scholarly journals B.06 Whole exome sequencing in genetic ataxias associated with cerebellar atrophy: the Canadian experience

Author(s):  
L Gauquelin ◽  
T Hartley ◽  
M Tarnopolsky ◽  
DA Dyment ◽  
B Brais ◽  
...  

Background: Cerebellar atrophy is characterized by loss of cerebellar tissue, with evidence on brain imaging of enlarged interfolial spaces compared to the foliae. Genetic ataxias associated with cerebellar atrophy are a heterogeneous group of disorders. We investigated the prevalence in Canada and the diagnostic yield of whole exome sequencing (WES) for this group of conditions. Methods: Between 2011 and 2017, WES was performed in 91 participants with cerebellar atrophy as part of one of two national research programs, Finding of Rare Genetic Disease Genes (FORGE) or Enhanced Care for Rare Genetic Diseases in Canada (Care4Rare). Results: A genetic diagnosis was established in 58% of cases (53/91). Pathogenic variants were found in 24 known genes, providing a diagnosis for 46/53 participants (87%), and in four novel genes, accounting for 7/53 cases (13%). 38/91 cases (42%) remained unsolved. The most common diagnoses were channelopathies in 12/53 patients (23%) and mitochondrial disorders in 9/53 (17%). Inheritance was autosomal recessive in the majority of cases. Additional clinical findings provided useful clues to some of the diagnoses. Conclusions: This is the first report on the prevalence of genetic ataxias associated with cerebellar atrophy in Canada, and the utility of WES for this group of conditions.

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jeong Eun Lee ◽  
WooYeong Chung ◽  
BoLyun Lee ◽  
SooHyun Ku ◽  
Ga Won Jeon ◽  
...  

Abstract Purpose: Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) technology is a highthroughput method for genome sequencing which assists clinicians with diagnosis of patients with suspected genetic disorders. This study was to investigate diagnostic yield and clinical utility of whole exome sequencing prospectively in the rare genetic diseases. Method: WES was performed a total of 178 patients with suspected genetic disorder. Buccal swab samples were collected from the patients to extract genomic DNA. WES and variant interpretation was conducted in 3 Billion Inc (Seoul, Republic of Korea), based on their own software. Patients’ phenotype was interpreted by clinical geneticists. Results: WES reported 117 variants (66.7%). According to the ACMG/AMP guidelines, there were 25 pathogenic variants (14%), 37 likely pathogenic variants (32%), and 55 VUS (31%). Among the 117 patients who detected variants, genotype-phenotype correlation was analyzed and resulted that 44 (38%) were found to be apparently causal mutation of the disease, 37 (32%) were not considered the cause of the disease, and 36 (31%) were withheld judgement. Of the VUS variants, 13% were likely to be the causal variants of the disease considering phenotype of patients. Conclusion: This study showed 38% of diagnostic yield in patients with unidentified genetic condition by using prospective WES based on automating variant interpretation system. In the diagnosis of rare genetic disease, we identified the need for a multi-disciplinary team to select appropriate subjects and interpret the clinical significance of the found genetic variants.


2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Anna Ka-Yee Kwong ◽  
Mandy Ho-Yin Tsang ◽  
Jasmine Lee-Fong Fung ◽  
Christopher Chun-Yu Mak ◽  
Kate Lok-San Chan ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Movement disorders are a group of heterogeneous neurological diseases including hyperkinetic disorders with unwanted excess movements and hypokinetic disorders with reduction in the degree of movements. The objective of our study is to investigate the genetic etiology of a cohort of paediatric patients with movement disorders by whole exome sequencing and to review the potential treatment implications after a genetic diagnosis. Results We studied a cohort of 31 patients who have paediatric-onset movement disorders with unrevealing etiologies. Whole exome sequencing was performed and rare variants were interrogated for pathogenicity. Genetic diagnoses have been confirmed in 10 patients with disease-causing variants in CTNNB1, SPAST, ATP1A3, PURA, SLC2A1, KMT2B, ACTB, GNAO1 and SPG11. 80% (8/10) of patients with genetic diagnosis have potential treatment implications and treatments have been offered to them. One patient with KMT2B dystonia showed clinical improvement with decrease in dystonia after receiving globus pallidus interna deep brain stimulation. Conclusions A diagnostic yield of 32% (10/31) was reported in our cohort and this allows a better prediction of prognosis and contributes to a more effective clinical management. The study highlights the potential of implementing precision medicine in the patients.


