A common variant near TGFBR3 is associated with primary open angle glaucoma.

Primary open angle glaucoma (POAG), a major cause of blindness worldwide, is a complex disease with a significant genetic contribution. We performed Exome Array (Illumina) analysis on 3504 POAG cases and 9746 controls with replication of the most significant findings in 9173 POAG cases and 26 780 controls across 18 collections of Asian, African and European descent. Apart from confirming strong evidence of association at CDKN2B-AS1 (rs2157719 [G], odds ratio [OR] = 0.71, P = 2.81 × 10(-33)), we observed one SNP showing significant association to POAG (CDC7-TGFBR3 rs1192415, ORG-allele = 1.13, Pmeta = 1.60 × 10(-8)). This particular SNP has previously been shown to be strongly associated with optic disc area and vertical cup-to-disc ratio, which are regarded as glaucoma-related quantitative traits. Our study now extends this by directly implicating it in POAG disease pathogenesis.

A novel PAX6 gene mutation in an Indian aniridia patient.

PURPOSE: A mutation in the PAX6 gene is thought to be the genetic cause of aniridia. Here we search for PAX6 gene mutations in Indian aniridia patients. METHODS: We amplified the coding exons of the PAX6 gene from the genomic DNA of 15 unrelated aniridia patients using polymerase chain reaction technology. We then performed single-strand conformation polymorphism analysis and heteroduplex analysis to search for sequence variants. RESULTS: Sequencing of shifted bands in two patients revealed PAX6 gene mutations. One of these was a novel mutation, 1180insA, located in exon 10 at the start of the PST domain. The other mutation, 1080C->T (R240X), located in exon 9 within the homeodomain, and is another example of the most commonly reported PAX6 mutation. CONCLUSIONS: Although PAX6 gene mutations and polymorphisms have been reported from various ethnic groups, we report for the first time the identification of PAX6 gene mutations in Indian aniridia patients.