@article {923, title = {Alternative genomic diagnoses for individuals with a clinical diagnosis of Dubowitz syndrome.}, journal = {Am J Med Genet A}, volume = {185}, year = {2021}, month = {2021 01}, pages = {119-133}, abstract = {

Dubowitz syndrome (DubS) is considered a recognizable syndrome characterized by a distinctive facial appearance and deficits in growth and development. There have been over 200 individuals reported with Dubowitz or a "Dubowitz-like" condition, although no single gene has been implicated as responsible for its cause. We have performed exome (ES) or genome sequencing (GS) for 31 individuals clinically diagnosed with DubS. After genome-wide sequencing, rare variant filtering and computational and Mendelian genomic analyses, a presumptive molecular diagnosis was made in 13/27 (48\%) families. The molecular diagnoses included biallelic variants in SKIV2L, SLC35C1, BRCA1, NSUN2; de novo variants in ARID1B, ARID1A, CREBBP, POGZ, TAF1, HDAC8, and copy-number variation at1p36.11(ARID1A), 8q22.2(VPS13B), Xp22, and Xq13(HDAC8). Variants of unknown significance in known disease genes, and also in genes of uncertain significance, were observed in 7/27 (26\%) additional families. Only one gene, HDAC8, could explain the phenotype in more than one family (N = 2). All but two of the genomic diagnoses were for genes discovered, or for conditions recognized, since the introduction of next-generation sequencing. Overall, the DubS-like clinical phenotype is associated with extensive locus heterogeneity and the molecular diagnoses made are for emerging clinical conditions sharing characteristic features that overlap the DubS phenotype.

}, issn = {1552-4833}, doi = {10.1002/ajmg.a.61926}, author = {Dyment, David A and O{\textquoteright}Donnell-Luria, Anne and Agrawal, Pankaj B and Coban Akdemir, Zeynep and Aleck, Kyrieckos A and Antaki, Danny and Al Sharhan, Hind and Au, Ping-Yee B and Aydin, Hatip and Beggs, Alan H and Bilguvar, Kaya and Boerwinkle, Eric and Brand, Harrison and Brownstein, Catherine A and Buyske, Steve and Chodirker, Bernard and Choi, Jungmin and Chudley, Albert E and Clericuzio, Carol L and Cox, Gerald F and Curry, Cynthia and de Boer, Elke and de Vries, Bert B A and Dunn, Kathryn and Dutmer, Cullen M and England, Eleina M and Fahrner, Jill A and Geckinli, Bilgen B and Genetti, Casie A and Gezdirici, Alper and Gibson, William T and Gleeson, Joseph G and Greenberg, Cheryl R and Hall, April and Hamosh, Ada and Hartley, Taila and Jhangiani, Shalini N and Karaca, Ender and Kernohan, Kristin and Lauzon, Julie L and Lewis, M E Suzanne and Lowry, R Brian and L{\'o}pez-Gir{\'a}ldez, Francesc and Matise, Tara C and McEvoy-Venneri, Jennifer and McInnes, Brenda and Mhanni, Aziz and Garcia Minaur, Sixto and Moilanen, Jukka and Nguyen, An and Nowaczyk, Malgorzata J M and Posey, Jennifer E and {\~O}unap, Katrin and Pehlivan, Davut and Pajusalu, Sander and Penney, Lynette S and Poterba, Timothy and Prontera, Paolo and Doriqui, Maria Juliana Rodovalho and Sawyer, Sarah L and Sobreira, Nara and Stanley, Valentina and Torun, Deniz and Wargowski, David and Witmer, P Dane and Wong, Isaac and Xing, Jinchuan and Zaki, MAH S and Zhang, Yeting and Boycott, Kym M and Bamshad, Michael J and Nickerson, Deborah A and Blue, Elizabeth E and Innes, A Micheil} } @article {737, title = {ASC-1 Is a Cell Cycle Regulator Associated with Severe and Mild Forms of Myopathy.}, journal = {Ann Neurol}, volume = {87}, year = {2020}, month = {2020 02}, pages = {217-232}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: Recently, the ASC-1 complex has been identified as a mechanistic link between amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA), and 3 mutations of the ASC-1 gene TRIP4 have been associated with SMA or congenital myopathy. Our goal was to define ASC-1 neuromuscular function and the phenotypical spectrum associated with TRIP4 mutations.

METHODS: Clinical, molecular, histological, and magnetic resonance imaging studies were made in 5 families with 7 novel TRIP4 mutations. Fluorescence activated cell sorting and Western blot were performed in patient-derived fibroblasts and muscles and in Trip4 knocked-down C2C12 cells.

