scholarly journals Immunity and Genetics at the Revolving Doors of Diagnostics in Primary Immunodeficiencies

Diagnostics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 532
Author(s):  
Francesco Rispoli ◽  
Erica Valencic ◽  
Martina Girardelli ◽  
Alessia Pin ◽  
Alessandra Tesser ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Conceptual Development ◽  
Primary Immunodeficiencies ◽  
Causative Role ◽  
Pathophysiological Mechanism ◽  
Variant Of Uncertain Significance ◽  
Molecular Tests ◽  
Revolving Doors ◽  
Uncertain Significance ◽  
Generation Sequencing

Primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs) are a large and growing group of disorders commonly associated with recurrent infections. However, nowadays, we know that PIDs often carry with them consequences related to organ or hematologic autoimmunity, autoinflammation, and lymphoproliferation in addition to simple susceptibility to pathogens. Alongside this conceptual development, there has been technical advancement, given by the new but already established diagnostic possibilities offered by new genetic testing (e.g., next-generation sequencing). Nevertheless, there is also the need to understand the large number of gene variants detected with these powerful methods. That means advancing beyond genetic results and resorting to the clinical phenotype and to immunological or alternative molecular tests that allow us to prove the causative role of a genetic variant of uncertain significance and/or better define the underlying pathophysiological mechanism. Furthermore, because of the rapid availability of results, laboratory immunoassays are still critical to diagnosing many PIDs, even in screening settings. Fundamental is the integration between different specialties and the development of multidisciplinary and flexible diagnostic workflows. This paper aims to tell these evolving aspects of immunodeficiencies, which are summarized in five key messages, through introducing and exemplifying five clinical cases, focusing on diseases that could benefit targeted therapy.

scholarly journals Next-Generation Sequencing in Order to Better Characterize a BRCA Variant of Uncertain Significance

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 634-637 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven Sorscher ◽  
Shakti Ramkissoon
Keyword(s):  
Next Generation Sequencing ◽  
Germline Mutations ◽  
Allelic Frequency ◽  
Breast Cancers ◽  
Next Generation ◽  
Cancer Syndrome ◽  
Predisposing Factor ◽  
Variant Of Uncertain Significance ◽  
Uncertain Significance ◽  
Generation Sequencing

BRCA germline mutations are the most common predisposing factor in familial breast-ovarian cancer syndrome families. However, many screened patients are identified as harboring BRCA variants of uncertain significance (VUS), rather than carrying deleterious germline mutations [Calo et al.: Cancers 2010; 2:1644–1660]. While such VUSs are typically reclassified as benign polymorphisms, this may occur years after the VUS is first identified [Murray et al.: Genet Med 2011; 13; 998–1005]. Loss of heterozygosity (LOH) of BRCA is nearly always the gatekeeper event in inherited BRCA-related breast cancer and LOH of BRCA is rare in sporadic cancers [Osorio et al.: Int J Cancer 2002; 99:305–309]. Here, we describe a patient identified as carrying a germline BRCA VUS. Tumor next-generation sequencing (NGS) demonstrated a very high mutation allelic frequency for that BRCA VUS, consistent with LOH. This case illustrates that since BRCA LOH is the typical mechanism of transformation in inherited BRCA-related breast cancers, NGS might be used to suggest that the BRCA VUS is actually cancer predisposing in a particular family. As a result, this may help patients make more informed decisions regarding screening and prophylactic therapy, long before official reclassification of the VUS occurs.

scholarly journals Primary Immunodeficiencies in India: Molecular Diagnosis and the Role of Next-Generation Sequencing

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arun Kumar Arunachalam ◽  
Madhavi Maddali ◽  
Fouzia N. Aboobacker ◽  
Anu Korula ◽  
Biju George ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Next Generation Sequencing ◽  
Molecular Diagnosis ◽  
Primary Immunodeficiencies ◽  
Next Generation ◽  
Generation Sequencing

scholarly journals First Report of X-Linked Hypohidrotic Ectodermal Dysplasia with a Hemizygous c.1142G >C in the EDA Gene: Variant of Uncertain Significance or New Pathogenic Variant?

