A diagnosis of Birt-Hogg-Dubé syndrome in individuals with Smith-Magenis syndrome: Recommendation for cancer screening.

We report a series of four unrelated adults with Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS) and concomitant features of Birt-Hogg-Dubé (BHD) syndrome based upon haploinsufficiency for FLCN and characteristic renal cell carcinomas and/or evidence of cutaneous fibrofolliculomas. Three of the cases constitute the first known association of histopathologically verified characteristic BHD-associated renal tumors in adults with SMS; the fourth was identified to have histologically confirmed skin fibrofolliculomas. Molecular analysis documented second-hit FLCN mutations in two of the three cases with confirmed BHD renal pathology. These cases suggest the need to expand management recommendations for SMS to include kidney cancer surveillance starting at 20 years of age, as per the screening recommendations for BHD syndrome.

DNAJC30 defect: a frequent cause of recessive Leber hereditary optic neuropathy and Leigh syndrome.

The recent description of biallelic DNAJC30 variants in Leber hereditary optic neuropathy (LHON) and Leigh syndrome challenged the longstanding assumption for LHON to be exclusively maternally inherited and broadened the genetic spectrum of Leigh syndrome, the most frequent paediatric mitochondrial disease. Herein, we characterize 28 so far unreported individuals from 26 families carrying a homozygous DNAJC30 p.Tyr51Cys founder variant, 24 manifesting with LHON, two manifesting with Leigh syndrome, and two remaining asymptomatic. This collection of unreported variant carriers confirms sex-dependent incomplete penetrance of the homozygous variant given a significant male predominance of disease and the report of asymptomatic homozygous variant carriers. The autosomal recessive LHON patients demonstrate an earlier age of disease onset and a higher rate of idebenone-treated and spontaneous recovery of vision in comparison to reported figures for maternally inherited disease. Moreover, the report of two additional patients with childhood- or adult-onset Leigh syndrome further evidences the association of DNAJC30 with Leigh syndrome, previously only reported in a single childhood-onset case.

Biallelic variants in TMEM222 cause a new autosomal recessive neurodevelopmental disorder.

PURPOSE: To elucidate the novel molecular cause in families with a new autosomal recessive neurodevelopmental disorder. METHODS: A combination of exome sequencing and gene matching tools was used to identify pathogenic variants in 17 individuals. Quantitative reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) and subcellular localization studies were used to characterize gene expression profile and localization. RESULTS: Biallelic variants in the TMEM222 gene were identified in 17 individuals from nine unrelated families, presenting with intellectual disability and variable other features, such as aggressive behavior, shy character, body tremors, decreased muscle mass in the lower extremities, and mild hypotonia. We found relatively high TMEM222 expression levels in the human brain, especially in the parietal and occipital cortex. Additionally, subcellular localization analysis in human neurons derived from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) revealed that TMEM222 localizes to early endosomes in the synapses of mature iPSC-derived neurons. CONCLUSION: Our findings support a role for TMEM222 in brain development and function and adds variants in the gene TMEM222 as a novel underlying cause of an autosomal recessive neurodevelopmental disorder.

Int22h1/Int22h2-mediated Xq28 duplication syndrome: de novo duplications, prenatal diagnoses, and additional phenotypic features.

Int22h1/Int22h2-mediated Xq28 duplication syndrome is a relatively new X-linked intellectual disability syndrome, arising from duplications of the subregion flanked by intron 22 homologous regions 1 and 2 on the q arm of chromosome X. Its primary manifestations include variable cognitive deficits, distinct facial dysmorphia, and neurobehavioral abnormalities that mainly include hyperactivity, irritability, and autistic behavior. Affected males are hemizygous for the duplication, which explains their often more severe manifestations compared with heterozygous females. In this report, we describe the cases of nine individuals recently identified having the syndrome, highlighting unique and previously unreported findings of this syndrome. Specifically, we report for the first time in this syndrome, two cases with de novo duplications, three receiving prenatal diagnosis with the syndrome, and three others having atypical versions of the duplication. Among the latter, one proband has a shortened version spanning only the centromeric half of the typical duplication, while the other two cases have a nearly identical length duplication as the classical duplication, with the exception that their duplication's breakpoints are telomerically shifted by about 0.2 Mb. Finally, we shed light on two new manifestations in this syndrome, vertebral anomalies and multiple malignancies, which possibly expand the phenotypic spectrum of the syndrome.

Natural history and genotype-phenotype correlations in 72 individuals with SATB2-associated syndrome.

SATB2-associated syndrome (SAS) is an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by significant neurodevelopmental disabilities with limited to absent speech, behavioral issues, and craniofacial anomalies. Previous studies have largely been restricted to case reports and small series without in-depth phenotypic characterization or genotype-phenotype correlations. Seventy two study participants were identified as part of the SAS clinical registry. Individuals with a molecularly confirmed diagnosis of SAS were referred after clinical diagnostic testing. In this series we present the most comprehensive phenotypic and genotypic characterization of SAS to date, including prevalence of each clinical feature, neurodevelopmental milestones, and when available, patient management. We confirm that the most distinctive features are neurodevelopmental delay with invariably severely limited speech, abnormalities of the palate (cleft or high-arched), dental anomalies (crowding, macrodontia, abnormal shape), and behavioral issues with or without bone or brain anomalies. This comprehensive clinical characterization will help clinicians with the diagnosis, counseling and management of SAS and help provide families with anticipatory guidance.

Prospective Evaluation of Kidney Disease in Joubert Syndrome.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Joubert syndrome is a genetically heterogeneous ciliopathy associated with >30 genes. The characteristics of kidney disease and genotype-phenotype correlations have not been evaluated in a large cohort at a single center. DESIGN, SETTING, PARTICIPANTS, & MEASUREMENTS: We evaluated 97 individuals with Joubert syndrome at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center using abdominal ultrasonography, blood and urine chemistries, and DNA sequencing. RESULTS: Patients were ages 0.6-36 years old (mean of 9.0±7.6 years old); 41 were female. Mutations were identified in 19 genes in 92 patients; two thirds of the mutations resided in six genes: TMEM67, C5orf42, CC2D2A, CEP290, AHI1, and KIAA0586. Kidney disease was detected in 30%, most commonly in association with the following genes: CEP290 (six of six), TMEM67 (11 of 22), and AHI1 (three of six). No kidney disease was identified in patients with mutations in C5orf42 (zero of 15) or KIAA0586 (zero of six). Prenatal ultrasonography of kidneys was normal in 72% of patients with kidney disease. Specific types of kidney disease included nephronophthisis (31%), an overlap phenotype of autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease/nephronophthisis (35%), unilateral multicystic dysplastic kidney (10%), and indeterminate-type cystic kidney disease (24%). Early-onset hypertension occurred in 24% of patients with kidney disease. Age at ESRD (n=13) ranged from 6 to 24 years old (mean of 11.3±4.8 years old). CONCLUSIONS: Kidney disease occurs in up to one third of patients with Joubert syndrome, most commonly in those with mutations in CEP290, TMEM67, and AHI1. Patients with mutations in C5orf42 or KIAA0586 are less likely to develop kidney disease. Prenatal ultrasonography is a poor predictor of kidney involvement in Joubert syndrome. Unilateral multicystic dysplastic kidney and autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease-like enlarged kidneys with early-onset hypertension can be part of the Joubert syndrome kidney phenotype.