2017 ◽  
Vol 97 (1) ◽  
pp. 49-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. Dinckan ◽  
R. Du ◽  
L.E. Petty ◽  
Z. Coban-Akdemir ◽  
S.N. Jhangiani ◽  
...  

Tooth agenesis is a common craniofacial abnormality in humans and represents failure to develop 1 or more permanent teeth. Tooth agenesis is complex, and variations in about a dozen genes have been reported as contributing to the etiology. Here, we combined whole-exome sequencing, array-based genotyping, and linkage analysis to identify putative pathogenic variants in candidate disease genes for tooth agenesis in 10 multiplex Turkish families. Novel homozygous and heterozygous variants in LRP6, DKK1, LAMA3, and COL17A1 genes, as well as known variants in WNT10A, were identified as likely pathogenic in isolated tooth agenesis. Novel variants in KREMEN1 were identified as likely pathogenic in 2 families with suspected syndromic tooth agenesis. Variants in more than 1 gene were identified segregating with tooth agenesis in 2 families, suggesting oligogenic inheritance. Structural modeling of missense variants suggests deleterious effects to the encoded proteins. Functional analysis of an indel variant (c.3607+3_6del) in LRP6 suggested that the predicted resulting mRNA is subject to nonsense-mediated decay. Our results support a major role for WNT pathways genes in the etiology of tooth agenesis while revealing new candidate genes. Moreover, oligogenic cosegregation was suggestive for complex inheritance and potentially complex gene product interactions during development, contributing to improved understanding of the genetic etiology of familial tooth agenesis.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elias L. Salfati ◽  
Emily G. Spencer ◽  
Sarah E. Topol ◽  
Evan D. Muse ◽  
Manuel Rueda ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Whole-exome sequencing (WES) has become an efficient diagnostic test for patients with likely monogenic conditions such as rare idiopathic diseases or sudden unexplained death. Yet, many cases remain undiagnosed. Here, we report the added diagnostic yield achieved for 101 WES cases re-analyzed 1 to 7 years after initial analysis. Methods Of the 101 WES cases, 51 were rare idiopathic disease cases and 50 were postmortem “molecular autopsy” cases of early sudden unexplained death. Variants considered for reporting were prioritized and classified into three groups: (1) diagnostic variants, pathogenic and likely pathogenic variants in genes known to cause the phenotype of interest; (2) possibly diagnostic variants, possibly pathogenic variants in genes known to cause the phenotype of interest or pathogenic variants in genes possibly causing the phenotype of interest; and (3) variants of uncertain diagnostic significance, potentially deleterious variants in genes possibly causing the phenotype of interest. Results Initial analysis revealed diagnostic variants in 13 rare disease cases (25.4%) and 5 sudden death cases (10%). Re-analysis resulted in the identification of additional diagnostic variants in 3 rare disease cases (5.9%) and 1 sudden unexplained death case (2%), which increased our molecular diagnostic yield to 31.4% and 12%, respectively. Conclusions The basis of new findings ranged from improvement in variant classification tools, updated genetic databases, and updated clinical phenotypes. Our findings highlight the potential for re-analysis to reveal diagnostic variants in cases that remain undiagnosed after initial WES.


2020 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 00213-2020
Author(s):  
Alex Gileles-Hillel ◽  
Hagar Mor-Shaked ◽  
David Shoseyov ◽  
Joel Reiter ◽  
Reuven Tsabari ◽  
...  

The diagnosis of primary ciliary dyskinesia (PCD) relies on clinical features and sophisticated studies. The detection of bi-allelic disease-causing variants confirms the diagnosis. However, a standardised genetic panel is not widely available and new disease-causing genes are continuously identified.To assess the accuracy of untargeted whole-exome sequencing (WES) as a diagnostic tool for PCD, patients with symptoms highly suggestive of PCD were consecutively included. Patients underwent measurement of nasal nitric oxide (nNO) levels, ciliary transmission electron microscopy analysis (TEM) and WES. A confirmed PCD diagnosis in symptomatic patients was defined as a recognised ciliary ultrastructural defect on TEM and/or two pathogenic variants in a known PCD-causing gene.Forty-eight patients (46% male) were enrolled, with a median age of 10.0 years (range 1.0–37 years). In 36 patients (75%) a diagnosis of PCD was confirmed, of which 14 (39%) patients had normal TEM. A standalone untargeted WES had a diagnostic yield of 94%, identifying bi-allelic variants in 11 known PCD-causing genes in 34 subjects. A nNO<77 nL·min was nonspecific when including patients younger than 5 years (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) 0.75, 95% CI 0.60–0.90). Consecutive WES considerably improved the diagnostic accuracy of nNO in young children (AUC 0.97, 95% CI 0.93–1). Finally, WES established an alternative diagnosis in four patients.In patients with clinically suspected PCD and low nNO levels, WES is a simple, beneficial and accurate next step to confirm the diagnosis of PCD or suggest an alternative diagnosis, especially in preschool-aged children in whom nNO is less specific.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Go Hun Seo ◽  
Taeho Kim ◽  
Jung-young Park ◽  
Jungsul Lee ◽  
Sehwan Kim ◽  
...  

