Challenges in genetic diagnosis, co-occurrence of 22q11.2 deletion syndrome and Noonan syndrome.

Noonan syndrome (NS) is caused by pathogenic variants in genes involved in the RAS/MAPK pathway. On the other hand, 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome (22q11.2DS) is caused by heterozygous microdeletion on chromosome 22q11.2. The clinical characteristics of both syndromes are expected to be relatively distinct, and, in fact, there is only one report of these syndromes occurring together, but on daily clinical practice and especially in early childhood phenotypes may overlap. In this study, we describe a patient with NS and 22q11.2DS features harboring a heterozygous 2.54 Mb deletion of chromosome 22q11.2 and a variant in LZTR1, c.1531G > A p.(Val511Met). In 1993, Wilson et al reported a patient with both 22q11.2DS and NS, proposing that probably more than one gene is deleted in the proband and that one of the deleted genes is responsible for Noonan's phenotype. In our patient, one of the deleted genes within the 22q11.2 region was the LZTR1 gene which was associated with NS in 2015. This case also highlights the importance of the long-term patients' follow-up to detect evolutionary changes that may appear in the phenotype and alerts clinicians of the co-occurrence of two syndromes that may manifest over time.

Noonan syndrome with loose anagen hair with variants in the PPP1CB gene: First familial case reported.

Rasopathies are a group of phenotypically overlapping conditions that include Noonan, Noonan with multiple lentigines, Noonan with loose anagen hair, Costello, Cardio-facio-cutaneous, and Neurofibromatosis-Noonan syndromes. Noonan syndrome with loose anagen hair (NS-LAH) is clinically characterized by prominent forehead, macrocephaly, growth hormone deficiency, sparse, loose and slow-growing anagen hair, hyperpigmented skin with eczema or ichthyosis, mild psychomotor delays, hypernasal voices, and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder. Variants in SHOC2 are responsible for the majority of the cases. Gripp et al. identified four unrelated individuals with similar phenotype to NS-LAH with pathogenic variants in PPP1CB. In this study, we present one family and one patient with NS-LAH and variants in PPP1CB. The first patient belongs to a family with a likely pathogenic variant, c.545T>A (p.Met182Lys), the first family published so far with a variant in this gene. The second patient harbors a de novo pathogenic variant, c.146C>G (p.Pro49Arg). This study presents two additional patients with this rare syndrome in order to increase the clinical characterization of the syndrome and provide more evidence of the pathogenicity of the c.545T>A (p.Met182Lys) variant in PPP1CB, a gene recently associated with NS-LAH.

Providing more evidence on LZTR1 variants in Noonan syndrome patients.

Noonan syndrome (NS, OMIM 163950) is a common autosomal dominant RASopathy caused mainly by gain-of-function germline pathogenic variants in genes involved in the RAS/MAPK signaling pathway. LZTR1 gene has been associated with both dominant and recessive NS. Here, we present seven patients with NS and variants in the LZTR1 gene from seven unrelated families, 14 individuals in total. The detection rAte of LZTR1 variants in our NS cohort was 4% similar to RAF1 and KRAS genes, indicating that variants in this gene might be frequent among our population. Three different variants were detected, c.742G>A (p.Gly248Arg), c.360C>A (p.His120Gln), and c.2245T>C (p.Tyr749His). The pathogenic variant c.742G>A (p.Gly248Arg) was found in five/seven patients. In our cohort 50% of patients presented heart defects and neurodevelopment delay or learning disabilities, short stature was present in 21% of them and one patient had acute lymphoblastic leukemia. This study broadens the spectrum of variants in the LZTR1 gene and provides increased knowledge of the clinical phenotypes observed in Argentinean NS patients.

