and function, in addition to its putative roles in limb and craniofacial development, and provides a striking example of different variants in the same gene leading to distinct phenotypes.

Clinical and biochemical improvement with galactose supplementation in SLC35A2-CDG.

PURPOSE: We studied galactose supplementation in SLC35A2-congenital disorder of glycosylation (SLC35A2-CDG), caused by monoallelic pathogenic variants in SLC35A2 (Xp11.23), encoding the endoplasmic reticulum (ER) and Golgi UDP-galactose transporter. Patients present with epileptic encephalopathy, developmental disability, growth deficiency, and dysmorphism. METHODS: Ten patients with SLC35A2-CDG were supplemented with oral D-galactose for 18 weeks in escalating doses up to 1.5 g/kg/day. Outcome was assessed using the Nijmegen Pediatric CDG Rating Scale (NPCRS, ten patients) and by glycomics (eight patients). RESULTS: SLC35A2-CDG patients demonstrated improvements in overall Nijmegen Pediatric CDG Rating Scale (NPCRS) score (P = 0.008), the current clinical assessment (P = 0.007), and the system specific involvement (P = 0.042) domains. Improvements were primarily in growth and development with five patients resuming developmental progress, which included postural control, response to stimuli, and chewing and swallowing amelioration. Additionally, there were improvements in gastrointestinal symptoms and epilepsy. One patient in our study did not show any clinical improvement. Galactose supplementation improved patients' glycosylation with decreased ratios of incompletely formed to fully formed glycans (M-gal/disialo, P = 0.012 and monosialo/disialo, P = 0.017) and increased levels of a fully galactosylated N-glycan (P = 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: Oral D-galactose supplementation results in clinical and biochemical improvement in SLC35A2-CDG. Galactose supplementation may partially overcome the Golgi UDP-galactose deficiency and improves galactosylation. Oral galactose is well tolerated and shows promise as dietary therapy.

Evaluation and classification of severity for 176 genes on an expanded carrier screening panel.

BACKGROUND: Disease severity is important when considering genes for inclusion on reproductive expanded carrier screening (ECS) panels. We applied a validated and previously published algorithm that classifies diseases into four severity categories (mild, moderate, severe, and profound) to 176 genes screened by ECS. Disease traits defining severity categories in the algorithm were then mapped to four severity-related ECS panel design criteria cited by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG). METHODS: Eight genetic counselors (GCs) and four medical geneticists (MDs) applied the severity algorithm to subsets of 176 genes. MDs and GCs then determined by group consensus how each of these disease traits mapped to ACOG severity criteria, enabling determination of the number of ACOG severity criteria met by each gene. RESULTS: Upon consensus GC and MD application of the severity algorithm, 68 (39%) genes were classified as profound, 71 (40%) as severe, 36 (20%) as moderate, and one (1%) as mild. After mapping of disease traits to ACOG severity criteria, 170 out of 176 genes (96.6%) were found to meet at least one of the four criteria, 129 genes (73.3%) met at least two, 73 genes (41.5%) met at least three, and 17 genes (9.7%) met all four. CONCLUSION: This study classified the severity of a large set of Mendelian genes by collaborative clinical expert application of a trait-based algorithm. Further, it operationalized difficult to interpret ACOG severity criteria via mapping of disease traits, thereby promoting consistency of ACOG criteria interpretation.

Biallelic mutations in the ferredoxin reductase gene cause novel mitochondriopathy with optic atrophy.

Iron-sulfur (Fe-S) clusters are ubiquitous cofactors essential to various cellular processes, including mitochondrial respiration, DNA repair, and iron homeostasis. A steadily increasing number of disorders are being associated with disrupted biogenesis of Fe-S clusters. Here, we conducted whole-exome sequencing of patients with optic atrophy and other neurological signs of mitochondriopathy and identified 17 individuals from 13 unrelated families with recessive mutations in FDXR, encoding the mitochondrial membrane-associated flavoprotein ferrodoxin reductase required for electron transport from NADPH to cytochrome P450. In vitro enzymatic assays in patient fibroblast cells showed deficient ferredoxin NADP reductase activity and mitochondrial dysfunction evidenced by low oxygen consumption rates (OCRs), complex activities, ATP production and increased reactive oxygen species (ROS). Such defects were rescued by overexpression of wild-type FDXR. Moreover, we found that mice carrying a spontaneous mutation allelic to the most common mutation found in patients displayed progressive gait abnormalities and vision loss, in addition to biochemical defects consistent with the major clinical features of the disease. Taken together, these data provide the first demonstration that germline, hypomorphic mutations in FDXR cause a novel mitochondriopathy and optic atrophy in humans.

De Novo Truncating Variants in SON Cause Intellectual Disability, Congenital Malformations, and Failure to Thrive.

SON is a key component of the spliceosomal complex and a critical mediator of constitutive and alternative splicing. Additionally, SON has been shown to influence cell-cycle progression, genomic integrity, and maintenance of pluripotency in stem cell populations. The clear functional relevance of SON in coordinating essential cellular processes and its presence in diverse human tissues suggests that intact SON might be crucial for normal growth and development. However, the phenotypic effects of deleterious germline variants in SON have not been clearly defined. Herein, we describe seven unrelated individuals with de novo variants in SON and propose that deleterious variants in SON are associated with a severe multisystem disorder characterized by developmental delay, persistent feeding difficulties, and congenital malformations, including brain anomalies.