AbstractPurposeEVIDENCE, an automated interpretation system, has been developed to facilitate the entire process of whole exome sequencing (WES) analyses. This study investigated the diagnostic yield of EVIDENCE in patients suspected genetic disorders.MethodsDNA from 330 probands (age range, 0–68 years) with suspected genetic disorders were subjected to WES. Candidate variants were identified by EVIDENCE and confirmed by testing family members and/or clinical reassessments.ResultsThe average number of overlapping organ categories per patient was 4.5 ± 5.0. EVIDENCE reported a total 244 variants in 215 (65.1%) of the 330 probands. After clinical reassessment and/or family member testing, 196 variants were identified in 171 probands (51.8%), including 115 novel variants. These variants were confirmed as being responsible for 146 genetic disorders. One hundred-seven (54.6%) of the 196 variants were categorized as pathogenic or likely pathogenic before, and 146 (74.6%) after, clinical assessment and/or family member testing. Factors associated with a variant being confirmed as causative include rules, such as PVS1, PS1, PM1, PM5, and PP5, and similar symptom scores between that variant and a patient’s phenotype.ConclusionThis new, automated variant interpretation system facilitated the diagnosis of various genetic diseases with a 51% improvement in diagnostic yield.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mandy Ho-Yin Tsang ◽  
Anna Ka-Yee Kwong ◽  
Kate Lok-San Chan ◽  
Jasmine Lee-Fong Fung ◽  
Mullin Ho-Chung Yu ◽  
...  

Abstract BackgroundMitochondrial diseases (MDs) are a group of clinically and genetically heterogeneous disorders characterized by defects in oxidative phosphorylation. Since clinical phenotypes of MDs may be non-specific, genetic diagnosis is crucial for guiding disease management. In the current study, whole-exome sequencing (WES) was performed for our paediatric-onset MD cohort of a Southern Chinese origin, with the aim of identifying key disease-causing variants in the Chinese patients with MDs.MethodsWe recruited Chinese patients who had paediatric-onset MDs and a minimum mitochondrial disease criteria (MDC) score of 3. Patients with positive target gene or mitochondrial DNA sequencing results were excluded. WES was performed, variants with population frequency ≤1% were analysed for pathogenicity on the basis of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics guidelines.ResultsSixty-six patients with pre-biopsy MDC scores of 3–8 were recruited. The overall diagnostic yield was 35% (23/66). Eleven patients (17%) were found to have mutations in MD-related genes, with COQ4 having the highest mutation rate owing to the Chinese-specific founder mutation (4/66, 6%). Twelve patients (12/66, 18%) had mutations in non-MD-related genes: ATP1A3 (n=3, two were siblings), ALDH5A1 , ARX , FA2H , KCNT1 , LDHD , NEFL , NKX2-2 , TBCK , and WAC.ConclusionsWe confirmed that the COQ4 :c.370G>A, p.(Gly124Ser) variant was a recurrent founder mutation among the Southern Chinese population. Screening for this mutation should therefore be considered while diagnosing Chinese patients suspected to have MDs. Furthermore, WES has proven to be useful in detecting variants in patients suspected to have MDs because it helps to obtain an unbiased and precise genetic diagnosis for these diseases, which are genetically heterogeneous.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mandy Ho-Yin Tsang ◽  
Anna Ka-Yee Kwong ◽  
Kate Lok-San Chan ◽  
Jasmine Lee-Fong Fung ◽  
Mullin Ho-Chung Yu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Mitochondrial diseases (MDs) are a group of clinically and genetically heterogeneous disorders characterized by defects in oxidative phosphorylation. Since clinical phenotypes of MDs may be non-specific, genetic diagnosis is crucial for guiding disease management. In the current study, whole-exome sequencing (WES) was performed for our paediatric-onset MD cohort of a Southern Chinese origin, with the aim of identifying key disease-causing variants in the Chinese patients with MDs.Methods We recruited Chinese patients who had paediatric-onset MDs and a minimum mitochondrial disease criteria (MDC) score of 3. Patients with positive target gene or mitochondrial DNA sequencing results were excluded. WES was performed, variants with population frequency ≤1% were analysed for pathogenicity on the basis of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics guidelines.Results Sixty-six patients with pre-biopsy MDC scores of 3–8 were recruited. The overall diagnostic yield was 35% (23/66). Eleven patients (17%) were found to have mutations in MD-related genes, with COQ4 having the highest mutation rate owing to the Chinese-specific founder mutation (4/66, 6%). Twelve patients (12/66, 18%) had mutations in non-MD-related genes: ATP1A3 (n=3, two were siblings), ALDH5A1, ARX, FA2H, KCNT1, LDHD, NEFL, NKX2-2, TBCK, and WAC.Conclusions We confirmed that the COQ4:c.370G>A, p.(Gly124Ser) variant was a recurrent founder mutation among the Southern Chinese population. Screening for this mutation should therefore be considered while diagnosing Chinese patients suspected to have MDs. Furthermore, WES has proven to be useful in detecting variants in patients suspected to have MDs because it helps to obtain an unbiased and precise genetic diagnosis for these diseases, which are genetically heterogeneous.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Hosneara Akter ◽  
Mohammad Shahnoor Hossain ◽  
Nushrat Jahan Dity ◽  
Md. Atikur Rahaman ◽  
K. M. Furkan Uddin ◽  
...  

