TY - THES A1 - Schuster, Beatrice T1 - Genotyping Fanconi Anemia : From Known to Novel Genes -From Classical Genetic Approaches to Next Generation Sequencing T1 - Genotypisierung der Fanconi Anämie N2 - Fanconi anemia (FA) is an autosomal recessive or X-chromosomal inherited disorder, which is not only phenotypically but also genotypically very heterogeneous. While its hallmark feature is progressive bone marrow failure, many yet not all patients suffer additionally from typical congenital malformations like radial ray defects and growth retardation. In young adulthood the cumulative risk for developing hematological or other malignancies is compared to the general population several hundred-fold increased. The underlying molecular defect is the deficiency of DNA interstrand crosslink (ICL) repair. ICLs are deleterious lesions, which interfere with crucial cellular processes like transcription and replication and thereby can lead to malignant transformation, premature senescence or cell death. To overcome this threat evolution developed a highly complex network of interacting DNA repair pathways, which is conserved completely only in vertebrates. The so called FA/BRCA DNA damage response pathway is able to recognize ICLs on stalled replication forks and promotes their repair through homologous recombination (HR). Today we know 15 FA genes (FANCA, -B, -C, -D1, -D2, -E, -F, -G, -I, -J, -L, -M, -N, -O and -P) whose products are involved in this pathway. Although more than 80% of FA patients carry biallelic mutations in either FANCA, FANCC or FANCG, there are still some who cannot be assigned to any of the known complementation groups. This work aimed to indentify the di¬sease causing mutations in a cohort of those unassigned patients. Initial screens of the candidate genes FAN1, MHF1 and MHF2 did not reveal any pathogenic alterations. Moreover, FAN1 could be excluded as FA candidate gene because patients carrying a homozygous microdeletion including the FAN1 locus did not show a phenotype comparable to FA patients. In the case of MHF1 and MHF2 the reason for the negative screening result is not clear. Mutation carriers might be rare or, regarding the diverse and also FA pathway independent protein functions, phenotypically not comparable to FA patients. Nevertheless, this study contri¬buted to the identification and characterization of the most recent members of the FA pathway - RAD51C (FANCO), SLX4 (FANCP) and XPF (FANCQ). FANCO is one of the RAD51 paralogs and is involved in crucial steps of HR. But since the only reported FA-O patient has so far not developed any hematological anomalies, FANCO is tentatively designated as gene underlying an FA-like disorder. In contrast, patients carrying biallelic mutations in FANCP do not only show hematological anomalies, but as well congenital malformations typical for FA. The distinct role of FANCP in the FA pathway could not be determined, but it is most likely the coordination of structure-specific nucleases during ICL excision. One of these nucleases is the heterodimer XPF/ERCC1. XPF is probably disease causing in the complementation group FA-Q and is the first FA gene, which was identified by Next Generation Sequencing (NGS). Extraordinarily is that mutations in this gene had previously been reported to cause two other disorders, xeroderma pigmentosum and segmental progeria. Despite some overlaps, it was shown that the divergent phenotypes could clearly be distinguished and are caused by distinct functional defects of XPF. Additionally, this work aimed to improve and accelerate the genotyping process of FA patients in general. Therefore, classical approaches should be complemented or fully replaced by approa¬ches using NGS. Massively parallel sequencing of the whole exome proved to be most appro¬priate and the establishment of an FA-specific analysis pipeline facilitated improved molecular diagnostics by combining complementation group assignment and mutation analysis in one step. Consequently two NGS studies revealed the pathogenic defect in several previously unassigned FA patients and thereby added another patient to one of the most recent subtypes, FA-P. In summary, this work contributed not only to further completion of the FA/BRCA DNA repair network by adding three novel genes, it also showed that classical molecular approaches for re¬search as well as for diagnostics could be replaced by NGS. N2 - Die Fanconi Anämie (FA) ist eine autosomal rezessiv oder X-chromosomal vererbte Erkrankung, deren charakteristisches diagnostisches Merkmal das progressive Versagen des Knochenmarks darstellt. Viele, jedoch nicht alle Patienten leiden zusätzlich an kongenitalen Fehlbildungen, wie Radialstrahl-Anomalien oder Minderwuchs. Im Vergleich zur normalen Bevölkerung steigt zu¬dem im jungen Erwachsenenalter das Risiko für hämatologische und auch solide Tumoren um ein Vielfaches. Verantwortlich hierfür ist sehr wahrscheinlich der zugrunde liegende Defekt in der Reparatur von DNA-Interstrang-Quervernetzungen. Diese Art der Läsion blockiert wich¬tige zelluläre Prozesse wie Transkription und Replikation, und kann daher nicht nur zur Ent¬artung oder vorzeitigen Alterung der Zellen, sondern auch zu stark erhöhten Apoptose-Raten führen. Zur Entfernung dieser Quervernetzungen hat die Evolution ein komplexes Netzwerk an verschiedenen Reparaturwegen hervorgebracht, das nur in Vertebraten vollständig konserviert ist. Der sogenannte FA/BRCA-Reparaturweg ist in der Lage Quervernetzungen an stagnierten Replikationsgabeln zu erkennen und zu entfernen. Heute kennen wir 15 Gene (FANCA, -B, -C, -D1, -D2, -E, -F, -G, -I, -J, -L, -M, -N, -O und -P), deren Produkte in diesem Weg involviert sind und deren pathogene Veränderung zur Ausprägung des FA-Phänotyps führen. Rund 80% aller Fälle können durch biallelische Mutationen in FANCA, FANCC und FANCG erklärt werden. Pa¬thogene Varianten in anderen Genen werden weitaus seltener gefunden und ein kleiner Anteil der Patienten kann keiner der bekannten Komplementationsgruppen zugeordnet werden. Das Ziel dieser Arbeit war es, den ursächlichen genetischen Defekt in diesen Patienten aufzudecken. Untersuchungen an den Kandidatengenen FAN1, MHF1 und MHF2 konnten keine pathoge¬nen Veränderungen identifizieren. FAN1 konnte darüber hinaus gänzlich als Kandidatengen aus¬geschlossen werden, da Patienten mit einer homozygoten FAN1-Deletion keinen FA-Phänotyp zeigten. Im Fall von MHF1 und MHF2 sind Mutationsträger wahrscheinlich sehr selten oder unterscheiden sich in ihrem Phänotyp von den bisher bekannten FA Patienten. Nichtsdestotrotz trug diese Arbeit maßgeblich zur Aufklärung der genetischen Ursache in den Untergruppen FA-O, FA-P und FA-Q bei. Ursächlich für den Subtyp FA-O sind biallelische Mutationen in RAD51C, einem Paralog der Rekombinase RAD51, mit offenbar entscheidender Funktion in der homolo¬gen Rekombinationsreparatur. Da der einzige bislang beschriebene Patient zum Zeitpunkt der Veröffentlichung zwar charakteristische Fehlbildungen, aber weder hämatologische Auffälligkei¬ten, noch maligne Veränderungen zeigte, wird RAD51C (FANCO) bisher als zugrunde liegendes Gen einer FA-ähnlichen Krankheit bezeichnet. Bei der Identifizierung von SLX4 als ursächliches Gen der Untergruppe FA-P gab es hingegen keine Zweifel; alle Patienten zeigten einen sehr ty¬pischen Phänotyp. SLX4 (FANCP) scheint eine entscheidende Rolle bei der Exzision von DNA-Quervernetzungen zu spielen, indem es die Funktion oder richtige Positionierung von Struktur-spezifischen Nukleasen koordiniert. Eine dieser Nukleasen ist das Heterodimer XPF/ERCC1. XPF liegt wahrscheinlich der Komplementationsgruppe FA-Q zugrunde und ist das erste FA-Gen, das mittels Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) identifiziert wurde. Interessanterweise wurde es zuvor bereits als genetische