RESULTS: All mutations caused ASC-1 protein depletion. The clinical phenotype was purely myopathic, ranging from lethal neonatal to mild ambulatory adult patients. It included early onset axial and proximal weakness, scoliosis, rigid spine, dysmorphic facies, cutaneous involvement, respiratory failure, and in the older cases, dilated cardiomyopathy. Muscle biopsies showed multiminicores, nemaline rods, cytoplasmic bodies, caps, central nuclei, rimmed fibers, and/or mild endomysial fibrosis. ASC-1 depletion in C2C12 and in patient-derived fibroblasts and muscles caused accelerated proliferation, altered expression of cell cycle proteins, and/or shortening of the G0/G1 cell cycle phase leading to cell size reduction.

INTERPRETATION: Our results expand the phenotypical and molecular spectrum of TRIP4-associated disease to include mild adult forms with or without cardiomyopathy, associate ASC-1 depletion with isolated primary muscle involvement, and establish TRIP4 as a causative gene for several congenital muscle diseases, including nemaline, core, centronuclear, and cytoplasmic-body myopathies. They also identify ASC-1 as a novel cell cycle regulator with a key role in cell proliferation, and underline transcriptional coregulation defects as a novel pathophysiological mechanism. ANN NEUROL 2020;87:217-232.

}, keywords = {Adult, Amino Acid Transport System y+, Cell Cycle, Cells, Cultured, Child, Child, Preschool, Female, Fibroblasts, Humans, Infant, Male, Middle Aged, Muscle Proteins, Muscle, Skeletal, Muscular Diseases, Mutation, Pedigree, Phenotype, Transcription Factors}, issn = {1531-8249}, doi = {10.1002/ana.25660}, author = {Villar-Quiles, Roc{\'\i}o N and Catervi, Fabio and Cabet, Eva and Juntas-Morales, Raul and Genetti, Casie A and Gidaro, Teresa and Koparir, Asuman and Yuksel, Adnan and Coppens, Sandra and Deconinck, Nicolas and Pierce-Hoffman, Emma and Lornage, Xavi{\`e}re and Durigneux, Julien and Laporte, Jocelyn and Rendu, John and Romero, Norma B and Beggs, Alan H and Servais, Laurent and Coss{\'e}e, Mireille and Oliv{\'e}, Montse and B{\"o}hm, Johann and Duband-Goulet, Isabelle and Ferreiro, Ana} } @article {827, title = {Congenital Heart Defects Due to Missense Variants.}, journal = {Circ Genom Precis Med}, volume = {13}, year = {2020}, month = {2020 06}, pages = {e002843}, issn = {2574-8300}, doi = {10.1161/CIRCGEN.119.002843}, author = {Morton, Sarah U and Agarwal, Radhika and Madden, Jill A and Genetti, Casie A and Brownstein, Catherine A and L{\'o}pez-Gir{\'a}ldez, Francesc and Choi, Jungmin and Seidman, Christine E and Seidman, Jonathan G and Lyon, Gholson J and Agrawal, Pankaj B} } @article {780, title = {De novo EIF2AK1 and EIF2AK2 Variants Are Associated with Developmental Delay, Leukoencephalopathy, and Neurologic Decompensation.}, journal = {Am J Hum Genet}, volume = {106}, year = {2020}, month = {2020 04 02}, pages = {570-583}, abstract = {

EIF2AK1 and EIF2AK2 encode members of the eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 alpha kinase (EIF2AK) family that inhibits protein synthesis in response to physiologic stress conditions. EIF2AK2 is also involved in innate immune response and the regulation of signal transduction, apoptosis, cell proliferation, and differentiation. Despite these findings, human disorders associated with deleterious variants in EIF2AK1 and EIF2AK2 have not been reported. Here, we describe the identification of nine unrelated individuals with heterozygous de novo missense variants in EIF2AK1 (1/9) or EIF2AK2 (8/9). Features seen in these nine individuals include white matter alterations (9/9), developmental delay (9/9), impaired language (9/9), cognitive impairment (8/9), ataxia (6/9), dysarthria in probands with verbal ability (6/9), hypotonia (7/9), hypertonia (6/9), and involuntary movements (3/9). Individuals with EIF2AK2 variants also exhibit neurological regression in the setting of febrile illness or infection. We use mammalian cell lines and proband-derived fibroblasts to further confirm the pathogenicity of variants in these genes and found reduced kinase activity. EIF2AKs phosphorylate eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2 subunit 1 (EIF2S1, also known as EIF2α), which then inhibits EIF2B activity. Deleterious variants in genes encoding EIF2B proteins cause childhood ataxia with central nervous system hypomyelination/vanishing white matter (CACH/VWM), a leukodystrophy characterized by neurologic regression in the setting of febrile illness and other stressors. Our findings indicate that EIF2AK2 missense variants cause a neurodevelopmental syndrome that may share phenotypic and pathogenic mechanisms with CACH/VWM.