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Tumminello ◽  
Antonella Gangemi ◽  
Federico Matina ◽  
Melania Guardino ◽  
Bianca Lea Giuffrè ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ectodermal Dysplasia ◽  
Genetic Disorder ◽  
Missense Variant ◽  
Pathogenic Variant ◽  
Causative Role ◽  
Hypohidrotic Ectodermal Dysplasia ◽  
Variant Of Uncertain Significance ◽  
Uncertain Significance ◽  
Clinical Potential ◽  
Eda Gene

Abstract BackgroundHypohidrotic Ectodermal Dysplasia (HED) is a genetic disorder which affects structures of ectodermal origin. X-linked hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia (XLHED) is the most common form of disease. XLHED Is characterized by hypotrichosis, hypohydrosis and hypodontia. The cardinal features of classic HED become obvious during childhood. Identification of a hemizygous EDA pathogenic variant in an affected male confirms the diagnosis. Case PresentationWe report on a male newborn with the main clinical characteristics of the X-linked HED including hypotrichosis, hypodontia and hypohidrosis. Gene panel sequencing identified a new hemizygous missense variant of uncertain significance (VUS) c.1142G >C (p.Gly318A1a) in the EDA gene, located on the X chromosome and inherited from the healthy mother. ConclusionDespite the potential functional impact of VUS remains uncharacterized, our goal is to evaluate the clinical potential consequences of missense VUS on EDA gene. Given the proband’s phenotype compatibility with classic HED, it is reasonable to attribute a causative role to the variant found in hemizygosis in the gene EDA. The present case demonstrates that this novel VUS could broaden the spectrum of genes mutations involved in the HED phenotype.

scholarly journals Hypoxia and Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Pregnancy Complications

Antioxidants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 405 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiang-Qun Hu ◽  
Lubo Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Pregnancy Complications ◽  
Intrauterine Growth Restriction ◽  
Animal Studies ◽  
Major Effect ◽  
Causative Role ◽  
Therapeutic Approaches ◽  
Maternal Complications ◽  
Mitochondrial Ros ◽  
Subsequent Risk

Hypoxia is a common and severe stress to an organism’s homeostatic mechanisms, and hypoxia during gestation is associated with significantly increased incidence of maternal complications of preeclampsia, adversely impacting on the fetal development and subsequent risk for cardiovascular and metabolic disease. Human and animal studies have revealed a causative role of increased uterine vascular resistance and placental hypoxia in preeclampsia and fetal/intrauterine growth restriction (FGR/IUGR) associated with gestational hypoxia. Gestational hypoxia has a major effect on mitochondria of uteroplacental cells to overproduce reactive oxygen species (ROS), leading to oxidative stress. Excess mitochondrial ROS in turn cause uteroplacental dysfunction by damaging cellular macromolecules, which underlies the pathogenesis of preeclampsia and FGR. In this article, we review the current understanding of hypoxia-induced mitochondrial ROS and their role in placental dysfunction and the pathogenesis of pregnancy complications. In addition, therapeutic approaches selectively targeting mitochondrial ROS in the placental cells are discussed.

scholarly journals Adrenoleukodystrophy Newborn Screening in California Since 2016: Programmatic Outcomes and Follow-Up

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 22
Author(s):  
Jamie Matteson ◽  
Stanley Sciortino ◽  
Lisa Feuchtbaum ◽  
Tracey Bishop ◽  
Richard S. Olney ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Newborn Screening ◽  
Program Implementation ◽  
Screening Program ◽  
Birth Prevalence ◽  
Variant Of Uncertain Significance ◽  
Implementation Challenges ◽  
Screening Programs ◽  
Uncertain Significance ◽  
Long Term Follow Up

X-linked adrenoleukodystrophy (ALD) is a recent addition to the Recommended Uniform Screening Panel, prompting many states to begin screening newborns for the disorder. We provide California’s experience with ALD newborn screening, highlighting the clinical and epidemiological outcomes observed as well as program implementation challenges. In this retrospective cohort study, we examine ALD newborn screening results and clinical outcomes for 1,854,631 newborns whose specimens were received by the California Genetic Disease Screening Program from 16 February 2016 through 15 February 2020. In the first four years of ALD newborn screening in California, 355 newborns screened positive for ALD, including 147 (41%) with an ABCD1 variant of uncertain significance (VUS) and 95 males diagnosed with ALD. After modifying cutoffs, we observed an ALD birth prevalence of 1 in 14,397 males. Long-term follow-up identified 14 males with signs of adrenal involvement. This study adds to a growing body of literature reporting on outcomes of newborn screening for ALD and offering a glimpse of what other large newborn screening programs can expect when adding ALD to their screening panel.