Ursache von Xeroderma pigmentosum und segmentärer Progerie beschrieben. Diese Studie konnte jedoch belegen, dass die jeweiligen Mutationen die Proteinfunktion derart unterschiedlich beeinflussen, dass es tatsächlich zur Ausprägung von drei divergenten Phänotypen kommen kann. Neben der Kandidatengensuche war ein weiteres Ziel dieser Arbeit die Implementierung neuer Techniken für die FA-Genotypisierung. Klassische Methoden der Molekulargenetik sollten hier¬für durch Anwendungen des NGS ergänzt oder gänzlich ersetzt werden. Die Hochdurchsatz- Sequenzierung des gesamten Exoms erwies sich als geeignet und kann Komplementationsgrup¬pen-Zuordnung und Mutationsanalyse in einem Schritt vereinen. Durch die Etablierung einer FA-spezifischen bioinformatischen Datenanalyse konnte im Rahmen dieser Arbeit der genetische Defekt bereits mehrerer Patienten aufgeklärt werden. Im Besonderen konnte ein weiterer Patient der neuen, noch wenig charakterisierten Untergruppe FA-P zugeordnet werden. Insgesamt trug diese Arbeit also nicht nur zur weiteren Vervollständigung des FA/BRCA-Re-paraturweges bei, indem drei neue FA-Gene hinzugefügt wurden; sie zeigte außerdem, dass klas¬sische Methoden der Molekulargenetik sowohl in Forschung als auch Diagnostik künftig durch das NGS ersetzt werden könnten. KW - Fanconi Anämie KW - DNA Reparatur KW - DNS-Reparatur KW - Fanconi Anemia KW - DNA repair KW - Next generation sequencing Y1 - 2012 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-85515 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Bahena, Paulina A1 - Daftarian, Narsis A1 - Maroofian, Reza A1 - Linares, Paola A1 - Villalobos, Daniel A1 - Mirrahimi, Mehraban A1 - Rad, Aboulfazl A1 - Doll, Julia A1 - Hofrichter, Michaela A. H. A1 - Koparir, Asuman A1 - Röder, Tabea A1 - Han, Seungbin A1 - Sabbaghi, Hamideh A1 - Ahmadieh, Hamid A1 - Behboudi, Hassan A1 - Villanueva-Mendoza, Cristina A1 - Cortés-Gonzalez, Vianney A1 - Zamora-Ortiz, Rocio A1 - Kohl, Susanne A1 - Kuehlewein, Laura A1 - Darvish, Hossein A1 - Alehabib, Elham A1 - La Arenas-Sordo, Maria de Luz A1 - Suri, Fatemeh A1 - Vona, Barbara A1 - Haaf, Thomas T1 - Unraveling the genetic complexities of combined retinal dystrophy and hearing impairment JF - Human Genetics N2 - Usher syndrome, the most prevalent cause of combined hereditary vision and hearing impairment, is clinically and genetically heterogeneous. Moreover, several conditions with phenotypes overlapping Usher syndrome have been described. This makes the molecular diagnosis of hereditary deaf-blindness challenging. Here, we performed exome sequencing and analysis on 7 Mexican and 52 Iranian probands with combined retinal degeneration and hearing impairment (without intellectual disability). Clinical assessment involved ophthalmological examination and hearing loss questionnaire. Usher syndrome, most frequently due to biallelic variants in MYO7A (USH1B in 16 probands), USH2A (17 probands), and ADGRV1 (USH2C in 7 probands), was diagnosed in 44 of 59 (75%) unrelated probands. Almost half of the identified variants were novel. Nine of 59 (15%) probands displayed other genetic entities with dual sensory impairment, including Alström syndrome (3 patients), cone-rod dystrophy and hearing loss 1 (2 probands), and Heimler syndrome (1 patient). Unexpected findings included one proband each with Scheie syndrome, coenzyme Q10 deficiency, and pseudoxanthoma elasticum. In four probands, including three Usher cases, dual sensory impairment was either modified/aggravated or caused by variants in distinct genes associated with retinal degeneration and/or hearing loss. The overall diagnostic yield of whole exome analysis in our deaf-blind cohort was 92%. Two (3%) probands were partially solved and only 3 (5%) remained without any molecular diagnosis. In many cases, the molecular diagnosis is important to guide genetic counseling, to support prognostic outcomes and decisions with currently available and evolving treatment modalities. KW - Usher syndrome KW - hearing impairment KW - combined retinal dystrophy Y1 - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-267750 SN - 1432-1203 VL - 141 IS - 3-4 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lorenz, Delia A1 - Musacchio, Thomas A1 - Kunstmann, Erdmute A1 - Grauer, Eva A1 - Pluta, Natalie A1 - Stock, Annika A1 - Speer, Christian P. A1 - Hebestreit, Helge T1 - A case report of Sanfilippo syndrome - the long way to diagnosis JF - BMC Neurology N2 - Background Mucopolysaccharidosis type III (Sanfilippo syndrome) is a lysosomal storage disorder, caused by a deficiency in the heparan-N-sulfatase enzyme involved in the catabolism of the glycosaminoglycan heparan sulfate. It is characterized by early nonspecific neuropsychiatric symptoms, followed by progressive neurocognitive impairment in combination with only mild somatic features. In this patient group with a broad clinical spectrum a significant genotype-phenotype correlation with some mutations leading to a slower progressive, attenuated course has been demonstrated. Case presentation Our patient had complications in the neonatal period and was diagnosed with Mucopolysaccharidosis IIIa only at the age of 28 years. He was compound heterozygous for the variants p.R245H and p.S298P, the latter having been shown to lead to a significantly milder phenotype. Conclusions The diagnostic delay is even more prolonged in this patient population with comorbidities and a slowly progressive course of the disease. KW - Mucopolysaccharidosis IIIa KW - diagnostic delay KW - genotype-phenotype correlation KW - p.S298P KW - p.R245H Y1 - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-300465 VL - 22 IS - 1 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Doll, Julia A1 - Kolb, Susanne A1 - Schnapp, Linda A1 - Rad, Aboulfazl A1 - Rüschendorf, Franz A1 - Khan, Imran A1 - Adli, Abolfazl A1 - Hasanzadeh, Atefeh A1 - Liedtke, Daniel A1 - Knaup, Sabine A1 - Hofrichter, Michaela AH A1 - Müller, Tobias A1 - Dittrich, Marcus A1 - Kong, Il-Keun A1 - Kim, Hyung-Goo A1 - Haaf, Thomas A1 - Vona, Barbara T1 - Novel loss-of-function variants in CDC14A are associated with recessive sensorineural hearing loss in Iranian and Pakistani patients JF - International Journal of Molecular Sciences N2 - CDC14A encodes the Cell Division Cycle 14A protein and has been associated with autosomal recessive non-syndromic hearing loss (DFNB32), as well as hearing impairment and infertile male syndrome (HIIMS) since 2016. To date, only nine variants have been associated in patients whose initial symptoms included moderate-to-profound hearing impairment. Exome analysis of Iranian and Pakistani probands who both showed bilateral, sensorineural hearing loss revealed a novel splice site variant (c.1421+2T>C, p.?) that disrupts the splice donor site and a novel frameshift variant (c.1041dup, p.Ser348Glnfs*2) in the gene CDC14A, respectively. To evaluate the pathogenicity of both loss-of-function variants, we analyzed the effects of both variants on the RNA-level. The splice variant was characterized using a minigene assay. Altered expression levels due to the c.1041dup variant were assessed using RT-qPCR. In summary, cDNA analysis confirmed that the c.1421+2T>C variant activates a cryptic splice site, resulting in a truncated transcript (c.1414_1421del, p.Val472Leufs*20) and the c.1041dup variant results in a defective transcript that is likely degraded by nonsense-mediated mRNA decay. The present study functionally characterizes two variants and provides further confirmatory evidence that CDC14A is associated with a rare form of hereditary hearing loss. KW - CDC14A KW - DFNB32 KW - autosomal recessive hearing loss KW - exome sequencing KW - splicing KW - frameshift KW - non-sense mediated mRNA decay Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-285142 