}, keywords = {Adolescent, Ataxia, Child, Child, Preschool, Developmental Disabilities, eIF-2 Kinase, Female, Genetic Variation, Hereditary Central Nervous System Demyelinating Diseases, Humans, Infant, Leukoencephalopathies, Male, Nervous System Malformations, White Matter}, issn = {1537-6605}, doi = {10.1016/j.ajhg.2020.02.016}, author = {Mao, Dongxue and Reuter, Chloe M and Ruzhnikov, Maura R Z and Beck, Anita E and Farrow, Emily G and Emrick, Lisa T and Rosenfeld, Jill A and Mackenzie, Katherine M and Robak, Laurie and Wheeler, Matthew T and Burrage, Lindsay C and Jain, Mahim and Liu, Pengfei and Calame, Daniel and K{\"u}ry, S{\'e}bastien and Sillesen, Martin and Schmitz-Abe, Klaus and Tonduti, Davide and Spaccini, Luigina and Iascone, Maria and Genetti, Casie A and Koenig, Mary K and Graf, Madeline and Tran, Alyssa and Alejandro, Mercedes and Lee, Brendan H and Thiffault, Isabelle and Agrawal, Pankaj B and Bernstein, Jonathan A and Bellen, Hugo J and Chao, Hsiao-Tuan} } @article {732, title = {The Genetic Landscape of Diamond-Blackfan Anemia.}, journal = {Am J Hum Genet}, volume = {104}, year = {2019}, month = {2019 Feb 07}, pages = {356}, issn = {1537-6605}, doi = {10.1016/j.ajhg.2018.12.011}, author = {Ulirsch, Jacob C and Verboon, Jeffrey M and Kazerounian, Shideh and Guo, Michael H and Yuan, Daniel and Ludwig, Leif S and Handsaker, Robert E and Abdulhay, Nour J and Fiorini, Claudia and Genovese, Giulio and Lim, Elaine T and Cheng, Aaron and Cummings, Beryl B and Chao, Katherine R and Beggs, Alan H and Genetti, Casie A and Sieff, Colin A and Newburger, Peter E and Niewiadomska, Edyta and Matysiak, Michal and Vlachos, Adrianna and Lipton, Jeffrey M and Atsidaftos, Eva and Glader, Bertil and Narla, Anupama and Gleizes, Pierre-Emmanuel and O{\textquoteright}Donohue, Marie-Fran{\c c}oise and Montel-Lehry, Nathalie and Amor, David J and McCarroll, Steven A and O{\textquoteright}Donnell-Luria, Anne H and Gupta, Namrata and Gabriel, Stacey B and MacArthur, Daniel G and Lander, Eric S and Lek, Monkol and Da Costa, Lydie and Nathan, David G and Korostelev, Andrei A and Do, Ron and Sankaran, Vijay G and Gazda, Hanna T} } @article {694, title = {Infant mortality: the contribution of genetic disorders.}, journal = {J Perinatol}, volume = {39}, year = {2019}, month = {2019 Dec}, pages = {1611-1619}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: To determine the proportion of infant deaths occurring in the setting of a confirmed genetic disorder.

STUDY DESIGN: A retrospective analysis of the electronic medical records of infants born from 1 January, 2011 to 1 June, 2017, who died prior to 1 year of age.

RESULTS: Five hundred and seventy three deceased infants were identified. One hundred and seventeen were confirmed to have a molecular or cytogenetic diagnosis in a clinical diagnostic laboratory and an additional seven were diagnosed by research testing for a total of 124/573 (22\%) diagnosed infants. A total of 67/124 (54\%) had chromosomal disorders and 58/124 (47\%) had single gene disorders (one infant had both). The proportion of diagnoses made by sequencing technologies, such as exome sequencing, increased over the years.

CONCLUSIONS: The prevalence of confirmed genetic disorders within our cohort of infant deaths is higher than that previously reported. Increased efforts are needed to further understand the mortality burden of genetic disorders in infancy.

