Congenital, Hereditary, and Neonatal Diseases and Abnormalities Commons^™

Screening And Diagnosing Spinal Muscular Atrophy By Use Of Buccal Swabs: A Validation Study Using Ddpcr, Anna Mackay

Honors Scholar Theses

Spinal Muscular Atrophy (SMA) is a genetic neuromuscular disorder characterized by progressive muscle weakness due to the degeneration of motor neurons. SMA is caused by a homozygous deletion, mutation or rearrangement in the Survival Motor Neuron 1 (SMN1) gene. Survival Motor Neuron 2 (SMN2) is located tandem to SMN1 and is identical to SMN1 except for a single nucleotide substitution in exon 7. SMA diagnosis and carrier status can be determined by droplet digital PCR (ddPCR). This study sought to validate Bio-Rad’s ddPCR SMN1and SMN2 gene determination copy number assay for SMA diagnosis and screening using buccal swabs specimens. Buccal …

Predicting Premature Birth Risk With Cfrna, Jason Lin, Jonathan Marin, John Santerre

SMU Data Science Review

Identifying which genes are early indicators for preterm births using cell-free ribonucleic acid (cfRNA) from non-invasive blood tests provided by pregnant women can improve prenatal care. Currently, there are no medical tests for early detection of preterm birth risk in routine checkups for pregnant women. Recent studies have shown potential genes that can predict preterm birth. Machine learning techniques are utilized to see if the Area Under the Curve (AUC) can be improved upon when evaluating the prediction accuracy for chosen genes sequences and concentrations. Using cell-free RNA data from non-invasive blood tests in conjunction with machine learning, we improve …

The Pharmabiotic For Phenylketonuria: Development Of A Novel Therapeutic, Chloé Elizabeth Lebegue

Senior Theses

Phenylketonuria, now known as phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) deficiency, is a genetic disorder of metabolism affecting approximately one in every 15,000 infants born in the United States. Patients have nonfunctional PAH enzyme secondary to one or more genetic mutations. The enzyme deficit results in destructive supraphysiologic blood phenylalanine levels upon consumption of the essential dietary amino acid phenylalanine. Current standards of care mitigate signs and symptoms of the disorder, but do not approach a cure. The methods for creating a prototype pharmabiotic as an innovative treatment strategy for PAH deficiency are described herein.

DNA molecular cloning techniques were utilized to engineer …

Aortoduodenal Fistula Forms From Primary Aortic Stump Graft In A Two-Time Multi-Visceral Transplant Patient With Presentation Of Gastrointestinal Bleed And Bowel Perforation: A Case Report, Brielle Corrente

Graduate Student Research Symposium

Usually not diagnosed until open laparotomy, aortoduodenalfistulas (ADF) are one of the rarest complications of intestinal transplant surgery. With an incidence rate of only 0.04% at autopsy and only 250 documented cases since the early 1800’s, aortoduodenal fistulas are the most deadly complications of intestinal transplantation with a mortality rate of 100% without surgical intervention. A 39 year old, two-time multi-visceral transplant African American female patient suffered from a primary aortoduodenal fistula formation in a primary modified multi-visceral transplant aortic stump graft site. With emergency open laparotomy repair, revascularization of the secondary multi-visceral transplant was performed, saving the life of …

Mechanisms Of Trinucleotide Repeat Instability During Dna Synthesis, Kara Y. Chan

Theses and Dissertations--Toxicology and Cancer Biology

Genomic instability, in the form of gene mutations, insertions/deletions, and gene amplifications, is one of the hallmarks in many types of cancers and other inheritable genetic disorders. Trinucleotide repeat (TNR) disorders, such as Huntington’s disease (HD) and Myotonic dystrophy (DM) can be inherited and repeats may be extended through subsequent generations. However, it is not clear how the CAG repeats expand through generations in HD. Two possible repeat expansion mechanisms include: 1) polymerase mediated repeat extension; 2) persistent TNR hairpin structure formation persisting in the genome resulting in expansion after subsequent cell division. Recent in vitro studies suggested that a …