AbstractCollectively, rare genetic diseases affect a significant number of individuals worldwide. In this study, we have conducted whole-exome sequencing (WES) and identified underlying pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in five children with rare genetic diseases. We present evidence for disease-causing autosomal recessive variants in a range of disease-associated genes such as DHH-associated 46,XY gonadal dysgenesis (GD) or 46,XY sex reversal 7, GNPTAB-associated mucolipidosis II alpha/beta (ML II), BBS1-associated Bardet–Biedl Syndrome (BBS), SURF1-associated Leigh Syndrome (LS) and AP4B1-associated spastic paraplegia-47 (SPG47) in unrelated affected members from Bangladesh. Our analysis pipeline detected three homozygous mutations, including a novel c. 863 G > C (p.Pro288Arg) variant in DHH, and two compound heterozygous variants, including two novel variants: c.2972dupT (p.Met991Ilefs*) in GNPTAB and c.229 G > C (p.Gly77Arg) in SURF1. All mutations were validated by Sanger sequencing. Collectively, this study adds to the genetic heterogeneity of rare genetic diseases and is the first report elucidating the genetic profile of (consanguineous and nonconsanguineous) rare genetic diseases in the Bangladesh population.


2020 ◽  
Vol 14 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mandy H.Y. Tsang ◽  
Anna K.Y. Kwong ◽  
Kate L.S. Chan ◽  
Jasmine L.F. Fung ◽  
Mullin H.C. Yu ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Mitochondrial diseases (MDs) are a group of clinically and genetically heterogeneous disorders characterized by defects in oxidative phosphorylation. Since clinical phenotypes of MDs may be non-specific, genetic diagnosis is crucial for guiding disease management. In the current study, whole-exome sequencing (WES) was performed for our paediatric-onset MD cohort of a Southern Chinese origin, with the aim of identifying key disease-causing variants in the Chinese patients with MDs. Methods We recruited Chinese patients who had paediatric-onset MDs and a minimum mitochondrial disease criteria (MDC) score of 3. Patients with positive target gene or mitochondrial DNA sequencing results were excluded. WES was performed, variants with population frequency ≤ 1% were analysed for pathogenicity on the basis of the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics guidelines. Results Sixty-six patients with pre-biopsy MDC scores of 3–8 were recruited. The overall diagnostic yield was 35% (23/66). Eleven patients (17%) were found to have mutations in MD-related genes, with COQ4 having the highest mutation rate owing to the Chinese-specific founder mutation (4/66, 6%). Twelve patients (12/66, 18%) had mutations in non-MD-related genes: ATP1A3 (n = 3, two were siblings), ALDH5A1, ARX, FA2H, KCNT1, LDHD, NEFL, NKX2-2, TBCK, and WAC. Conclusions We confirmed that the COQ4:c.370G>A, p.(Gly124Ser) variant, was a founder mutation among the Southern Chinese population. Screening for this mutation should therefore be considered while diagnosing Chinese patients suspected to have MDs. Furthermore, WES has proven to be useful in detecting variants in patients suspected to have MDs because it helps to obtain an unbiased and precise genetic diagnosis for these diseases, which are genetically heterogeneous.


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