Guidelines for genetic testing of inherited cardiac disorders.

Inherited gene variants have been implicated increasingly in cardiac disorders but the clinical impact of these discoveries has been variable. For some disorders, such as familial hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, long QT syndrome, and familial hypercholesterolaemia, genetic testing has a high yield and has become an integral part of family management. For other disorders, including dilated cardiomyopathy, arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy, Brugada syndrome, catecholaminergic polymorphic ventricular tachycardia, and atrial fibrillation, relatively less is known about the genes involved and genetic testing has a lower yield. Recent advances in sequencing and array-based technologies promise to change the landscape of our understanding of the genetic basis of human disease and will dramatically increase the rate of detection of genomic variants. Since every individual is expected to harbour thousands of variants, many of which may be novel, interpretation of the functional significance of any single variant is critical, and should be undertaken by experienced personnel. Genotype results can have a wide range of medical and psychosocial implications for affected and unaffected individuals and hence, genetic testing should be performed in a specialised cardiac genetic clinic or clinical genetics service where appropriate family management and genetic counselling can be offered.

Epistatic effects of potassium channel variation on cardiac repolarization and atrial fibrillation risk.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to evaluate the role of cardiac K(+) channel gene variants in families with atrial fibrillation (AF). BACKGROUND: The K(+) channels play a major role in atrial repolarization but single mutations in cardiac K(+) channel genes are infrequently present in AF families. The collective effect of background K(+) channel variants of varying prevalence and effect size on the atrial substrate for AF is largely unexplored. METHODS: Genes encoding the major cardiac K(+) channels were resequenced in 80 AF probands. Nonsynonymous coding sequence variants identified in AF probands were evaluated in 240 control subjects. Novel variants were characterized using patch-clamp techniques and in silico modeling was performed using the Courtemanche atrial cell model. RESULTS: Nineteen nonsynonymous variants in 9 genes were found, including 11 rare variants. Rare variants were more frequent in AF probands (18.8% vs. 4.2%, p < 0.001), and the mean number of variants was greater (0.21 vs. 0.04, p < 0.001). The majority of K(+) channel variants individually had modest functional effects. Modeling simulations to evaluate combinations of K(+) channel variants of varying population frequency indicated that simultaneous small perturbations of multiple current densities had nonlinear interactions and could result in substantial (>30 ms) shortening or lengthening of action potential duration as well as increased dispersion of repolarization. CONCLUSIONS: Families with AF show an excess of rare functional K(+) channel gene variants of varying phenotypic effect size that may contribute to an atrial arrhythmogenic substrate. Atrial cell modeling is a useful tool to assess epistatic interactions between multiple variants.

R222Q SCN5A mutation is associated with reversible ventricular ectopy and dilated cardiomyopathy.

OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to characterize a variant in the SCN5A gene that encodes the alpha-subunit of the cardiac sodium channel, Nav1.5, which was identified in 1 large kindred with dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) and multiple arrhythmias, including premature ventricular complexes (PVCs). BACKGROUND: Treatment guidelines for familial DCM are based on conventional heart failure therapies, and no gene-based interventions have been established. METHODS: Family members underwent clinical evaluation and screening of the SCN5A and LMNA genes. Cellular electrophysiology and computational modeling were used to determine the functional consequences of the mutant Nav1.5 protein. RESULTS: An R222Q missense variant located in a Nav1.5 voltage-sensing domain was identified in affected family members. Patch-clamp studies showed that R222Q Nav1.5 did not alter sodium channel current density, but did left shift steady-state parameters of activation and inactivation. Using a voltage ramp protocol, normalized current responses of R222Q channels were of earlier onset and greater magnitude than wild-type channels. Action potential modeling using Purkinje fiber and ventricular cell models suggested that rate-dependent ectopy of Purkinje fiber origin is the predominant ventricular effect of the R222Q variant and a potential cause of DCM. In R222Q carriers, there were only modest responses to heart failure therapies, but PVCs and DCM were substantially reduced by amiodarone or flecainide, which are drugs that have sodium channel-blocking properties. CONCLUSIONS: The R222Q SCN5A variant has an activating effect on sodium channel function and is associated with reversible ventricular ectopy and DCM. Elucidation of the genetic basis of familial DCM can enable effective gene-targeted therapy to be implemented.