SN - 1422-0067 VL - 21 IS - 1 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rolfes, Muriel A1 - Borde, Julika A1 - Möllenhoff, Kathrin A1 - Kayali, Mohamad A1 - Ernst, Corinna A1 - Gehrig, Andrea A1 - Sutter, Christian A1 - Ramser, Juliane A1 - Niederacher, Dieter A1 - Horváth, Judit A1 - Arnold, Norbert A1 - Meindl, Alfons A1 - Auber, Bernd A1 - Rump, Andreas A1 - Wang-Gohrke, Shan A1 - Ritter, Julia A1 - Hentschel, Julia A1 - Thiele, Holger A1 - Altmüller, Janine A1 - Nürnberg, Peter A1 - Rhiem, Kerstin A1 - Engel, Christoph A1 - Wappenschmidt, Barbara A1 - Schmutzler, Rita K. A1 - Hahnen, Eric A1 - Hauke, Jan T1 - Prevalence of cancer predisposition germline variants in male breast cancer patients: results of the German Consortium for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer JF - Cancers N2 - Male breast cancer (mBC) is associated with a high prevalence of pathogenic variants (PVs) in the BRCA2 gene; however, data regarding other BC predisposition genes are limited. In this retrospective multicenter study, we investigated the prevalence of PVs in BRCA1/2 and 23 non-BRCA1/2 genes using a sample of 614 patients with mBC, recruited through the centers of the German Consortium for Hereditary Breast and Ovarian Cancer. A high proportion of patients with mBC carried PVs in BRCA2 (23.0%, 142/614) and BRCA1 (4.6%, 28/614). The prevalence of BRCA1/2 PVs was 11.0% in patients with mBC without a family history of breast and/or ovarian cancer. Patients with BRCA1/2 PVs did not show an earlier disease onset than those without. The predominant clinical presentation of tumor phenotypes was estrogen receptor (ER)-positive, progesterone receptor (PR)-positive, and HER2-negative (77.7%); further, 10.2% of the tumors were triple-positive, and 1.2% were triple-negative. No association was found between ER/PR/HER2 status and BRCA1/2 PV occurrence. Comparing the prevalence of protein-truncating variants (PTVs) between patients with mBC and control data (ExAC, n = 27,173) revealed significant associations of PTVs in both BRCA1 and BRCA2 with mBC (BRCA1: OR = 17.04, 95% CI = 10.54–26.82, p < 10\(^{−5}\); BRCA2: OR = 77.71, 95% CI = 58.71–102.33, p < 10\(^{−5}\)). A case-control investigation of 23 non-BRCA1/2 genes in 340 BRCA1/2-negative patients and ExAC controls revealed significant associations of PTVs in CHEK2, PALB2, and ATM with mBC (CHEK2: OR = 3.78, 95% CI = 1.59–7.71, p = 0.002; PALB2: OR = 14.77, 95% CI = 5.02–36.02, p < 10\(^{−5}\); ATM: OR = 3.36, 95% CI = 0.89–8.96, p = 0.04). Overall, our findings support the benefit of multi-gene panel testing in patients with mBC irrespective of their family history, age at disease onset, and tumor phenotype. KW - breast neoplasms KW - male breast cancer KW - breast cancer predisposition genes KW - genetic testing KW - familial breast cancer Y1 - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-281758 SN - 2072-6694 VL - 14 IS - 13 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Blein, Sophie A1 - Bardel, Claire A1 - Danjean, Vincent A1 - McGuffog, Lesley A1 - Healay, Sue A1 - Barrowdale, Daniel A1 - Lee, Andrew A1 - Dennis, Joe A1 - Kuchenbaecker, Karoline B. A1 - Soucy, Penny A1 - Terry, Mary Beth A1 - Chung, Wendy K. A1 - Goldgar, David E. A1 - Buys, Saundra S. A1 - Janavicius, Ramunas A1 - Tihomirova, Laima A1 - Tung, Nadine A1 - Dorfling, Cecilia M. A1 - van Rensburg, Elizabeth J. A1 - Neuhausen, Susan L. A1 - Ding, Yuan Chun A1 - Gerdes, Anne-Marie A1 - Ejlertsen, Bent A1 - Nielsen, Finn C. A1 - Hansen, Thomas V. O. A1 - Osorio, Ana A1 - Benitez, Javier A1 - Andreas Conejero, Raquel A1 - Segota, Ena A1 - Weitzel, Jeffrey N. A1 - Thelander, Margo A1 - Peterlongo, Paolo A1 - Radice, Paolo A1 - Pensotti, Valeria A1 - Dolcetti, Riccardo A1 - Bonanni, Bernardo A1 - Peissel, Bernard A1 - Zaffaroni, Daniela A1 - Scuvera, Giulietta A1 - Manoukian, Siranoush A1 - Varesco, Liliana A1 - Capone, Gabriele L. A1 - Papi, Laura A1 - Ottini, Laura A1 - Yannoukakos, Drakoulis A1 - Konstantopoulou, Irene A1 - Garber, Judy A1 - Hamann, Ute A1 - Donaldson, Alan A1 - Brady, Angela A1 - Brewer, Carole A1 - Foo, Claire A1 - Evans, D. Gareth A1 - Frost, Debra A1 - Eccles, Diana A1 - Douglas, Fiona A1 - Cook, Jackie A1 - Adlard, Julian A1 - Barwell, Julian A1 - Walker, Lisa A1 - Izatt, Louise A1 - Side, Lucy E. A1 - Kennedy, M. John A1 - Tischkowitz, Marc A1 - Rogers, Mark T. A1 - Porteous, Mary E. A1 - Morrison, Patrick J. A1 - Platte, Radka A1 - Eeles, Ros A1 - Davidson, Rosemarie A1 - Hodgson, Shirley A1 - Cole, Trevor A1 - Godwin, Andrew K A1 - Isaacs, Claudine A1 - Claes, Kathleen A1 - De Leeneer, Kim A1 - Meindl, Alfons A1 - Gehrig, Andrea A1 - Wappenschmidt, Barbara A1 - Sutter, Christian A1 - Engel, Christoph A1 - Niederacher, Dieter A1 - Steinemann, Doris A1 - Plendl, Hansjoerg A1 - Kast, Karin A1 - Rhiem, Kerstin A1 - Ditsch, Nina A1 - Arnold, Norbert A1 - Varon-Mateeva, Raymonda A1 - Schmutzler, Rita K. A1 - Preisler-Adams, Sabine A1 - Markov, Nadja Bogdanova A1 - Wang-Gohrke, Shan A1 - de Pauw, Antoine A1 - Lefol, Cedrick A1 - Lasset, Christine A1 - Leroux, Dominique A1 - Rouleau, Etienne A1 - Damiola, Francesca A1 - Dreyfus, Helene A1 - Barjhoux, Laure A1 - Golmard, Lisa A1 - Uhrhammer, Nancy A1 - Bonadona, Valerie A1 - Sornin, Valerie A1 - Bignon, Yves-Jean A1 - Carter, Jonathan A1 - Van Le, Linda A1 - Piedmonte, Marion A1 - DiSilvestro, Paul A. A1 - de la Hoya, Miguel A1 - Caldes, Trinidad A1 - Nevanlinna, Heli A1 - Aittomäki, Kristiina A1 - Jager, Agnes A1 - van den Ouweland, Ans M. W. A1 - Kets, Carolien M. A1 - Aalfs, Cora M. A1 - van Leeuwen, Flora E. A1 - Hogervorst, Frans B. L. A1 - Meijers-Heijboer, Hanne E. J. A1 - Oosterwijk, Jan C. A1 - van Roozendaal, Kees E. P. A1 - Rookus, Matti A. A1 - Devilee, Peter A1 - van der Luijt, Rob B. A1 - Olah, Edith A1 - Diez, Orland A1 - Teule, Alex A1 - Lazaro, Conxi A1 - Blanco, Ignacio A1 - Del Valle, Jesus A1 - Jakubowska, Anna A1 - Sukiennicki, Grzegorz A1 - Gronwald, Jacek A1 - Spurdle, Amanda B. A1 - Foulkes, William A1 - Olswold, Curtis A1 - Lindor, Noralene M. A1 - Pankratz, Vernon S. A1 - Szabo, Csilla I. A1 - Lincoln, Anne A1 - Jacobs, Lauren A1 - Corines, Marina A1 - Robson, Mark A1 - Vijai, Joseph A1 - Berger, Andreas A1 - Fink-Retter, Anneliese A1 - Singer, Christian F. A1 - Rappaport, Christine A1 - Geschwantler Kaulich, Daphne A1 - Pfeiler, Georg A1 - Tea, Muy-Kheng A1 - Greene, Mark H. A1 - Mai, Phuong L. A1 - Rennert, Gad A1 - Imyanitov, Evgeny N. A1 - Mulligan, Anna Marie A1 - Glendon, Gord A1 - Andrulis, Irene L. A1 - Tchatchou, Andrine A1 - Toland, Amanda Ewart A1 - Pedersen, Inge Sokilde A1 - Thomassen, Mads A1 - Kruse, Torben A. A1 - Jensen, Uffe Birk A1 - Caligo, Maria A. A1 - Friedman, Eitan A1 - Zidan, Jamal A1 - Laitman, Yael A1 - Lindblom, Annika A1 - Melin, Beatrice A1 - Arver, Brita A1 - Loman, Niklas A1 - Rosenquist, Richard A1 - Olopade, Olufunmilayo I. A1 - Nussbaum, Robert L. A1 - Ramus, Susan J. A1 - Nathanson, Katherine L. A1 - Domchek, Susan M. A1 - Rebbeck, Timothy R. A1 - Arun, Banu K. A1 - Mitchell, Gillian A1 - Karlan, Bethy Y. A1 - Lester, Jenny A1 - Orsulic, Sandra A1 - Stoppa-Lyonnet, Dominique A1 - Thomas, Gilles A1 - Simard, Jacques A1 - Couch, Fergus J. A1 - Offit, Kenenth A1 - Easton, Douglas F. A1 - Chenevix-Trench, Georgia A1 - Antoniou, Antonis C. A1 - Mazoyer, Sylvie A1 - Phelan, Catherine M. A1 - Sinilnikova, Olga M. A1 - Cox, David G. T1 - An original phylogenetic approach identified mitochondrial haplogroup T1a1 as inversely associated with breast cancer risk in BRCA2 mutation carriers JF - Breast Cancer Research N2 - Introduction: Individuals carrying pathogenic mutations in the BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes have a high lifetime risk of breast cancer. BRCA1 and BRCA2 are involved in DNA double-strand break repair, DNA