}, issn = {1476-5543}, doi = {10.1038/s41372-019-0451-5}, author = {Wojcik, Monica H and Schwartz, Talia S and Thiele, Katri E and Paterson, Heather and Stadelmaier, Rachel and Mullen, Thomas E and VanNoy, Grace E and Genetti, Casie A and Madden, Jill A and Gubbels, Cynthia S and Yu, Timothy W and Tan, Wen-Hann and Agrawal, Pankaj B} } @article {653, title = {Unique bioinformatic approach and comprehensive reanalysis improve diagnostic yield of clinical exomes.}, journal = {Eur J Hum Genet}, year = {2019}, month = {2019 Apr 12}, abstract = {

Clinical exome sequencing (CES) is increasingly being utilized; however, a large proportion of patients remain undiagnosed, creating a need for a systematic approach to increase the diagnostic yield. We have reanalyzed CES data for a clinically heterogeneous cohort of 102 probands with likely Mendelian conditions, including 74 negative cases and 28 cases with candidate variants, but reanalysis requested by clinicians. Reanalysis was performed by an interdisciplinary team using a validated custom-built pipeline, "Variant Explorer Pipeline" (VExP). This reanalysis approach and results were compared with existing literature. Reanalysis of candidate variants from CES in 28 cases revealed 1 interpretation that needed to be reclassified. A confirmed or potential genetic diagnosis was identified in 24 of 75 CES-negative/reclassified cases (32.0\%), including variants in known disease-causing genes (n = 6) or candidate genes (n = 18). This yield was higher compared with similar studies demonstrating the utility of this approach. In summary, reanalysis of negative CES in a research setting enhances diagnostic yield by about a third. This study suggests the need for comprehensive, continued reanalysis of exome data when molecular diagnosis is elusive.

}, issn = {1476-5438}, doi = {10.1038/s41431-019-0401-x}, author = {Schmitz-Abe, Klaus and Li, Qifei and Rosen, Samantha M and Nori, Neeharika and Madden, Jill A and Genetti, Casie A and Wojcik, Monica H and Ponnaluri, Sadhana and Gubbels, Cynthia S and Picker, Jonathan D and O{\textquoteright}Donnell-Luria, Anne H and Yu, Timothy W and Bodamer, Olaf and Brownstein, Catherine A and Beggs, Alan H and Agrawal, Pankaj B} } @article {451, title = {Congenital Titinopathy: Comprehensive characterization and pathogenic insights.}, journal = {Ann Neurol}, volume = {83}, year = {2018}, month = {2018 Jun}, pages = {1105-1124}, abstract = {

OBJECTIVE: Comprehensive clinical characterization of congenital titinopathy to facilitate diagnosis and management of this important emerging disorder.

METHODS: Using massively parallel sequencing we identified 30 patients from 27 families with 2 pathogenic nonsense, frameshift and/or splice site TTN mutations in trans. We then undertook a detailed analysis of the clinical, histopathological and imaging features of these patients.

RESULTS: All patients had prenatal or early onset hypotonia and/or congenital contractures. None had ophthalmoplegia. Scoliosis and respiratory insufficiency typically developed early and progressed rapidly, whereas limb weakness was often slowly progressive, and usually did not prevent independent walking. Cardiac involvement was present in 46\% of patients. Relatives of 2 patients had dilated cardiomyopathy. Creatine kinase levels were normal to moderately elevated. Increased fiber size variation, internalized nuclei and cores were common histopathological abnormalities. Cap-like regions, whorled or ring fibers, and mitochondrial accumulations were also observed. Muscle magnetic resonance imaging showed gluteal, hamstring and calf muscle involvement. Western blot analysis showed a near-normal sized titin protein in all samples. The presence of 2 mutations predicted to impact both N2BA and N2B cardiac isoforms appeared to be associated with greatest risk of cardiac involvement. One-third of patients had 1 mutation predicted to impact exons present in fetal skeletal muscle, but not included within the mature skeletal muscle isoform transcript. This strongly suggests developmental isoforms are involved in the pathogenesis of this congenital/early onset disorder.

INTERPRETATION: This detailed clinical reference dataset will greatly facilitate diagnostic confirmation and management of patients, and has provided important insights into disease pathogenesis. Ann Neurol 2018;83:1105-1124.

