NLRP7 Is Involved in the Differentiation of the Decidual Macrophages.

Macrophage polarization, regulated appropriately, may play important roles in successful pregnancy. In the face of the vital roles of decidua macrophages in pregnancy, it is insufficient to recognize the trigger of macrophage differentiation and polarization. We aimed to explore the link between the NLRP7 gene and macrophage polarization in human deciduas. Here, we enrolled the endometrial tissues from eight pregnant women in the first trimester. We found that NLRP7 was abundant in endometrial tissues and that NLRP7 was expressed in decidual macrophages of the first-trimester pregnancy. NLRP7 was predominately expressed in the decidual M2 macrophages, as compared with the M1 macrophages. Furthermore, our results suggest that NLRP7 is associated with decidual macrophage differentiation. NLRP7 over-expression suppresses the expression of M1 markers and enhances the expression of the M2 markers. Considering that NLRP7 relates to decidualization and macrophage differentiation, we propose that NLRP7 is a primate-specific multitasking gene to maintain endometrial hemostasis and reproductive success. This finding may pave the way for therapies of pathological pregnancies.

NLRP7 contributes to in vitro decidualization of endometrial stromal cells.

BACKGROUND: Nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain (NACHT), leucine rich repeat (LRR) and pyrin domain (PYD) 7 containing protein, NLRP7, is a member of the NLR family which serves as innate immune sensors. Mutations and genetic variants of NLRP7 have been found in women with infertility associated conditions, such as recurrent hydatidiform mole, recurrent miscarriage, and preeclampsia. Decidualization of endometrial stromal cells is a hallmark of tissue remodeling to support embryo implantation and proper placental development. Given defective decidualization has been implicated in miscarriage as well as preeclampsia, we aimed to explore the link between the NLRP7 gene and decidualization. METHODS: Endometrial samples obtained from pregnant women in the first trimester and non-pregnant women were used to study NLRP7 expression pattern. The human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT)-immortalized human endometrial stromal cells (T-HESCs) were used to study the effect of NLRP7 on decidualization. Decidualization of T-HESCs was induced with 1 µM medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) and 0.5 mM 8-bromoadenosine 3':5'-cyclic monophosphate (8-Br-cAMP). siRNA was used to knock down NLRP7 while lentiviral vectors were used to overexpress NLRP7 in cells. NLRP7 expression was detected by immunofluorescence, qRT-PCR, and Western blotting. Decidualization markers, Insulin-like growth factor-binding protein 1 (IGFBP-1) and prolactin (PRL), were detected by qRT-PCR and ELISA. Nuclear translocation of NLRP7 was detected by the subcellular fractionation and confocal microscopy. The effect of NLRP7 on progesterone receptor (PR) activity was evaluated by a reporter system. RESULTS: NLRP7 was up-regulated in the decidual stromal cells of human first-trimester endometrium. After in vitro decidualization, T-HESCs presented with the swollen phenotype and increased expressions of IGFBP-1 and PRL. Knockdown or over-expression of NLRP7 reduced or enhanced the decidualization, respectively, according to the expression level of IGFBP-1. NLRP7 was found to translocate in the nucleus of decidualized T-HESCs and able to promote PR activity. CONCLUSIONS: NLRP7 was upregulated and translocated to the nucleus of the endometrial stromal cells in an in vitro decidualization model. Overexpressed NLRP7 promoted the IGFBP-1 expression and PR reporter activation. IGFBP-1 expression decreased with the knockdown of NLRP7. Therefore, we suggest that NLRP7 contributes to in vitro decidualization of endometrial stromal cells.

Prenatal detection and characterization of a psu idic(8)(p23.3) which likely derived from nonallelic homologous recombination between two MYOM2-repeats.