alterations that can be caused by exposure to reactive oxygen species, a main source of which are mitochondria. Mitochondrial genome variations affect electron transport chain efficiency and reactive oxygen species production. Individuals with different mitochondrial haplogroups differ in their metabolism and sensitivity to oxidative stress. Variability in mitochondrial genetic background can alter reactive oxygen species production, leading to cancer risk. In the present study, we tested the hypothesis that mitochondrial haplogroups modify breast cancer risk in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers. Methods: We genotyped 22,214 (11,421 affected, 10,793 unaffected) mutation carriers belonging to the Consortium of Investigators of Modifiers of BRCA1/2 for 129 mitochondrial polymorphisms using the iCOGS array. Haplogroup inference and association detection were performed using a phylogenetic approach. ALTree was applied to explore the reference mitochondrial evolutionary tree and detect subclades enriched in affected or unaffected individuals. Results: We discovered that subclade T1a1 was depleted in affected BRCA2 mutation carriers compared with the rest of clade T (hazard ratio (HR) = 0.55; 95% confidence interval (CI), 0.34 to 0.88; P = 0.01). Compared with the most frequent haplogroup in the general population (that is, H and T clades), the T1a1 haplogroup has a HR of 0.62 (95% CI, 0.40 to 0.95; P = 0.03). We also identified three potential susceptibility loci, including G13708A/rs28359178, which has demonstrated an inverse association with familial breast cancer risk. Conclusions: This study illustrates how original approaches such as the phylogeny-based method we used can empower classical molecular epidemiological studies aimed at identifying association or risk modification effects. KW - single-nucleotide polymorphisms KW - genetic modifiers KW - oxidative stress KW - consortium KW - multiple diseases KW - DNA KW - haplogroups KW - susceptibility KW - Ovarian KW - variants Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-145458 VL - 17 IS - 61 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Remmele, Christian W. A1 - Luther, Christian H. A1 - Balkenhol, Johannes A1 - Dandekar, Thomas A1 - Müller, Tobias A1 - Dittrich, Marcus T. T1 - Integrated inference and evaluation of host-fungi interaction networks JF - Frontiers in Microbiology N2 - Fungal microorganisms frequently lead to life-threatening infections. Within this group of pathogens, the commensal Candida albicans and the filamentous fungus Aspergillus fumigatus are by far the most important causes of invasive mycoses in Europe. A key capability for host invasion and immune response evasion are specific molecular interactions between the fungal pathogen and its human host. Experimentally validated knowledge about these crucial interactions is rare in literature and even specialized host pathogen databases mainly focus on bacterial and viral interactions whereas information on fungi is still sparse. To establish large-scale host fungi interaction networks on a systems biology scale, we develop an extended inference approach based on protein orthology and data on gene functions. Using human and yeast intraspecies networks as template, we derive a large network of pathogen host interactions (PHI). Rigorous filtering and refinement steps based on cellular localization and pathogenicity information of predicted interactors yield a primary scaffold of fungi human and fungi mouse interaction networks. Specific enrichment of known pathogenicity-relevant genes indicates the biological relevance of the predicted PHI. A detailed inspection of functionally relevant subnetworks reveals novel host fungal interaction candidates such as the Candida virulence factor PLB1 and the anti-fungal host protein APP. Our results demonstrate the applicability of interolog-based prediction methods for host fungi interactions and underline the importance of filtering and refinement steps to attain biologically more relevant interactions. This integrated network framework can serve as a basis for future analyses of high-throughput host fungi transcriptome and proteome data. KW - candida genome database KW - computational prediction KW - potential role KW - network inference KW - bioinformatics and computational biology KW - protein interaction database KW - Aspergillus fumigatus KW - cell wall KW - functional modules KW - alzheimers disease KW - molecular cloning KW - Candida albicans KW - pathogen-host interaction (PHI) KW - protein-protein interaction KW - pathogenicity KW - interolog Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-148278 VL - 6 IS - 764 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Silvestri, Valentina A1 - Barrowdale, Daniel A1 - Mulligan, Anna Marie A1 - Neuhausen, Susan L. A1 - Fox, Stephen A1 - Karlan, Beth Y. A1 - Mitchell, Gillian A1 - James, Paul A1 - Thull, Darcy L. A1 - Zorn, Kristin K. A1 - Carter, Natalie J. A1 - Nathanson, Katherine L. A1 - Domchek, Susan M. A1 - Rebbeck, Timothy R. A1 - Ramus, Susan J. A1 - Nussbaum, Robert L. A1 - Olopade, Olufunmilayo I. A1 - Rantala, Johanna A1 - Yoon, Sook-Yee A1 - Caligo, Maria A. A1 - Spugnesi, Laura A1 - Bojesen, Anders A1 - Pedersen, Inge Sokilde A1 - Thomassen, Mads A1 - Jensen, Uffe Birk A1 - Toland, Amanda Ewart A1 - Senter, Leigha A1 - Andrulis, Irene L. A1 - Glendon, Gord A1 - Hulick, Peter J. A1 - Imyanitov, Evgeny N. A1 - Greene, Mark H. A1 - Mai, Phuong L. A1 - Singer, Christian F. A1 - Rappaport-Fuerhauser, Christine A1 - Kramer, Gero A1 - Vijai, Joseph A1 - Offit, Kenneth A1 - Robson, Mark A1 - Lincoln, Anne A1 - Jacobs, Lauren A1 - Machackova, Eva A1 - Foretova, Lenka A1 - Navratilova, Marie A1 - Vasickova, Petra A1 - Couch, Fergus J. A1 - Hallberg, Emily A1 - Ruddy, Kathryn J. A1 - Sharma, Priyanka A1 - Kim, Sung-Won A1 - Teixeira, Manuel R. A1 - Pinto, Pedro A1 - Montagna, Marco A1 - Matricardi, Laura A1 - Arason, Adalgeir A1 - Johannsson, Oskar Th A1 - Barkardottir, Rosa B. A1 - Jakubowska, Anna A1 - Lubinski, Jan A1 - Izquierdo, Angel A1 - Pujana, Miguel Angel A1 - Balmaña, Judith A1 - Diez, Orland A1 - Ivady, Gabriella A1 - Papp, Janos A1 - Olah, Edith A1 - Kwong, Ava A1 - Nevanlinna, Heli A1 - Aittomäki, Kristiina A1 - Segura, Pedro Perez A1 - Caldes, Trinidad A1 - Van Maerken, Tom A1 - Poppe, Bruce A1 - Claes, Kathleen B. M. A1 - Isaacs, Claudine A1 - Elan, Camille A1 - Lasset, Christine A1 - Stoppa-Lyonnet, Dominique A1 - Barjhoux, Laure A1 - Belotti, Muriel A1 - Meindl, Alfons A1 - Gehrig, Andrea A1 - Sutter, Christian A1 - Engel, Christoph A1 - Niederacher, Dieter A1 - Steinemann, Doris A1 - Hahnen, Eric A1 - Kast, Karin A1 - Arnold, Norbert A1 - Varon-Mateeva, Raymonda A1 - Wand, Dorothea A1 - Godwin, Andrew K. A1 - Evans, D. Gareth A1 - Frost, Debra A1 - Perkins, Jo A1 - Adlard, Julian A1 - Izatt, Louise A1 - Platte, Radka A1 - Eeles, Ros A1 - Ellis, Steve A1 - Hamann, Ute A1 - Garber, Judy A1 - Fostira, Florentia A1 - Fountzilas, George A1 - Pasini, Barbara A1 - Giannini, Giuseppe A1 - Rizzolo, Piera A1 - Russo, Antonio A1 - Cortesi, Laura A1 - Papi, Laura A1 - Varesco, Liliana A1 - Palli, Domenico A1 - Zanna, Ines A1 - Savarese, Antonella A1 - Radice, Paolo A1 - Manoukian, Siranoush A1 - Peissel, Bernard A1 - Barile, Monica A1 - Bonanni, Bernardo A1 - Viel, Alessandra A1 - Pensotti, Valeria A1 - Tommasi, Stefania A1 - Peterlongo, Paolo A1 - Weitzel, Jeffrey N. A1 - Osorio, Ana A1 - Benitez, Javier A1 - McGuffog, Lesley A1 - Healey, Sue A1 - Gerdes, Anne-Marie A1 - Ejlertsen, Bent A1 - Hansen, Thomas V. O. A1 - Steele, Linda A1 - Ding, Yuan Chun A1 - Tung, Nadine A1 - Janavicius, Ramunas A1 - Goldgar, David E. A1 - Buys, Saundra S. A1 - Daly, Mary B. A1 - Bane, Anita A1 - Terry, Mary Beth A1 - John, Esther M. A1 - Southey, Melissa