}, issn = {1531-8249}, doi = {10.1002/ana.25241}, author = {Oates, Emily C and Jones, Kristi J and Donkervoort, Sandra and Charlton, Amanda and Brammah, Susan and Smith, John E and Ware, James S and Yau, Kyle S and Swanson, Lindsay C and Whiffin, Nicola and Peduto, Anthony J and Bournazos, Adam and Waddell, Leigh B and Farrar, Michelle A and Sampaio, Hugo A and Teoh, Hooi Ling and Lamont, Phillipa J and Mowat, David and Fitzsimons, Robin B and Corbett, Alastair J and Ryan, Monique M and O{\textquoteright}Grady, Gina L and Sandaradura, Sarah A and Ghaoui, Roula and Joshi, Himanshu and Marshall, Jamie L and Nolan, Melinda A and Kaur, Simranpreet and Punetha, Jaya and Topf, Ana and Harris, Elizabeth and Bakshi, Madhura and Genetti, Casie A and Marttila, Minttu and Werlauff, Ulla and Streichenberger, Nathalie and Pestronk, Alan and Mazanti, Ingrid and Pinner, Jason R and Vuillerot, Carole and Grosmann, Carla and Camacho, Ana and Mohassel, Payam and Leach, Meganne E and Foley, A Reghan and Bharucha-Goebel, Diana and Collins, James and Connolly, Anne M and Gilbreath, Heather R and Iannaccone, Susan T and Castro, Diana and Cummings, Beryl B and Webster, Richard I and Lazaro, Le{\"\i}la and Vissing, John and Coppens, Sandra and Deconinck, Nicolas and Luk, Ho-Ming and Thomas, Neil H and Foulds, Nicola C and Illingworth, Marjorie A and Ellard, Sian and McLean, Catriona A and Phadke, Rahul and Ravenscroft, Gianina and Witting, Nanna and Hackman, Peter and Richard, Isabelle and Cooper, Sandra T and Kamsteeg, Erik-Jan and Hoffman, Eric P and Bushby, Kate and Straub, Volker and Udd, Bjarne and Ferreiro, Ana and North, Kathryn N and Clarke, Nigel F and Lek, Monkol and Beggs, Alan H and B{\"o}nnemann, Carsten G and MacArthur, Daniel G and Granzier, Henk and Davis, Mark R and Laing, Nigel G} } @article {578, title = {The Genetic Landscape of Diamond-Blackfan Anemia.}, journal = {Am J Hum Genet}, volume = {103}, year = {2018}, month = {2018 12 06}, pages = {930-947}, abstract = {

Diamond-Blackfan anemia (DBA) is a rare bone marrow failure disorder that affects 7 out of 1,000,000 live births and has been associated with mutations in components of the ribosome. In order to characterize the genetic landscape of this heterogeneous disorder, we recruited a cohort of 472 individuals with a clinical diagnosis of DBA and performed whole-exome sequencing (WES). We identified relevant rare and predicted damaging mutations for 78\% of individuals. The majority of mutations were singletons, absent from population databases, predicted to cause loss of function, and located in 1 of 19 previously reported ribosomal protein (RP)-encoding genes. Using exon coverage estimates, we identified and validated 31 deletions in RP genes. We also observed an enrichment for extended splice site mutations and validated their diverse effects using RNA sequencing in cell lines obtained from individuals with DBA. Leveraging the size of our cohort, we observed robust genotype-phenotype associations with congenital abnormalities and treatment outcomes. We further identified rare mutations in seven previously unreported RP genes that may cause DBA, as well as several distinct disorders that appear to phenocopy DBA, including nine individuals with biallelic CECR1 mutations that result in deficiency of ADA2. However, no new genes were identified at exome-wide significance, suggesting that there are no unidentified genes containing mutations readily identified by WES that explain >5\% of DBA-affected case subjects. Overall, this report should inform not only clinical practice for DBA-affected individuals, but also the design and analysis of rare variant studies for heterogeneous Mendelian disorders.

}, issn = {1537-6605}, doi = {10.1016/j.ajhg.2018.10.027}, author = {Ulirsch, Jacob C and Verboon, Jeffrey M and Kazerounian, Shideh and Guo, Michael H and Yuan, Daniel and Ludwig, Leif S and Handsaker, Robert E and Abdulhay, Nour J and Fiorini, Claudia and Genovese, Giulio and Lim, Elaine T and Cheng, Aaron and Cummings, Beryl B and Chao, Katherine R and Beggs, Alan H and Genetti, Casie A and Sieff, Colin A and Newburger, Peter E and Niewiadomska, Edyta and Matysiak, Michal and Vlachos, Adrianna and Lipton, Jeffrey M and Atsidaftos, Eva and Glader, Bertil and Narla, Anupama and Gleizes, Pierre-Emmanuel and O{\textquoteright}Donohue, Marie-Fran{\c c}oise and Montel-Lehry, Nathalie and Amor, David J and McCarroll, Steven A and O{\textquoteright}Donnell-Luria, Anne H and Gupta, Namrata and Gabriel, Stacey B and MacArthur, Daniel G and Lander, Eric S and Lek, Monkol and Da Costa, Lydie and Nathan, David G and Korostelev, Andrei A and Do, Ron and Sankaran, Vijay G and Gazda, Hanna T} }