scholarly journals Transient Receptor Potential C 1/4/5 Is a Determinant of MTI-101 Induced Calcium Influx and Cell Death in Multiple Myeloma

Cells ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 1490
Author(s):  
Osama M. Elzamzamy ◽  
Brandon E. Johnson ◽  
Wei-Chih Chen ◽  
Gangqing Hu ◽  
Reinhold Penner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multiple Myeloma ◽  
Cell Death ◽  
Transient Receptor Potential ◽  
Cyclic Peptide ◽  
Calcium Influx ◽  
Acquired Resistance ◽  
Treatment Strategies ◽  
Prognostic Indicators ◽  
Causative Role

Multiple myeloma (MM) is a currently incurable hematologic cancer. Patients that initially respond to therapeutic intervention eventually relapse with drug resistant disease. Thus, novel treatment strategies are critically needed to improve patient outcomes. Our group has developed a novel cyclic peptide referred to as MTI-101 for the treatment of MM. We previously reported that acquired resistance to HYD-1, the linear form of MTI-101, correlated with the repression of genes involved in store operated Ca2+ entry (SOCE): PLCβ, SERCA, ITPR3, and TRPC1 expression. In this study, we sought to determine the role of TRPC1 heteromers in mediating MTI-101 induced cationic flux. Our data indicate that, consistent with the activation of TRPC heteromers, MTI-101 treatment induced Ca2+ and Na+ influx. However, replacing extracellular Na+ with NMDG did not reduce MTI-101-induced cell death. In contrast, decreasing extracellular Ca2+ reduced both MTI-101-induced Ca2+ influx as well as cell death. The causative role of TRPC heteromers was established by suppressing STIM1, TRPC1, TRPC4, or TRPC5 function both pharmacologically and by siRNA, resulting in a reduction in MTI-101-induced Ca2+ influx. Mechanistically, MTI-101 treatment induces trafficking of TRPC1 to the membrane and co-immunoprecipitation studies indicate that MTI-101 treatment induces a TRPC1-STIM1 complex. Moreover, treatment with calpeptin inhibited MTI-101-induced Ca2+ influx and cell death, indicating a role of calpain in the mechanism of MTI-101-induced cytotoxicity. Finally, components of the SOCE pathway were found to be poor prognostic indicators among MM patients, suggesting that this pathway is attractive for the treatment of MM.

scholarly journals Guild-based analysis for understanding gut microbiome in human health and diseases

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Guojun Wu ◽  
Naisi Zhao ◽  
Chenhong Zhang ◽  
Yan Y. Lam ◽  
Liping Zhao
Keyword(s):  
Gut Microbiota ◽  
Human Health ◽  
Gut Microbiome ◽  
Association Studies ◽  
Causative Role ◽  
Disease Phenotypes ◽  
Genetic Complexity ◽  
Causative Agents ◽  
Specific Health

AbstractTo demonstrate the causative role of gut microbiome in human health and diseases, we first need to identify, via next-generation sequencing, potentially important functional members associated with specific health outcomes and disease phenotypes. However, due to the strain-level genetic complexity of the gut microbiota, microbiome datasets are highly dimensional and highly sparse in nature, making it challenging to identify putative causative agents of a particular disease phenotype. Members of an ecosystem seldomly live independently from each other. Instead, they develop local interactions and form inter-member organizations to influence the ecosystem’s higher-level patterns and functions. In the ecological study of macro-organisms, members are defined as belonging to the same “guild” if they exploit the same class of resources in a similar way or work together as a coherent functional group. Translating the concept of “guild” to the study of gut microbiota, we redefine guild as a group of bacteria that show consistent co-abundant behavior and likely to work together to contribute to the same ecological function. In this opinion article, we discuss how to use guilds as the aggregation unit to reduce dimensionality and sparsity in microbiome-wide association studies for identifying candidate gut bacteria that may causatively contribute to human health and diseases.

scholarly journals Minireview: Thyroid Hormone Transporters: The Knowns and the Unknowns

2011 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-14 ◽  
Author(s):  
W. Edward Visser ◽  
Edith C. H. Friesema ◽  
Theo J. Visser
Keyword(s):  
Thyroid Hormone ◽  
Organic Anion ◽  
Psychomotor Retardation ◽  
Cellular Level ◽  
Monocarboxylate Transporter ◽  
Causative Role ◽  
Organic Anion Transporting Polypeptide ◽  
Neurological Abnormalities ◽  
Knockout Animals