Mosaicism with an isodicentric 8 with a breakpoint at p23.3 [idic(8)(p23.3)] is very rare. We report the first prenatal case on a male fetus, in which obstetric ultrasound revealed multiple congenital anomalies at 28 weeks of gestation. Cytogenetic analysis of amniocytes showed mos 45,XY,-8,psu idic(8)(p23.3)[16]/46,XY,psu idic(8)(p23.3)[4], and that of cord blood lymphocytes revealed mos 46,XY, psu idic(8)(p23.3)[37]/45,XY,-8,psu idic(8)(p23.3)[13]. Fluorescence in situ hybridization studies revealed that the break-reunion occurred at the cytoband 8p23.3 within the physical position 2.08 Mb from the 8p telomere. Chromosomal microarray analyses further assigned the duplication/deletion breakpoint at 2.16 Mb (Agilent 244K) and at 2.19 Mb (Affymetrix SNP6.0). Analysis of microsatellite DNA indicated that the psu idic(8)(p23.3) was derived from the maternal chromosome 8. Together, these findings indicate that the fetus was nullisomic for ~2.2 Mb from 8pter, trisomic for the rest of chromosome 8 in mosaic condition, and likely had breaks in MYOM2 repeats of the maternal chromosome 8.

Prenatal diagnosis of microdeletion 16p13.11 combination with partial monosomy of 2q37.1-qter and partial trisomy of 7p15.3-pter in a fetus with bilateral ventriculomegaly, agenesis of corpus callosum, and polydactyly.

OBJECTIVE: To present a prenatal diagnosis of microdeletion 16p13.11 with partial monosomy of 2q37.1-qter and partial trisomy of 7p15.3-pter in a fetus with bilateral ventriculomegaly, agenesis of corpus callosum, and polydactyly. CASE REPORT: A 41-year-old well-being Taiwanese, nulligravida woman received amniocentesis at a gestational age of 18 weeks for advanced maternal age. The fetus' karyotype showed 46,XY,der(2)t(2;7)(q36.2;p15.1). Both parents also received cytogenetic examinations and the mother's karyotype revealed 46,XX,t(2;7)(2q36.2;p15.1). High-resolution ultrasound showed the fetus had bilateral ventriculomegaly, agenesis of corpus callosum, and polydactyly of the right hand. After the termination of this pregnancy, the whole genome oligonucleotide-base array comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) by using fetal skin cells demonstrated a 8.44-Mb deletion at 2q37.1 (234602276-243041305), a 22.8-Mb duplication (65558-22869338) at 7p15.3, and an additional 1.32-Mb deletion (14968855-16292235) at 16p13.11. CONCLUSION: Array CGH is a useful tool not only to discover the genomic imbalance at the breakpoints as well as to detect unexpectedly complex rearrangements in other chromosomes. Our case also provided evidence that genomic aberration at chromosome 16p13.11 involves in the formation of polydactyly.

The role of pretreatment FDG-PET in nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with intensity-modulated radiotherapy.

PURPOSE: Pretreatment with 2- [(18)F] fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography ((18)F-FDG-PET) was evaluated as a predictor of local failure-free survival (LFFS), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS) in patients with nonkeratinizing nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) treated with intensity-modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) alone or concurrently with chemotherapy (CCRT). PATIENTS AND METHODS: Seventy-five M0 NPC patients who received FDG-PET before treatment were analyzed. The primary tumor FDG uptake was measured as the maximum standardized uptake value (SUVmax). The LFFS, DFS, and OS were calculated by the Kaplan-Meier method, and the differences were evaluated on log-rank test. The prognostic significance was assessed by univariate and multivariate analyses. RESULTS: Eighteen patients received IMRT alone and 57 received CCRT. The mean SUVmax was significantly higher in 12 patients with locoregional or distant failure than in those without failure (p <0.001). On multivariate analysis, the SUVmax was the only significant variable for 5-year LFFS (p = 0.017) and DFS (p = 0.000) but not for OS (p = 0.065). CONCLUSION: SUVmax is a potential independent prognostic predictor of clinical outcomes in patients with nasopharyngeal carcinoma treated with IMRT alone or with CCRT. A high (18)F-FDG uptake (SUVmax >5) indicates poor outcome in patients with NPC.

Complex genomic organization of Indian muntjac centromeric DNA.