A1 - Easton, Douglas F. A1 - Chenevix-Trench, Georgia A1 - Antoniou, Antonis C. A1 - Ottini, Laura T1 - Male breast cancer in BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation carriers: pathology data from the Consortium of Investigators of Modifiers of BRCA1/2 JF - Breast Cancer Research N2 - Background BRCA1 and, more commonly, BRCA2 mutations are associated with increased risk of male breast cancer (MBC). However, only a paucity of data exists on the pathology of breast cancers (BCs) in men with BRCA1/2 mutations. Using the largest available dataset, we determined whether MBCs arising in BRCA1/2 mutation carriers display specific pathologic features and whether these features differ from those of BRCA1/2 female BCs (FBCs). Methods We characterised the pathologic features of 419 BRCA1/2 MBCs and, using logistic regression analysis, contrasted those with data from 9675 BRCA1/2 FBCs and with population-based data from 6351 MBCs in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) database. Results Among BRCA2 MBCs, grade significantly decreased with increasing age at diagnosis (P = 0.005). Compared with BRCA2 FBCs, BRCA2 MBCs were of significantly higher stage (P for trend = 2 × 10−5) and higher grade (P for trend = 0.005) and were more likely to be oestrogen receptor–positive [odds ratio (OR) 10.59; 95 % confidence interval (CI) 5.15–21.80] and progesterone receptor–positive (OR 5.04; 95 % CI 3.17–8.04). With the exception of grade, similar patterns of associations emerged when we compared BRCA1 MBCs and FBCs. BRCA2 MBCs also presented with higher grade than MBCs from the SEER database (P for trend = 4 × 10−12). Conclusions On the basis of the largest series analysed to date, our results show that BRCA1/2 MBCs display distinct pathologic characteristics compared with BRCA1/2 FBCs, and we identified a specific BRCA2-associated MBC phenotype characterised by a variable suggesting greater biological aggressiveness (i.e., high histologic grade). These findings could lead to the development of gender-specific risk prediction models and guide clinical strategies appropriate for MBC management. KW - Male breast cancer KW - BRCA1/2 KW - Pathology KW - Histologic grade KW - Genotype–phenotype correlations Y1 - 2016 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-164769 VL - 18 IS - 15 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Zaum, Ann‐Kathrin A1 - Nanda, Indrajit A1 - Kress, Wolfram A1 - Rost, Simone T1 - Detection of pericentric inversion with breakpoint in DMD by whole genome sequencing JF - Molecular Genetics & Genomic Medicine N2 - Background Dystrophinopathies caused by variants in the DMD gene are a well‐studied muscle disease. The most common type of variant in DMD are large deletions. Very rarely reported forms of variants are chromosomal translocations, inversions and deep intronic variants (DIVs) because they are not detectable by standard diagnostic techniques (sequencing of coding sequence, copy number variant detection). This might be the reason that some clinically and histologically proven dystrophinopathy cases remain unsolved. Methods We used whole genome sequencing (WGS) to screen the entire DMD gene for variants in one of two brothers suffering from typical muscular dystrophy with strongly elevated creatine kinase levels. Results Although a pathogenic DIV could not be detected, we were able to identify a pericentric inversion with breakpoints in DMD intron 44 and Xq13.3, which could be confirmed by Sanger sequencing in the index as well as in his brother and mother. As this variation affects a major part of DMD it is most likely disease causing. Conclusion Our findings elucidate that WGS is capable of detecting large structural rearrangements and might be suitable for the genetic diagnostics of dystrophinopathies in the future. In particular, inversions might be a more frequent cause for dystrophinopathies as anticipated and should be considered in genetically unsolved dystrophinopathy cases. KW - chromosome inversion KW - Duchenne muscular dystrophy KW - dystrophin KW - genetic diagnostics KW - whole genome sequencing Y1 - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-293940 VL - 10 IS - 10 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Karastaneva, Anna A1 - Lanz, Sofia A1 - Wawer, Angela A1 - Behrends, Uta A1 - Schindler, Detlev A1 - Dietrich, Ralf A1 - Burdach, Stefan A1 - Urban, Christian A1 - Benesch, Martin A1 - Seidel, Markus G. T1 - Immune thrombocytopenia in two unrelated Fanconi anemia patients - a mere coincidence? JF - Frontiers in Pediatrics N2 - Thrombocytopenia and pancytopenia, occurring in patients with Fanconi anemia (FA), are interpreted either as progression to bone marrow failure or as developing myelodysplasia. On the other hand, immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) represents an acquired and often self-limiting benign hematologic disorder, associated with peripheral, immune-mediated, platelet destruction requiring different management modalities than those used in congenital bone marrow failure syndromes, including FA. Here, we describe the clinical course of two independent FA patients with atypical – namely immune – thrombocytopenia. While in one patient belonging to complementation group FA-A, the ITP started at 17 months of age and showed a chronically persisting course with severe purpura, responding well to intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIG) and later also danazol, a synthetic androgen, the other patient (of complementation group FA-D2) had a self-limiting course that resolved after one administration of IVIG. No cytogenetic aberrations or bone marrow abnormalities other than FA-typical mild dysplasia were detected. Our data show that acute and chronic ITP may occur in FA patients and impose individual diagnostic and therapeutic challenges in this rare congenital bone marrow failure/tumor predisposition syndrome. The management and a potential context of immune pathogenesis with the underlying marrow disorder are discussed. KW - immune thrombocytopenia KW - bone marrow failure syndrome KW - Evans syndrome KW - danazol KW - FANCA KW - FANCD2 KW - Fanconi anemia KW - DNA repair defect Y1 - 2015 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-149837 VL - 3 IS - 50 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - König, Kirsten A1 - Pechmann, Astrid A1 - Thiele, Simone A1 - Walter, Maggie C. A1 - Schorling, David A1 - Tassoni, Adrian A1 - Lochmüller, Hanns A1 - Müller-Reible, Clemens A1 - Kirschner, Janbernd T1 - De-duplicating patient records from three independent data sources reveals the incidence of rare neuromuscular disorders in Germany JF - Orphanet Journal of Rare Diseases N2 - Background Estimation of incidence in rare diseases is often challenging due to unspecific and incomplete coding and recording systems. Patient- and health care provider-driven data collections are held with different organizations behind firewalls to protect the privacy of patients. They tend to be fragmented, incomplete and their aggregation leads to further inaccuracies, as the duplicated records cannot easily be identified. We here report about a novel approach to evaluate the incidences of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) and spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in Germany. Methods We performed a retrospective epidemiological study collecting data from patients with dystrophinopathies (DMD and Becker muscular dystrophy) and SMA born between 1995 and 2018. We invited all neuromuscular centers, genetic institutes and the patient registries for DMD and SMA in Germany to participate in the data collection. A novel web-based application for data entry was developed converting patient identifying information into a hash code. Duplicate entries