The effects of thyroid hormone (TH) on development and metabolism are exerted at the cellular level. Metabolism and action of TH take place intracellularly, which require transport of the hormone across the plasma membrane. This process is mediated by TH transporter proteins. Many TH transporters have been identified at the molecular level, although a few are classified as specific TH transporters, including monocarboxylate transporter (MCT)8, MCT10, and organic anion-transporting polypeptide 1C1. The importance of TH transporters for physiology has been illustrated dramatically by the causative role of MCT8 mutations in males with psychomotor retardation and abnormal serum TH concentrations. Although Mct8 knockout animals have provided insight in the mechanisms underlying parts of the endocrine phenotype, they lack obvious neurological abnormalities. Thus, the pathogenesis of the neurological abnormalities in males with MCT8 mutations is not fully understood. The prospects of identifying other transporters and transporter-based syndromes promise an exciting future in the TH transporter field.

scholarly journals COVID-19 Pathogenesis: From Molecular Pathway to Vaccine Administration

Biomedicines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (8) ◽  
pp. 903
Author(s):  
Francesco Nappi ◽  
Adelaide Iervolino ◽  
Sanjeet Singh Avtaar Singh
Keyword(s):  
Hospital Setting ◽  
Pathophysiological Mechanism ◽  
Systemic Response ◽  
Respiratory Complications ◽  
Thrombotic Risk ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Multiple Variants ◽  
Roll Out

The Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection is a global pandemic that has affected millions of people worldwide. The advent of vaccines has permitted some restitution. Aside from the respiratory complications of the infection, there is also a thrombotic risk attributed to both the disease and the vaccine. There are no reliable data for the risk of thromboembolism in SARS-CoV-2 infection in patients managed out of the hospital setting. A literature review was performed to identify the pathophysiological mechanism of thrombosis from the SARS-CoV-2 infection including the role of Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme receptors. The impact of the vaccine and likely mechanisms of thrombosis following vaccination were also clarified. Finally, the utility of the vaccines available against the multiple variants is also highlighted. The systemic response to SARS-CoV-2 infection is still relatively poorly understood, but several risk factors have been identified. The roll-out of the vaccines worldwide has also allowed the lifting of lockdown measures and a reduction in the spread of the disease. The experience of the SARS-CoV-2 infection, however, has highlighted the crucial role of epidemiological research and the need for ongoing studies within this field.

scholarly journals First report of X-linked hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia with a hemizygous c.1142G > C in the EDA gene: variant of uncertain significance or new pathogenic variant?

2021 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mario Tumminello ◽  
Antonella Gangemi ◽  
Federico Matina ◽  
Melania Guardino ◽  
Bianca Lea Giuffrè ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Ectodermal Dysplasia ◽  
Genetic Disorder ◽  
Missense Variant ◽  
Pathogenic Variant ◽  
Hypohidrotic Ectodermal Dysplasia ◽  
Variant Of Uncertain Significance ◽  
Uncertain Significance ◽  
Clinical Potential ◽  
Genomic Variant ◽  
Eda Gene

Abstract Background Hypohidrotic Ectodermal Dysplasia (HED) is a genetic disorder which affects structures of ectodermal origin. X-linked hypohidrotic ectodermal dysplasia (XLHED) is the most common form of disease. XLHED is characterized by hypotrichosis, hypohydrosis and hypodontia. The cardinal features of classic HED become obvious during childhood. Identification of a hemizygous EDA pathogenic variant in an affected male confirms the diagnosis. Case presentation We report on a male newborn with the main clinical characteristics of the X-linked HED including hypotrichosis, hypodontia and hypohidrosis. Gene panel sequencing identified a new hemizygous missense variant of uncertain significance (VUS) c.1142G > C (p.Gly381Ala) in the EDA gene, located on the X chromosome and inherited from the healthy mother. Conclusion Despite the potential functional impact of VUS remains uncharacterized, our goal is to evaluate the clinical potential consequences of missense VUS on EDA gene. Even if the proband’s phenotype is characteristic for classic HED, further reports of patients with same clinical phenotype and the same genomic variant are needed to consider this novel VUS as responsible for the development of HED.

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