A 69-kb Indian muntjac bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) clone that screened positive for Cervid satellites I and IV was selected for complete sequence analysis and further characterization. The sequences of this BAC clone were found in the centromeres and in some interstitial sites of Indian muntjac chromosomes. Sequence analyses showed that the BAC clone contained a 14.5 kb Cervid satellite I-like DNA element and a 9 kb Cervid satellite IV-like DNA element. In addition, it contained 51 regions each organized in a complex fashion, with sequences homology to intersperse repetitive sequences such as LINEs, SINEs, LTRs, other published DNA elements, and unassigned sequences. The FISH patterns of seven non-satellite sequence elements generated from the BAC clone showed mainly specific to centromeres of the Indian muntjac representing novel centromeric DNAs of the species. Furthermore, FISH signals and Southern blot patterns of these elements suggest the existence of a not yet identified repetitive sequence with giant repeated monomers. Positive FISH signals of these elements were also detected in the centromeric regions of Formosan muntjac. This suggests that these newly identified non-Cervid satellite DNA sequences have been conserved in the centromere of the Formosan muntjac.

Small supernumerary marker chromosome originating from chromosome 10 associated with an apparently normal phenotype.

Small supernumerary marker chromosomes (sSMC) originating from chromosome 10 are rare. Only seven cases have been documented, and among those three cases were diagnosed prenatally. We reported on another prenatal diagnosis of a de novo mosaic sSMC in an apparently normal female fetus whose mother had conceived with assisted reproductive technology (ART) procedures. G-banding analysis of amniotic cells was performed. Spectral karyotyping (SKY) and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) studies with chromosome 10-specific alphoid satellite DNA probe were used to identify the chromosome 10 origin of the sSMC. Further FISH study with telomeric sequence probes showed that the sSMC lacked a hybridization signal, suggesting that the marker could be a ring chromosome. FISH studies using BAC clone probes specific for the regions within 10p11.2, 10q11.1, and 10q11.2 showed that the short arm breakpoint was located between 29.8 and 30.7 Mb from the 10p telomere, and that the long arm breakpoint was located less than 43.6 Mb from the 10p telomere. The karyotype of the fetus was 47,XX,+mar. ish der(10)(SKY+ CEP 10+, CTD-2130I7+, RP11-89J23-)/46,XX. Oligonucleotide microarray-based copy number variations (CNV) analysis was also performed and showed a 6.7 Mb duplication from 10p11.2 to 10q11.2 (36.2-42.9 Mb) with Affymetrix SNP-array 6.0 genotype: arr cgh. 10p11.2q11.2(CN_519687 --> CN_541524) X 3. At the 1-year follow-up, the baby did not have any findings of the trisomy 10p syndrome. This observation provided further credence to the concept that additional chromosome material of proximal 10p11.2 may not contribute to the trisomy 10p syndrome phenotype.

Rare rearrangements: a "jumping satellite" in one family and autosomal location of the SRY gene in an XX male.

A satellited short arm of the Y chromosome (Yps) is rare. Only one de novo case of Yps has been documented. Here we report the prenatal diagnosis of Yps in a male fetus with a karyotype, 46,XYps. Family chromosome study showed that the father and a sister had a satellited short arm of the X chromosome (Xps). A phenotypically normal male child with the Yps was delivered. This is the first familial case showing a satellite "jumping" from Xp to Yp. We propose that it resulted from a crossover within the pseudoautosomal region 1 (PAR1) on the distal Xp and Yp during paternal meiosis. In addition to the rare translocation mentioned above, relocation of the SRY gene onto an autosome in XX males is also a rare event. Herein we report a phenotypically normal male fetus with a 46,XX karyotype. Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) study showed that the SRY locus had been transferred to the terminal short arm of a chromosome 3. The terminal short arm deletion of this chromosome 3 was also confirmed by FISH study with a subtelomeric probe and the breakpoint of the terminal deletion was estimated between 446 and 664 kb from the 3p telomere by real-time qPCR study with a gene sequence and STS markers in this region. A healthy boy was delivered at 37 weeks of gestation. At 1-year follow-up, the child's growth pattern and development were appropriate for age.