Caracterización clínica y molecular de niños con síndrome de Noonan y otras RASopatías en Argentina / Clinical and molecular characterization of children with Noonan syndrome and other RASopathies in Argentina

Introducción. Las RASopatías son un conjunto de síndromes fenotípicamente superpuestos causados por mutaciones en genes implicados en la vía RAS/MAPK. La herencia es autosómica dominante, presentan características clínicas comunes, como baja talla, dismorfias craneofaciales, cardiopatia congénita, manifestaciones ectodérmicas y mayor riesgo de cáncer. El diagnóstico molecular es clave. Objetivo. Identificar mutaciones en los genes PTPN11, SOS1,RAF1, BRAFy HRAS,y comparar las principales características clínicas en pacientes con confirmación molecular. Población y métodos. Se estudiaron niños con diagnóstico clínico de RASopatía evaluados entre agosto de 2013 y febrero de 2017. Resultados. Se identificaron mutaciones en el 71 % (87/122) de los pacientes. El estudio molecular confirmó el diagnóstico en el 73 % de los pacientes con síndrome de Noonan. La mutación más prevalente fue c.922A>G (p.Asn308Asp) en el gen PTPN11. Se detectó una variante no descrita en RAF1, c.1467G>C (p.Leu489Phe). Se confirmó el sindrome cardiofaciocutáneo en el 67 % de los casos con mutaciones en el gen BRAF. El síndrome de Costello y el síndrome de Noonan con múltiples lentigos se confirmaron en todos los casos. Conclusión. La confirmación del diagnóstico clínico permitió un diagnóstico diferencial más preciso. Se determinó la prevalencia de las mutaciones en PTPN11 (el 58 %), SOS1 (el 10 %) y RAF1 (el 5 %) en niños con síndrome de Noonan, en PTPN11 (el 100 %) en el sindrome de Noonan con múltiples lentigos, en BRAF (el 67 %) en el síndrome cardiofaciocutáneo y en HRAS (el 100 %) en el sindrome de Costello.

Introduction. RASopathies are a set of syndromes with phenotypic overlapping features caused by gene mutations involved in the RAS/MAPK pathway. They are autosomal dominantly inherited and share common clinical characteristics, including short stature, craniofacial dysmorphisms, congenital heart disease, ectodermal manifestations, and a higher risk for cancer. A molecular diagnosis is a key factor. Objective. To identify PTPN11, SOS1, RAF1, BRAF, and HRAS mutations and compare the main clinical characteristics of patients with molecular confirmation. Population and methods. Children with a clinical diagnosis of RASopathy assessed between August 2013 and February 2017. Results. Mutations were identified in 71 % (87/122) of patients. The molecular test confirmed diagnosis in 73 % of patients with Noonan syndrome. The most prevalent mutation was c.922A>G (p.Asn308Asp) in the PTPN11 gene. A previously undescribed variant in RAF1 was detected: c.1467G>C (p.Leu489Phe). Cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome was confirmed in 67 % of cases with BRAF mutations. Costello syndrome and Noonan syndrome with multiple lentigines were confirmed in all cases. Conclusion. The confirmation of clinical diagnosis allowed for a more accurate differential diagnosis. The prevalence of PTPN11 (58 %), SOS1 (10 % ), and RAF1 mutations (5 %) in children with Noonan syndrome, of PTPN11 mutations (100 %) in those with Noonan syndrome with multiple lentigines, of BRAF mutations (67 %) in those with cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome, and of HRAS mutations (100 %) in those with Costello syndrome was determined.

Clinical and molecular characterization of children with Noonan syndrome and other RASopathies in Argentina. / Caracterización clínica y molecular de niños con síndrome de Noonan y otras RASopatías en Argentina.

INTRODUCTION: RASopathies are a set of syndromes with phenotypic overlapping features caused by gene mutations involved in the RAS/MAPK pathway. They are autosomal dominantly inherited and share common clinical characteristics, including short stature, craniofacial dysmorphisms, congenital heart disease, ectodermal manifestations, and a higher risk for cancer. A molecular diagnosis is a key factor. OBJECTIVE: To identify PTPN11, SOS1, RAF1, BRAF, and HRAS mutations and compare the main clinical characteristics of patients with molecular confirmation. Population and methods. Children with a clinical diagnosis of RASopathy assessed between August 2013 and February 2017. RESULTS: Mutations were identified in 71 % (87/122) of patients. The molecular test confirmed diagnosis in 73 % of patients with Noonan syndrome. The most prevalent mutation was c.922A>G (p.Asn308Asp) in the PTPN11 gene. A previously undescribed variant in RAF1 was detected: c.1467G>>C (p.Leu489Phe). Cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome was confirmed in 67 % of cases with BRAF mutations. Costello syndrome and Noonan syndrome with multiple lentigines were confirmed in all cases. CONCLUSION: The confirmation of clinical diagnosis allowed for a more accurate differential diagnosis. The prevalence of PTPN11 (58 %), SOS1 (10 %), and RAF1 mutations (5 %) in children with Noonan syndrome, of PTPN11 mutations (100 %) in those with Noonan syndrome with multiple lentigines, of BRAF mutations (67 %) in those with cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome, and of HRAS mutations (100 %) in those with Costello syndrome was determined.

