@article {907, title = {Mutations of the Transcriptional Corepressor ZMYM2 Cause Syndromic Urinary Tract Malformations.}, journal = {Am J Hum Genet}, volume = {107}, year = {2020}, month = {2020 10 01}, pages = {727-742}, abstract = {

Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT) constitute one of the most frequent birth defects and represent the most common cause of chronic kidney disease in the first three decades of life. Despite the discovery of dozens of monogenic causes of CAKUT, most pathogenic pathways remain elusive. We performed whole-exome sequencing (WES) in 551 individuals with CAKUT and identified a heterozygous de novo stop-gain variant in ZMYM2 in two different families with CAKUT. Through collaboration, we identified in total 14 different heterozygous loss-of-function mutations in ZMYM2 in 15 unrelated families. Most mutations occurred de novo, indicating possible interference with reproductive function. Human disease features are replicated in X.~tropicalis larvae with morpholino knockdowns, in which expression of truncated ZMYM2 proteins, based on individual mutations, failed to rescue renal and craniofacial defects. Moreover, heterozygous Zmym2-deficient mice recapitulated features of CAKUT with high penetrance. The ZMYM2 protein is a component of a transcriptional corepressor complex recently linked to the silencing of developmentally regulated endogenous retrovirus elements. Using protein-protein interaction assays, we show that ZMYM2 interacts with additional epigenetic silencing complexes, as well as confirming that it binds to FOXP1, a transcription factor that has also been linked to CAKUT. In summary, our findings establish that loss-of-function mutations of ZMYM2, and potentially that of other proteins in its interactome, as causes of human CAKUT, offering new routes for studying the pathogenesis of the disorder.

}, keywords = {Amphibian Proteins, Animals, Case-Control Studies, Child, Child, Preschool, DNA-Binding Proteins, Epigenesis, Genetic, Family, Female, Forkhead Transcription Factors, Heterozygote, Humans, Infant, Larva, Male, Mice, Mice, Knockout, Morpholinos, Mutation, Pedigree, Protein Binding, Repressor Proteins, Transcription Factors, Urinary Tract, Urogenital Abnormalities, Whole Exome Sequencing, Xenopus}, issn = {1537-6605}, doi = {10.1016/j.ajhg.2020.08.013}, author = {Connaughton, Dervla M and Dai, Rufeng and Owen, Danielle J and Marquez, Jonathan and Mann, Nina and GrAHm-Paquin, Adda L and Nakayama, Makiko and Coyaud, Etienne and Laurent, Estelle M N and St-Germain, Jonathan R and Blok, Lot Snijders and Vino, Arianna and Kl{\"a}mbt, Verena and Deutsch, Konstantin and Wu, Chen-Han Wilfred and Kolvenbach, Caroline M and Kause, Franziska and Ottlewski, Isabel and Schneider, Ronen and Kitzler, Thomas M and Majmundar, Amar J and Buerger, Florian and Onuchic-Whitford, Ana C and Youying, Mao and Kolb, Amy and Salmanullah, Daanya and Chen, Evan and van der Ven, Amelie T and Rao, Jia and Ityel, Hadas and Seltzsam, Steve and Rieke, Johanna M and Chen, Jing and Vivante, Asaf and Hwang, Daw-Yang and Kohl, Stefan and Dworschak, Gabriel C and Hermle, Tobias and Alders, Marielle and Bartolomaeus, Tobias and Bauer, Stuart B and Baum, Michelle A and Brilstra, Eva H and Challman, Thomas D and Zyskind, Jacob and Costin, Carrie E and Dipple, Katrina M and Duijkers, Floor A and Ferguson, Marcia and FitzPatrick, David R and Fick, Roger and Glass, Ian A and Hulick, Peter J and Kline, Antonie D and Krey, Ilona and Kumar, Selvin and Lu, Weining and Marco, Elysa J and Wentzensen, Ingrid M and Mefford, Heather C and Platzer, Konrad and Povolotskaya, Inna S and Savatt, Juliann M and Shcherbakova, Natalia V and Senguttuvan, Prabha and Squire, Audrey E and Stein, Deborah R and Thiffault, Isabelle and Voinova, Victoria Y and Somers, Michael J G and Ferguson, Michael A and Traum, Avram Z and Daouk, Ghaleb H and Daga, Ankana and Rodig, Nancy M and Terhal, Paulien A and van Binsbergen, Ellen and Eid, Loai A and Tasic, Velibor and Rasouly, Hila Milo and Lim, Tze Y and Ahram, Dina F and Gharavi, Ali G and Reutter, Heiko M and Rehm, Heidi L and MacArthur, Daniel G and Lek, Monkol and Laricchia, Kristen M and Lifton, Richard P and Xu, Hong and Mane, Shrikant M and Sanna-Cherchi, Simone and Sharrocks, Andrew D and Raught, Brian and Fisher, Simon E and Bouchard, Maxime and Khokha, Mustafa K and Shril, Shirlee and Hildebrandt, Friedhelm} } @article {545, title = {A homozygous missense variant in VWA2, encoding an interactor of the Fraser-complex, in a patient with vesicoureteral reflux.}, journal = {PLoS One}, volume = {13}, year = {2018}, month = {2018}, pages = {e0191224}, abstract = {

Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT) are the most common cause (40-50\%) of chronic kidney disease (CKD) in children. About 40 monogenic causes of CAKUT have so far been discovered. To date less than 20\% of CAKUT cases can be explained by mutations in these 40 genes. To identify additional monogenic causes of CAKUT, we performed whole exome sequencing (WES) and homozygosity mapping (HM) in a patient with CAKUT from Indian origin and consanguineous descent. We identified a homozygous missense mutation (c.1336C>T, p.Arg446Cys) in the gene Von Willebrand factor A domain containing 2 (VWA2). With immunohistochemistry studies on kidneys of newborn (P1) mice, we show that Vwa2 and Fraser extracellular matrix complex subunit 1 (Fras1) co-localize in the nephrogenic zone of the renal cortex. We identified a pronounced expression of Vwa2 in the basement membrane of the ureteric bud (UB) and derivatives of the metanephric mesenchyme (MM). By applying in vitro assays, we demonstrate that the Arg446Cys mutation decreases translocation of monomeric VWA2 protein and increases translocation of aggregated VWA2 protein into the extracellular space. This is potentially due to the additional, unpaired cysteine residue in the mutated protein that is used for intermolecular disulfide bond formation. VWA2 is a known, direct interactor of FRAS1 of the Fraser-Complex (FC). FC-encoding genes and interacting proteins have previously been implicated in the pathogenesis of syndromic and/or isolated CAKUT phenotypes in humans. VWA2 therefore constitutes a very strong candidate in the search for novel CAKUT-causing genes. Our results from in vitro experiments indicate a dose-dependent neomorphic effect of the Arg446Cys homozygous mutation in VWA2.

}, keywords = {Amino Acid Sequence, Amino Acid Substitution, Animals, Animals, Newborn, Biomarkers, Tumor, Child, Consanguinity, Conserved Sequence, Exons, Extracellular Matrix Proteins, Fraser Syndrome, Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental, Homozygote, Humans, Male, Mice, Models, Animal, Models, Molecular, Mutation, Missense, Pedigree, Sequence Homology, Amino Acid, Urogenital Abnormalities, Urogenital System, Vesico-Ureteral Reflux}, issn = {1932-6203}, doi = {10.1371/journal.pone.0191224}, author = {van der Ven, Amelie T and Kobbe, Birgit and Kohl, Stefan and Shril, Shirlee and Pogoda, Hans-Martin and Imhof, Thomas and Ityel, Hadas and Vivante, Asaf and Chen, Jing and Hwang, Daw-Yang and Connaughton, Dervla M and Mann, Nina and Widmeier, Eugen and Taglienti, Mary and Schmidt, Johanna Magdalena and Nakayama, Makiko and Senguttuvan, Prabha and Kumar, Selvin and Tasic, Velibor and Kehinde, Elijah O and Mane, Shrikant M and Lifton, Richard P and Soliman, Neveen and Lu, Weining and Bauer, Stuart B and Hammerschmidt, Matthias and Wagener, Raimund and Hildebrandt, Friedhelm} } @article {441, title = {Whole exome sequencing frequently detects a monogenic cause in early onset nephrolithiasis and~nephrocalcinosis.}, journal = {Kidney Int}, volume = {93}, year = {2018}, month = {2018 01}, pages = {204-213}, abstract = {