Autoantibody to NA14 is an independent marker primarily for Sjogren's syndrome.

Nuclear Autoantigen of 14 kDa (NA14) was originally identified using the serum of a Sjögren's syndrome (SS) patient as probe in screening a human testis cDNA expression library. To date there is no report in the systematic analysis of the prevalence of autoantibodies to NA14. In this study, anti-NA14 was determined in several rheumatic diseases from independent cohorts in the US and Japan. The prevalence of anti-NA14 were 18/132 (13.6%) in primary SS, 0/50 (0%) secondary SS, 2/100 (2%) SLE, 1/43 (2.3%) scleroderma, 0/54 (0%) rheumatoid arthritis, 1/29 (3.4%) polymyositis/dermatomyositis, and 0/58 (0%) normal healthy controls. The frequencies of anti-NA14 positive sera in primary SS are statistically greater than normal healthy controls (p=0.006), secondary SS (p=0.044), and other rheumatic diseases. Furthermore, among 11 anti-NA14 positive primary SS sera, 4/11 (36.3%) sera were negative for both anti-SS-A/Ro and SS-B/La antibodies. Thus anti-NA14 autoantibodies may be useful for the discrimination of primary versus secondary SS and serve as a diagnostic marker for primary SS especially in seronegative (anti-SS-A/Ro and anti-SS-B/La antibodies negative) patients with SS.

Primary ovarian failure in a mentally retarded woman with a de novo unbalanced X;autosome translocation.

OBJECTIVE: To describe the clinical findings of a patient with a de novo unbalanced X;autosome translocation. DESIGN: Descriptive case study. SETTING: Mackay Memorial Hospital, National Yang-Ming University, China Medical University, China Medical University Hospital, and Chung Shan Medical University. PATIENT(S): A 33-year-old woman with primary ovarian failure, moderate mental retardation, and mild phenotype of facial dysmorphism. INTERVENTION(S): None. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE(S): Ultrasound, cytogenetic analysis, and laboratory studies of hormones. RESULT(S): Laboratory studies revealed the following values: FSH level 72.48 mIU/mL (normal women: <40 mIU/mL), LH level 32.87 mIU/mL (normal women: <21 mIU/mL), and E(2) level <20 pg/mL (normal women up to 375 pg/mL), confirming primary ovarian failure. The PRL level was normal. Spectral karyotyping and G-banding cytogenetic analysis revealed a derivative X chromosome containing additional chromosomal material derived from the distal long arm of chromosome 5. The derived chromosome X had break points at Xq27.3 and 5q32, resulting in monosomy Xq (Xq27.3-->qter) and partial trisomy 5q (5q32-->qter). The patient's karyotype was 46,X,der(X)t(X;5)(q27.3;q32). The parental karyotypes were normal. CONCLUSION(S): This is the first report of partial monosomy Xq (Xq27.3-->qter) and partial trisomy 5q (5q32-->qter). The present case provides evidence for the occurrence of primary ovarian failure and mental retardation in females with unbalanced X;autosome translocations.

Prenatal detection and characterization of a small supernumerary marker chromosome (sSMC) derived from chromosome 22 with apparently normal phenotype.