were reliably allocated to the distinct patient. Results We collected 5409 data entries in our web-based database representing 1955 distinct patients with dystrophinopathies and 1287 patients with SMA. 55.0% of distinct patients were found in one of the 3 data sources only, while 32.0% were found in 2, and 13.0% in all 3 data sources. The highest number of SMA patients was reported by genetic testing laboratories, while for DMD the highest number was reported by the clinical specialist centers. After the removal of duplicate records, the highest yearly incidence for DMD was calculated as 2.57:10,000 in 2001 and the highest incidence for SMA as 1.36:10,000 in 2014. Conclusion With our novel approach (compliant with data protection regulations), we were able to identify unique patient records and estimate the incidence of DMD and SMA in Germany combining and de-duplicating data from patient registries, genetic institutes, and clinical care centers. Although we combined three different data sources, an unknown number of patients might not have been reported by any of these sources. Therefore, our results reflect the minimal incidence of these diseases. KW - incidence KW - neuromuscular disease KW - spinal muscular atrophy KW - duchenne muscular dystrophy Y1 - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-222807 VL - 14 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Sepahi, Ilnaz A1 - Faust, Ulrike A1 - Sturm, Marc A1 - Bosse, Kristin A1 - Kehrer, Martin A1 - Heinrich, Tilman A1 - Grundman-Hauser, Kathrin A1 - Bauer, Peter A1 - Ossowski, Stephan A1 - Susak, Hana A1 - Varon, Raymonda A1 - Schröck, Evelin A1 - Niederacher, Dieter A1 - Auber, Bernd A1 - Sutter, Christian A1 - Arnold, Norbert A1 - Hahnen, Eric A1 - Dworniczak, Bernd A1 - Wang-Gorke, Shan A1 - Gehrig, Andrea A1 - Weber, Bernhard H. F. A1 - Engel, Christoph A1 - Lemke, Johannes R. A1 - Hartkopf, Andreas A1 - Huu Phuc, Nguyen A1 - Riess, Olaf A1 - Schroeder, Christopher T1 - Investigating the effects of additional truncating variants in DNA-repair genes on breast cancer risk in BRCA1-positive women JF - BMC Cancer N2 - Background Inherited pathogenic variants in BRCA1 and BRCA2 are the most common causes of hereditary breast and ovarian cancer (HBOC). The risk of developing breast cancer by age 80 in women carrying a BRCA1 pathogenic variant is 72%. The lifetime risk varies between families and even within affected individuals of the same family. The cause of this variability is largely unknown, but it is hypothesized that additional genetic factors contribute to differences in age at onset (AAO). Here we investigated whether truncating and rare missense variants in genes of different DNA-repair pathways contribute to this phenomenon. Methods We used extreme phenotype sampling to recruit 133 BRCA1-positive patients with either early breast cancer onset, below 35 (early AAO cohort) or cancer-free by age 60 (controls). Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) was used to screen for variants in 311 genes involved in different DNA-repair pathways. Results Patients with an early AAO (73 women) had developed breast cancer at a median age of 27 years (interquartile range (IQR); 25.00–27.00 years). A total of 3703 variants were detected in all patients and 43 of those (1.2%) were truncating variants. The truncating variants were found in 26 women of the early AAO group (35.6%; 95%-CI 24.7 - 47.7%) compared to 16 women of controls (26.7%; 95%-CI 16.1 to 39.7%). When adjusted for environmental factors and family history, the odds ratio indicated an increased breast cancer risk for those carrying an additional truncating DNA-repair variant to BRCA1 mutation (OR: 3.1; 95%-CI 0.92 to 11.5; p-value = 0.07), although it did not reach the conventionally acceptable significance level of 0.05. Conclusions To our knowledge this is the first time that the combined effect of truncating variants in DNA-repair genes on AAO in patients with hereditary breast cancer is investigated. Our results indicate that co-occurring truncating variants might be associated with an earlier onset of breast cancer in BRCA1-positive patients. Larger cohorts are needed to confirm these results. KW - breast cancer KW - age at onset KW - DNA-repair genes KW - next-generation-sequencing KW - panel sequencing KW - extreme phenotypes KW - hereditary breast and ovarian cancer KW - BRCA1 KW - DNA-repair Y1 - 2019 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-237676 VL - 19 ER - TY - THES A1 - Prell, Andreas T1 - The effects of paternal age on DNA methylation of developmentally important genes in human and bovine sperm T1 - Der väterliche Alterseffekt auf DNA-Methylierung in entwicklungsrelevanten Genen im menschlichen und bovinen Spermienepigenom N2 - Western societies are steadily becoming older undergoing a clear trend of delayed parenthood. Children of older fathers have an undeniably higher risk for certain neurodevelopmental disorders and other medical conditions. Changes in the epigenetic landscape and especially in DNA methylation patterns are likely to account for a portion of this inherited disease susceptibility. DNA methylation changes during the ageing process are a well-known epigenetic feature. These so-called age-DMRs exist in developmentally important genes in the methylome of several mammalian species. However, there is only a minor overlap between the age-DMR datasets of different studies. We therefore replicated age-DMRs (which were obtained from a genome wide technique) by applying a different technical approach in a larger sample number. Here, this study confirmed 10 age-DMRs in the human and 4 in the bovine sperm epigenome from a preliminary candidate list based on RRBS. For this purpose, we used bisulphite Pyrosequencing in 94 human and 36 bovine sperm samples. These Pyrosequencing results confirm RRBS as an effective and reliable method to screen for age-DMRs in the vertebrate genome. To decipher whether paternal age effects are an evolutionary conserved feature of mammalian development, we compared methylation patterns between human and bovine sperm in orthologous regulatory regions. We discovered that the level of methylation and the age effect are both species-specific and speculate that these methylation marks reflect the lineage-specific development of each species to hit evolutionary requirements and adaptation processes. Different methylation levels between species in developmentally important genes also imply a differing mutational burden, representing a potential driver for point mutations and consequently deviations in the underlying DNA sequence of different species. Using the example of different haplotypes, this study showed the great effect of single base variations on the methylation of adjacent CpGs. Nonetheless, this study could not provide further evidence or a mechanism for the transfer of epigenetic marks to future generations. Therefore, further research in tissues from the progeny of old and young fathers is required to determine if the observed methylation changes are transmitted to the next generation and if they are associated with altered transcriptional activity of the respective genes. This could provide a direct link between the methylome of sperm from elderly fathers and the development potential of the next generation. N2 - Unsere westliche Gesellschaft wird immer älter und unterliegt einem eindeutigen Trend zur verzögerten Elternschaft. Kinder von älteren Vätern haben ein unbestreitbar höheres Risiko für bestimmte neurologische Entwicklungsstörungen und andere Erkrankungen. Epigenetische Veränderungen insbesondere im DNA-Methylierungsmuster sind wahrscheinlich für einen Teil dieser vererbten Krankheitsanfälligkeit verantwortlich. Altersbedingte Veränderungen im DNA-Methylierungsmuster sind ein bekanntes