Introducción. Las RASopatías son un conjunto de síndromes fenotípicamente superpuestos causados por mutaciones en genes implicados en la vía RAS/MAPK. La herencia es autosómica dominante, presentan características clínicas comunes, como baja talla, dismorfias craneofaciales, cardiopatía congénita, manifestaciones ectodérmicas y mayor riesgo de cáncer. El diagnóstico molecular es clave. Objetivo. Identificar mutaciones en los genes PTPN11, SOS1, RAF1, BRAF y HRAS, y comparar las principales características clínicas en pacientes con confirmación molecular. Población y métodos. Se estudiaron niños con diagnóstico clínico de RASopatía evaluados entre agosto de 2013 y febrero de 2017. Resultados. Se identificaron mutaciones en el 71 % (87/122) de los pacientes. El estudio molecular confirmó el diagnóstico en el 73 % de los pacientes con síndrome de Noonan. La mutación más prevalente fue c.922A>G (p.Asn308Asp) en el gen PTPN11. Se detectó una variante no descrita en RAF1, c.1467G>C (p.Leu489Phe). Se confirmó el síndrome cardiofaciocutáneo en el 67 % de los casos con mutaciones en el gen BRAF. El síndrome de Costello y el síndrome de Noonan con múltiples lentigos se confirmaron en todos los casos. Conclusión. La confirmación del diagnóstico clínico permitió un diagnóstico diferencial más preciso. Se determinó la prevalencia de las mutaciones en PTPN11 (el 58 %), SOS1 (el 10 %) y RAF1 (el 5 %) en niños con síndrome de Noonan, en PTPN11 (el 100 %) en el síndrome de Noonan con múltiples lentigos, en BRAF (el 67 %) en el síndrome cardiofaciocutáneo y en HRAS (el 100 %) en el síndrome de Costello.

Circulación de virus de influenza A y cepas resistentes a oseltamivir en el período invernal del año 2013 / Circulation of Influenza A Viruses and Oseltamivir-Resistant Strains during the 2013 Winter

Inicialmente el virus de influenza A(H1N1)pdm09 fue susceptible a los inhibidores de neuraminidasa oseltamivir y zanamivir. Las cepas virales resistentes presentan una sustitución que produce un cambio del aminoácido histidina (H) por una tirosina (Y) en el codón 274 del gen de la neuroaminidasa. El objetivo del trabajo fue realizar un análisis retrospectivo de los resultados obtenidos en muestras estudiadas para influenza A durante el periodo junio - agosto de 2013 y en las muestras positivas determinar la presencia de la mutación H274Y. Se estudiaron 1783 muestras de pacientes con diagnóstico presuntivo de influenza A(H1N1)pdm09, 171 (9.6%) resultaron positivas, a estas se les estudió la presencia de la mutación H274Y. Únicamente dos muestras presentaron la mutación de resistencia. Los métodos para detectar cepas de infuenza A(H1N1)pdm09 resistentes son necesarios para ayudar a los médicos en la selección de la terapia antiviral apropiada de la influenza.

Initially the circulating influenza virus A(H1N1)pdm09 was susceptible to neuraminidase inhibitors oseltamivir and zanamivir. Virtually all resistant viruses possess a substitution at codon 274 of the neuraminidase gene which produces a change of the amino acid histidine (H) to a tyrosine (Y). The aims of the study were to perform a retrospective analysis of samples studied in the Laboratory of Genomic Medicine - MANLAB for influenza A during the period June to August 2013 in Buenos Aires, and to determine the presence of the H274Y mutation. 1783 samples from patients with a presumptive diagnosis of influenza A(H1N1) pdm09 were studied, the virus was detected in 171 samples (9.6%). Then, we studied the presence of the mutation H274Y. Only two samples showed the characteristic resistance mutation. Methods for detecting oseltamivir-resistant A(H1N1)pdm09 influenza strains are needed to assist physicians in the selection of appropriate antiviral therapy for influenza treatment.