The incidence of nephrolithiasis continues to rise. Previously, we showed that a monogenic cause could be detected in 11.4\% of individuals with adult-onset nephrolithiasis or nephrocalcinosis and in 16.7-20.8\% of individuals with onset before 18 years of age, using gene panel sequencing of 30 genes known to cause nephrolithiasis/nephrocalcinosis. To overcome the limitations of panel sequencing, we utilized whole exome sequencing in 51 families, who presented before age 25 years with at least one renal stone or with a renal ultrasound finding of nephrocalcinosis to identify the underlying molecular genetic cause of disease. In 15 of 51 families, we detected a monogenic causative mutation by whole exome sequencing. A mutation in seven recessive genes (AGXT, ATP6V1B1, CLDN16, CLDN19, GRHPR, SLC3A1, SLC12A1), in one dominant gene (SLC9A3R1), and in one gene (SLC34A1) with both recessive and dominant inheritance was detected. Seven of the 19 different mutations were not previously described as disease-causing. In one family, a causative mutation in one of 117 genes that may represent phenocopies of nephrolithiasis-causing genes was detected. In nine of 15 families, the genetic diagnosis may have specific implications for stone management and prevention. Several factors that correlated with the higher detection rate in our cohort were younger age at onset of nephrolithiasis/nephrocalcinosis, presence of multiple affected members in a family, and presence of consanguinity. Thus, we established whole exome sequencing as an efficient approach toward a molecular genetic diagnosis in individuals with nephrolithiasis/nephrocalcinosis who manifest before age 25 years.

}, keywords = {Adolescent, Age of Onset, Child, Child, Preschool, Disease Progression, Female, Genetic Association Studies, Genetic Markers, Genetic Predisposition to Disease, Heredity, Humans, Infant, Male, Mutation, Nephrocalcinosis, Nephrolithiasis, Pedigree, Phenotype, Predictive Value of Tests, Prognosis, Risk Factors, Tomography, X-Ray Computed, Ultrasonography, Whole Exome Sequencing, Young Adult}, issn = {1523-1755}, doi = {10.1016/j.kint.2017.06.025}, author = {Daga, Ankana and Majmundar, Amar J and Braun, Daniela A and Gee, Heon Yung and Lawson, Jennifer A and Shril, Shirlee and Jobst-Schwan, Tilman and Vivante, Asaf and Schapiro, David and Tan, Weizhen and Warejko, Jillian K and Widmeier, Eugen and Nelson, Caleb P and Fathy, Hanan M and Gucev, Zoran and Soliman, Neveen A and Hashmi, Seema and Halbritter, Jan and Halty, Margarita and Kari, Jameela A and El-Desoky, Sherif and Ferguson, Michael A and Somers, Michael J G and Traum, Avram Z and Stein, Deborah R and Daouk, Ghaleb H and Rodig, Nancy M and Katz, Avi and Hanna, Christian and Schwaderer, Andrew L and Sayer, John A and Wassner, Ari J and Mane, Shrikant and Lifton, Richard P and Milosevic, Danko and Tasic, Velibor and Baum, Michelle A and Hildebrandt, Friedhelm} } @article {497, title = {Whole Exome Sequencing Reveals a Monogenic Cause of Disease in ≈43\% of 35 Families With Midaortic Syndrome.}, journal = {Hypertension}, volume = {71}, year = {2018}, month = {2018 04}, pages = {691-699}, abstract = {

Midaortic syndrome (MAS) is a rare cause of severe childhood hypertension characterized by narrowing of the abdominal aorta in children and is associated with extensive vascular disease. It may occur as part of a genetic syndrome, such as neurofibromatosis, or as consequence of a pathological inflammatory disease. However, most cases are considered idiopathic. We hypothesized that in a high percentage of these patients, a monogenic cause of disease may be detected by evaluating whole exome sequencing data for mutations in 1 of 38 candidate genes previously described to cause vasculopathy. We studied a cohort of 36 individuals from 35 different families with MAS by exome sequencing. In 15 of 35 families (42.9\%), we detected likely causal dominant mutations. In 15 of 35 (42.9\%) families with MAS, whole exome sequencing revealed a mutation in one of the genes previously associated with vascular disease (, , , , and ). Ten of the 15 mutations have not previously been reported. This is the first report of , , or mutations in individuals with MAS. Mutations were detected in (6/15 families), (4/15 families), (3/15 families), and one family each for and Eight individuals had syndromic disease and 7 individuals had isolated MAS. Whole exome sequencing can provide conclusive molecular genetic diagnosis in a high fraction of individuals with syndromic or isolated MAS. Establishing an etiologic diagnosis may reveal genotype/phenotype correlations for MAS in the future and should, therefore, be performed routinely in MAS.