und gut erforschtes Phänomen in der Epigenetik. Diese so genannten Alters-DMRs konnten im Methylom mehrerer Säugetierarten nachgewiesen werden, insbesondere in entwicklungsrelevanten Genen. Allerdings gibt es nur geringe Überschneidungen zwischen den Alters-DMR-Datensätzen verschiedener Studien. Unser Ziel war es daher, die Vertrauenswürdigkeit eines laborinternen Datensatzes, der auf Reduced Representation Bisulphite Sequencing (RRBS) basierte, zu erhöhen, indem wir einen anderen technischen Ansatz in einer unabhängigen Kohorte anwenden. Mit der Methode des Bisulphite Pyrosequencing konnten wir in dieser Studie 10 Alters-DMRs im menschlichen und 4 im Rinder-Spermienepigenom aus einer vorläufigen Kandidatenliste basierend auf RRBS validieren. Diese Ergebnisse bestätigen, dass RRBS eine wirksame und zuverlässige Methode ist, um neue Alters-DMRs im Wirbeltiergenom zu finden. Um festzustellen, ob väterliche Alterseffekte in der Evolution verschiedener Säugetierarten konserviert wurden, verglichen wir die Methylierungsmuster orthologer Regionen zwischen dem menschlichem und dem Rinderspermienepigenom. Es zeigte sich, dass sowohl der Methylierungsgrad als auch der Alterseffekt artspezifisch sind. Daher vermuten wir, dass diese Methylierungsmuster die artspezifische Entwicklung als Antwort auf evolutionäre Anforderungen und durchlebte Anpassungsprozesse darstellen. Diese unterschiedlichen Methylierungslevel zwischen verschiedenen Arten in entwicklungswichtigen Genen implizieren auch eine unterschiedliche Mutationslast, die einen potenziellen Treiber für Punktmutationen und folglich Abweichungen in der zugrunde liegenden DNA-Sequenz der verschiedenen Arten darstellt. Am Beispiel verschiedener Haplotypen konnten wir exemplarisch den ausgeprägten Einfluss bereits einzelner DNA-Basenvariationen auf die Methylierung benachbarter CpGs demonstrieren. Allerdings konnte diese Studie keinen weiteren Beweis oder einen Mechanismus für die Übertragung von epigenetischen Markierungen auf künftige Generationen liefern. Daher sind weitere Untersuchungen an embryonalen, fötalen und adulten Geweben von Nachkommen alter bzw. junger Väter unabdingbar, um festzustellen, ob die beobachteten Methylierungsveränderungen auch auf die nächste Generation übertragen werden. Ferner ist festzustellen, ob sie die Transkriptionsaktivität der betroffenen Gene beeinflussen. Dies könnte einen direkten Einfluss des Spermienmethyloms älterer Väter auf das Entwicklungspotenzial der nächsten Generation belegen. KW - Epigenetik KW - Spermium KW - Methylierung KW - DNA-Methylation KW - Paternal age effect Y1 - 2024 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-347866 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Nanda, Indrajit A1 - Steinlein, Claus A1 - Haaf, Thomas A1 - Buhl, Eva M. A1 - Grimm, Domink G. A1 - Friedman, Scott L. A1 - Meurer, Steffen K. A1 - Schröder, Sarah K. A1 - Weiskirchen, Ralf T1 - Genetic characterization of rat hepatic stellate cell line HSC-T6 for in vitro cell line authentication JF - Cells N2 - Immortalized hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) established from mouse, rat, and humans are valuable in vitro models for the biomedical investigation of liver biology. These cell lines are homogenous, thereby providing consistent and reproducible results. They grow more robustly than primary HSCs and provide an unlimited supply of proteins or nucleic acids for biochemical studies. Moreover, they can overcome ethical concerns associated with the use of animal and human tissue and allow for fostering of the 3R principle of replacement, reduction, and refinement proposed in 1959 by William M. S. Russell and Rex L. Burch. Nevertheless, working with continuous cell lines also has some disadvantages. In particular, there are ample examples in which genetic drift and cell misidentification has led to invalid data. Therefore, many journals and granting agencies now recommend proper cell line authentication. We herein describe the genetic characterization of the rat HSC line HSC-T6, which was introduced as a new in vitro model for the study of retinoid metabolism. The consensus chromosome markers, outlined primarily through multicolor spectral karyotyping (SKY), demonstrate that apart from the large derivative chromosome 1 (RNO1), at least two additional chromosomes (RNO4 and RNO7) are found to be in three copies in all metaphases. Additionally, we have defined a short tandem repeat (STR) profile for HSC-T6, including 31 species-specific markers. The typical features of these cells have been further determined by electron microscopy, Western blotting, and Rhodamine-Phalloidin staining. Finally, we have analyzed the transcriptome of HSC-T6 cells by mRNA sequencing (mRNA-Seq) using next generation sequencing (NGS). KW - liver KW - extracellular matrix KW - hepatic stellate cell KW - myofibroblast KW - fibrosis KW - in vitro model KW - SKY analysis KW - phalloidin stain KW - next generation sequencing KW - STR profile Y1 - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-275178 SN - 2073-4409 VL - 11 IS - 11 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Maierhofer, Anna A1 - Flunkert, Julia A1 - Dittrich, Marcus A1 - Müller, Tobias A1 - Schindler, Detlev A1 - Nanda, Indrajit A1 - Haaf, Thomas T1 - Analysis of global DNA methylation changes in primary human fibroblasts in the early phase following X-ray irradiation JF - PLoS ONE N2 - Epigenetic alterations may contribute to the generation of cancer cells in a multi-step process of tumorigenesis following irradiation of normal body cells. Primary human fibroblasts with intact cell cycle checkpoints were used as a model to test whether X-ray irradiation with 2 and 4 Gray induces direct epigenetic effects (within the first cell cycle) in the exposed cells. ELISA-based fluorometric assays were consistent with slightly reduced global DNA methylation and hydroxymethylation, however the observed between-group differences were usually not significant. Similarly, bisulfite pyrosequencing of interspersed LINE-1 repeats and centromeric α-satellite DNA did not detect significant methylation differences between irradiated and non-irradiated cultures. Methylation of interspersed ALU repeats appeared to be slightly increased (one percentage point; p = 0.01) at 6 h after irradiation with 4 Gy. Single-cell analysis showed comparable variations in repeat methylation among individual cells in both irradiated and control cultures. Radiation-induced changes in global repeat methylation, if any, were much smaller than methylation variation between different fibroblast strains. Interestingly, α-satellite DNA methylation positively correlated with gestational age. Finally, 450K methylation arrays mainly targeting genes and CpG islands were used for global DNA methylation analysis. There were no detectable methylation differences in genic (promoter, 5' UTR, first exon, gene body, 3' UTR) and intergenic regions between irradiated and control fibroblast cultures. Although we cannot exclude minor effects, i.e. on individual CpG sites, collectively our data suggest that global DNA methylation remains rather stable in irradiated normal body cells in the early phase of DNA damage response. KW - DNA methylation KW - fibroblasts KW - methylation KW - alu elements KW - DNA damage KW - epigenetics KW - cancer treatment Y1 - 2017 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-170895 VL - 12 IS - 5 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Rickert, V. A1 - Wagenhäuser, L. A1 - Nordbeck, P. A1 - Wanner, C. A1 - Sommer, C. A1 - Rost, S. A1 - Üçeyler, N. T1 - Stratification of Fabry mutations in clinical practice: a closer look at α‐galactosidase A‐3D structure JF - Journal of Internal Medicine N2 - Background Fabry disease (FD) is an X‐linked lysosomal storage and