OBJECTIVE: To present prenatal findings and molecular cytogenetic characterization of a small supernumerary marker chromosome (sSMC) derived from chromosome 22 with apparently normal phenotype. CASE AND METHODS: An amniocentesis was performed at 15 weeks' gestation and a small marker chromosome in the female fetus of a twin pregnancy was noted. A second amniocentesis was performed at 18 weeks; G-banding analysis on amniotic cells confirmed the small marker chromosome found in the female fetus. Both parents and the male twin fetus had normal karyotypes. Spectral karyotyping (SKY), Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analyses with chromosomal specific whole chromosome painting probe (WCP 22) and alphoid satellite DNA probe (D22Z4) were used to identify the origin of the sSMC. The make-up of the sSMC was characterized by further FISH studies with chromosome region specific probes. The twin babies were delivered normally at 35 weeks' gestation. The female neonate with sSMC did not show any dysmorphic features, except for a type II atrial septum defect (ASD) at birth. She was found to be developing and growing normally at her 2-year follow-up. RESULTS: Conventional G-banding study confirmed the presence of a sSMC with bi-satellites. SKY and FISH with D22Z4 probes showed that the marker originated from chromosome 22. FISH studies using 4 locus-specific DNA probes in the 22q11.2 region (N25 probe to detect the D22S75 locus within the velocardiofacial syndrome/DiGeorge syndrome (VCFS/DGS) critical region, a clone to detect the Bid locus just distal to the cat eye syndrome (CES) critical region and two clones 77H2 and 109L3 to detect the proximal end of the CES critical region, (CECR2 and CECR7), did not reveal any hybridization signal with the marker chromosome. The karyotype of the fetus was 47,XX,+ mar. ish der(22) (SKY+,D22Z42 + ,CECR7-,CECR2-, BID-,D22S75-). CONCLUSION: The supernumerary marker chromosome in this case was a de novo inv dup(22)(q11.2) and contained a duplicated proximal long arm region < 400 kb from the centromere; it did not appear to affect the phenotype of the child.

Molecular cytogenetic analysis of de novo dup(5)(q35.2q35.3) and review of the literature of pure partial trisomy 5q.

An 11-year-old girl presented with the phenotype of microcephaly, moderate mental retardation, motor retardation, short stature, strabismus, brachydactyly, and facial dysmorphism. She had undergone surgery for inguinal hernias. Detailed examinations of the heart and other internal organs revealed normal findings. Her karyotype was 46,XX,dup(5)(q35.2q35.3) de novo. Molecular cytogenetic analysis showed a paternally derived 5q35.2 --> q35.3 direct duplication and led to a correlation between the particular genotype and phenotype. This is the first description of a direct duplication of 5q35.2 --> q35.3. Our case represents the smallest distal duplication of chromosome 5q that is not associated with congenital heart defects. Our case also represents the smallest distal duplication of chromosome 5q that is associated with short stature and microcephaly. Mutations or deletions of the NSD1 gene, mapped to 5q35.2 --> q35.3, has been known to cause Sotos syndrome with cerebral gigantism, macrocephaly, advanced bone age and overgrowth. Our case provides evidence that the gene dosage effect of the NSD1 gene causes a reversed phenotype of microcephaly and short stature.

Genomic alterations in human malignant glioma cells associate with the cell resistance to the combination treatment with tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand and chemotherapy.

PURPOSE: Tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) is currently under clinical development as a cancer therapeutic agent. Many human malignant glioma cells, however, are resistant to TRAIL treatment. We, therefore, investigated the genomic alterations in TRAIL-resistant malignant glioma cells. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN: Seven glioma cell lines and two primary cultures were first analyzed for their sensitivity to TRAIL and chemotherapy and then examined for the genomic alterations in key TRAIL apoptotic genes by comparative genomic hybridization (CGH), G-banding/spectral karyotyping, and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH). RESULTS: CGH detected loss of the chromosomal regions that contain the following genes: 8p12-p23 (DR4 and DR5), 2q33-34 (caspase-8), 11q13.3 (FADD), 22q11.2 (Bid), and 12q24.1-q24.3 (Smac/DIABLO) in TRAIL-resistant cell lines. Spectral karyotyping showed numerical and structural aberrations involving the chromosomal regions harboring these genes. A combination of G-banding/spectral karyotyping and FISH further defined the loss or gain of gene copy of these genes and further showed the simultaneous loss of one copy of DR4/DR5, caspase-8, Bid, and Smac in two near-triploid cell lines that were resistant to the combination treatment with TRAIL and chemotherapy. Loss of the caspase-8 locus was also detected in a primary culture in correlation with the culture resistance to the combined TRAIL and chemotherapy treatment. CONCLUSIONS: The study identifies chromosomal alterations in TRAIL apoptotic genes in the glioma cells that are resistant to the treatment with TRAIL and chemotherapy. These genetic alterations could be used to predict the responsiveness of malignant gliomas to TRAIL-based therapies in clinical treatment of the tumors.