}, keywords = {Adolescent, Aorta, Abdominal, Aortic Valve Stenosis, Child, Child, Preschool, Cohort Studies, Female, Genetic Association Studies, Humans, Hypertension, Jagged-1 Protein, Male, Mutation, Neurofibromatoses, Neurofibromin 1, Pedigree, Syndrome, United States, Whole Exome Sequencing}, issn = {1524-4563}, doi = {10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.117.10296}, author = {Warejko, Jillian K and Schueler, Markus and Vivante, Asaf and Tan, Weizhen and Daga, Ankana and Lawson, Jennifer A and Braun, Daniela A and Shril, Shirlee and Amann, Kassaundra and Somers, Michael J G and Rodig, Nancy M and Baum, Michelle A and Daouk, Ghaleb and Traum, Avram Z and Kim, Heung Bae and Vakili, Khashayar and Porras, Diego and Lock, James and Rivkin, Michael J and Chaudry, Gulraiz and Smoot, Leslie B and Singh, Michael N and Smith, Edward R and Mane, Shrikant M and Lifton, Richard P and Stein, Deborah R and Ferguson, Michael A and Hildebrandt, Friedhelm} } @article {138, title = {Mutations in TBX18 Cause Dominant Urinary Tract Malformations via Transcriptional Dysregulation of Ureter Development.}, journal = {Am J Hum Genet}, volume = {97}, year = {2015}, month = {2015 Aug 06}, pages = {291-301}, abstract = {

Congenital anomalies of the kidneys and urinary tract (CAKUT) are the most common cause of chronic kidney disease in the first three decades of life. Identification of single-gene mutations that cause CAKUT permits the first insights into related disease mechanisms. However, for most cases the underlying defect remains elusive. We identified a kindred with an autosomal-dominant form of CAKUT with predominant ureteropelvic junction obstruction. By whole exome sequencing, we identified a heterozygous truncating mutation (c.1010delG) of T-Box transcription factor 18 (TBX18) in seven affected members of the large kindred. A screen of additional families with CAKUT identified three families harboring two heterozygous TBX18 mutations (c.1570C>T and c.487A>G). TBX18 is essential for developmental specification of the ureteric mesenchyme and ureteric smooth muscle cells. We found that all three TBX18 altered proteins still dimerized with the wild-type protein but had prolonged protein half life and exhibited reduced transcriptional repression activity compared to wild-type TBX18. The p.Lys163Glu substitution altered an amino acid residue critical for TBX18-DNA interaction, resulting in impaired TBX18-DNA binding. These data indicate that dominant-negative TBX18 mutations cause human CAKUT by interference with TBX18 transcriptional repression, thus implicating ureter smooth muscle cell development in the pathogenesis of human CAKUT.

}, keywords = {Base Sequence, Electrophoretic Mobility Shift Assay, Exome, Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental, Genes, Dominant, HEK293 Cells, Humans, Immunohistochemistry, Immunoprecipitation, Microscopy, Fluorescence, Molecular Sequence Data, Muscle, Smooth, Mutation, Pedigree, Sequence Analysis, DNA, T-Box Domain Proteins, Ureter, Urinary Tract}, issn = {1537-6605}, doi = {10.1016/j.ajhg.2015.07.001}, author = {Vivante, Asaf and Kleppa, Marc-Jens and Schulz, Julian and Kohl, Stefan and Sharma, Amita and Chen, Jing and Shril, Shirlee and Hwang, Daw-Yang and Weiss, Anna-Carina and Kaminski, Michael M and Shukrun, Rachel and Kemper, Markus J and Lehnhardt, Anja and Beetz, Rolf and Sanna-Cherchi, Simone and Verbitsky, Miguel and Gharavi, Ali G and Stuart, Helen M and Feather, Sally A and Goodship, Judith A and Goodship, Timothy H J and Woolf, Adrian S and Westra, Sjirk J and Doody, Daniel P and Bauer, Stuart B and Lee, Richard S and Adam, Rosalyn M and Lu, Weining and Reutter, Heiko M and Kehinde, Elijah O and Mancini, Erika J and Lifton, Richard P and Tasic, Velibor and Lienkamp, Soeren S and J{\"u}ppner, Harald and Kispert, Andreas and Hildebrandt, Friedhelm} }