multi‐system disorder due to mutations in the α‐galactosidase A (α‐GalA) gene. We investigated the impact of individual amino acid exchanges in the α‐GalA 3D‐structure on the clinical phenotype of FD patients. Patients and methods We enrolled 80 adult FD patients with α‐GalA missense mutations and stratified them into three groups based on the amino acid exchange location in the α‐GalA 3D‐structure: patients with active site mutations, buried mutations and other mutations. Patient subgroups were deep phenotyped for clinical and laboratory parameters and FD‐specific treatment. Results Patients with active site or buried mutations showed a severe phenotype with multi‐organ involvement and early disease manifestation. Patients with other mutations had a milder phenotype with less organ impairment and later disease onset. α‐GalA activity was lower in patients with active site or buried mutations than in those with other mutations (P < 0.01 in men; P < 0.05 in women) whilst lyso‐Gb3 levels were higher (P < 0.01 in men; <0.05 in women). Conclusions The type of amino acid exchange location in the α‐GalA 3D‐structure determines disease severity and temporal course of symptom onset. Patient stratification using this parameter may become a useful tool in the management of FD patients. KW - Fabry disease KW - Fabry genotype KW - Fabry phenotype KW - lyso‐Gb3 KW - α‐GalA 3D‐structure Y1 - 2020 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-218125 VL - 288 IS - 5 SP - 593 EP - 604 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Flemming, Sven A1 - Hankir, Mohammed K. A1 - Kusan, Simon A1 - Krone, Manuel A1 - Anger, Friedrich A1 - Germer, Christoph-Thomas A1 - Wiegering, Armin T1 - Safety of elective abdominal and vascular surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic: a retrospective single-center study JF - European Journal of Medical Research N2 - Background Patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) who undergo surgery have impaired postoperative outcomes and increased mortality. Consequently, elective and semi-urgent operations on the increasing number of patients severely affected by COVID-19 have been indefinitely postponed.in many countries with unclear implications on disease progression and overall survival. The purpose of this study was to evaluate whether the establishment of a standardized screening program for acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is sufficient to ensure high-quality medical and surgical treatment of COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients while minimizing in-hospital SARS-CoV-2 transmission. Methods The screening program comprised polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing of nasopharyngeal swabs and a standardized questionnaire about potential symptoms for SARS-CoV-2 infection. All elective and emergency patients admitted to the surgical department of a tertiary-care hospital center in Lower Franconia, Germany, between March and May 2020 were included and their characteristics were recorded. Results Out of the study population (n = 657), 509 patients (77.5%) had at least one risk factor for a potentially severe course of COVID-19 and 164 patients (25%) were active smokers. The average 7-day incidence in Lower Franconia was 24.0/100,000 during the observation period. Preoperative PCR testing revealed four asymptomatic positive patients out of the 657 tested patients. No postoperative SARS-CoV-2 infection or transmission could be detected. Conclusion The implementation of a standardized preoperative screening program to both COVID-19 and non-COVID-19 patients can ensure high-quality surgical care while minimizing infection risk for healthcare workers and potential in-hospital transmission. KW - SARS-CoV-2 KW - COVID-19 KW - elective surgery KW - screening KW - PCR Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-264975 VL - 26 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Janz, Anna A1 - Zink, Miriam A1 - Cirnu, Alexandra A1 - Hartleb, Annika A1 - Albrecht, Christina A1 - Rost, Simone A1 - Klopocki, Eva A1 - Günther, Katharina A1 - Edenhofer, Frank A1 - Ergün, Süleyman A1 - Gerull, Brenda T1 - CRISPR/Cas9-edited PKP2 knock-out (JMUi001-A-2) and DSG2 knock-out (JMUi001-A-3) iPSC lines as an isogenic human model system for arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM) JF - Stem Cell Research N2 - Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy (ACM) is characterized by fibro-fatty replacement of the myocardium, heart failure and life-threatening ventricular arrhythmias. Causal mutations were identified in genes encoding for proteins of the desmosomes, predominantly plakophilin-2 (PKP2) and desmoglein-2 (DSG2). We generated gene-edited knock-out iPSC lines for PKP2 (JMUi001-A-2) and DSG2 (JMUi001-A-3) using the CRISPR/Cas9 system in a healthy control iPSC background (JMUi001A). Stem cell-like morphology, robust expression of pluripotency markers, embryoid body formation and normal karyotypes confirmed the generation of high quality iPSCs to provide a novel isogenic human in vitro model system mimicking ACM when differentiated into cardiomyocytes. KW - mutations Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-259846 VL - 53 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Graser, Stephanie A1 - Liedtke, Daniel A1 - Jakob, Franz T1 - TNAP as a new player in chronic inflammatory conditions and metabolism JF - International Journal of Molecular Sciences N2 - This review summarizes important information on the ectoenzyme tissue-nonspecific alkaline phosphatase (TNAP) and gives a brief insight into the symptoms, diagnostics, and treatment of the rare disease Hypophosphatasia (HPP), which is resulting from mutations in the TNAP encoding ALPL gene. We emphasize the role of TNAP beyond its well-known contribution to mineralization processes. Therefore, above all, the impact of the enzyme on central molecular processes in the nervous system and on inflammation is presented here. KW - TNAP KW - Hypophosphatasia KW - HPP KW - mineralization KW - nervous system KW - inflammation Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-258888 SN - 1422-0067 VL - 22 IS - 2 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Lorenz, Delia A1 - Kress, Wolfram A1 - Zaum, Ann-Kathrin A1 - Speer, Christian P. A1 - Hebestreit, Helge T1 - Report of two siblings with spondylodysplastic Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and B4GALT7 deficiency JF - BMC Pediatrics N2 - Background The spondylodysplastic Ehlers-Danlos subtype (OMIM #130070) is a rare connective tissue disorder characterized by a combination of connective tissue symptoms, skeletal features and short stature. It is caused by variants in genes encoding for enzymes involved in the proteoglycan biosynthesis or for a zinc transporter. Presentation of cases We report two brothers with a similar phenotype of short stature, joint hypermobility, distinct craniofacial features, developmental delay and severe hypermetropia indicative for a spondylodysplastic Ehlers-Danlos subtype. One also suffered from a recurrent pneumothorax. Gene panel analysis identified two compound heterozygous variants in the B4GALT7 gene: c.641G > A and c.723 + 4A > G. B4GALT7 encodes for galactosyltransferase I, which is required for the initiation of glycosaminoglycan side chain synthesis of proteoglycans. Conclusions This is a first full report on two cases with spondylodysplastic Ehlers-Danlos syndrome and the c.723 + 4A > G variant of B4GALT7. The recurrent pneumothoraces observed in one case expand the variable phenotype of the syndrome. KW - connective tissue disorder KW - spondylodysplastic Ehlers-Danlos syndrome KW - B4GALT7 gene KW - case report Y1 - 2021 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-261084 VL - 21 ER -