Prenatal findings and molecular cytogenetic analyses of partial trisomy 12q (12q24.32-->qter) and partial monosomy 21q (21q22.2-->qter).

OBJECTIVES: To present the prenatal findings and molecular cytogenetic analyses of partial trisomy 12q and partial monosomy 21q, and a review of the literature. METHODS: Amniocentesis was performed at 23 gestational weeks in a 33-year-old woman because of abnormal sonographic findings. Amniocentesis revealed a derivative chromosome 21, or der(21), with a deletion on the region of 21q22.2 and an addendum of a small chromosomal segment of unknown origin. The maternal karyotype was subsequently found to be 46,XX,t(12;21)(q24.32;q22.2). Level II ultrasound showed microcephaly, micrognathia, a ventricular septal defect, and rocker-bottom feet. The pregnancy was terminated. A malformed infant was delivered without the phenotype of holoprosencephaly (HPE). Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) and polymorphic DNA markers were used to investigate the involved chromosomal segments. RESULTS: FISH study showed the absence of the signal of 21q subtelomeric probe and the presence of the signal of 12q subtelomeric probe in the der(21). The fetal karyotype was 46,XY,der(21) t(12;21)(q24.32;q22.2)mat. Genetic marker analysis showed a deletion at 21q22.2 and a breakpoint between D21S156 (present) and D21S1245 (absent). The deleted segment was measured about 4.5 Mb encompassing the HPE critical region. CONCLUSIONS: Molecular genetic analyses help in determining the prenatally detected unbalanced cryptic translocation as well as parental balanced subtle translocation. A duplication of 12q24.32-->qter and a deletion of 21q22.2-->qter may be associated with prenatal sonographic findings of microcephaly, borderline ventriculomegaly and cerebellar hypoplasia, micrognathia, a ventricular septal defect, and rocker-bottom feet. Haploinsufficiency of the HPE critical region at 21q22.3 may not cause an HPE phenotype.

Prenatal diagnosis of de novo t(2;18;14)(q33.1;q12.2;q31.2), dup(5)(q34q34), del(7)(p21.1p21.1), and del(10)(q25.3q25.3) and a review of the prenatally ascertained de novo apparently balanced complex and multiple chromosomal rearrangements.

OBJECTIVES: To present the prenatal diagnosis of a de novo complex chromosomal rearrangement (CCR) associated with de novo interstitial deletions and duplication and to review the literature. CASE AND METHODS: Amniocentesis was performed at 18 weeks' gestation because of an increased risk for Down syndrome based on maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein and human chorionic gonadotrophin screening. Amniocentesis revealed a karyotype of 46,XY,t(2;18;14)(q33.1;q12.2;q31.2),dup(5)(q34q34),del(7)(p21.1p21.1), del(10)(q25.3q25.3). The parental karyotypes were normal. The pregnancy was terminated. The fetus manifested facial dysmorphism, clinodactyly of both hands, and hypoplasia of the left great toe. Spectral karyotyping (SKY), cytogenetic polymorphism, and polymorphic DNA markers were used to investigate the imbalances and the origin of the de novo aberrant chromosomes. RESULTS: SKY showed a three-way CCR. Cytogenetic polymorphism investigation of the derivative chromosome 14 of the fetus and the parental chromosomes 14 determined the maternal origin of the translocation. Polymorphic DNA marker analysis confirmed the maternal origin of the de novo interstitial deletions and duplication. No cryptic imbalance at or near the breakpoints of the CCR was detected by the molecular analysis. CONCLUSIONS: De novo apparently balanced CCRs may be associated with imbalances in other chromosomes. We suggest further investigation and re-evaluation of cryptic or subtle imbalances in all cases classified as de novo apparently balanced CCRs.