Heterogeneity Of Disease-Causing Variants In The Swedish Galactosemia Population: Identification Of 16 Novel Galt Variants, Annika Ohlsson, Mary Hunt, Anna Wedell, Ulrika Von Döbeln

Articles

The aim was to determine disease-causing variants in the GALT gene which codes for the enzyme galactose-1-phosphate uridylyltransferase. Loss of activity of this enzyme causes classical galactosemia-a life threatening, treatable disorder, included in the Swedish newborn screening program since 1967. A total of 66 patients with the disease are known in Sweden and 56 index patients were investigated. An additional two patients with Duarte galactosemia were included. The disease-causing variants were identified in all patients. As reported from other countries only a few variants frequently recur in severe disease. The two variants p.(Gln188Arg) (c.563A>G) and p.(Met142Lys) (c.425T>A) are …

The Copy Number Variation Landscape Of Congenital Anomalies Of The Kidney And Urinary Tract., Miguel Verbitsky, Rik Westland, Alejandra Perez, Krzysztof Kiryluk, Qingxue Liu, Priya Krithivasan, Adele Mitrotti, David A. Fasel, Ekaterina Batourina, Matthew G. Sampson, Monica Bodria, Max Werth, Charlly Kao, Jeremiah Martino, Valentina P. Capone, Asaf Vivante, Shirlee Shril, Byum Hee Kil, Maddalena Marasà, Jun Y. Zhang, Young-Ji Na, Tze Y. Lim, Dina Ahram, Patricia L. Weng, Erin L. Heinzen, Alba Carrea, Giorgio Piaggio, Loreto Gesualdo, Valeria Manca, Giuseppe Masnata, Maddalena Gigante, Daniele Cusi, Claudia Izzi, Francesco Scolari, Joanna A E Van Wijk, Marijan Saraga, Domenico Santoro, Giovanni Conti, Pasquale Zamboli, Hope White, Dorota Drozdz, Katarzyna Zachwieja, Monika Miklaszewska, Marcin Tkaczyk, Daria Tomczyk, Anna Krakowska, Przemyslaw Sikora, Tomasz Jarmoliński, Maria K. Borszewska-Kornacka, Robert Pawluch, Maria Szczepanska, Piotr Adamczyk, Malgorzata Mizerska-Wasiak, Grazyna Krzemien, Agnieszka Szmigielska, Marcin Zaniew, Mark G. Dobson, John M. Darlow, Prem Puri, David E. Barton, Susan L. Furth, Bradley A. Warady, Zoran Gucev, Vladimir J. Lozanovski, Velibor Tasic, Isabella Pisani, Landino Allegri, Lida M. Rodas, Josep M. Campistol, Cécile Jeanpierre, Shumyle Alam, Pasquale Casale, Craig S. Wong, Fangming Lin, Débora M. Miranda, Eduardo A. Oliveira, Ana Cristina Simões-E-Silva, Jonathan M. Barasch, Brynn Levy, Nan Wu, Friedhelm Hildebrandt, Gian Marco Ghiggeri, Anna Latos-Bielenska, Anna Materna-Kiryluk, Feng Zhang, Hakon Hakonarson, Virginia E. Papaioannou, Cathy L. Mendelsohn, Ali G. Gharavi, Simone Sanna-Cherchi

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT) are a major cause of pediatric kidney failure. We performed a genome-wide analysis of copy number variants (CNVs) in 2,824 cases and 21,498 controls. Affected individuals carried a significant burden of rare exonic (that is, affecting coding regions) CNVs and were enriched for known genomic disorders (GD). Kidney anomaly (KA) cases were most enriched for exonic CNVs, encompassing GD-CNVs and novel deletions; obstructive uropathy (OU) had a lower CNV burden and an intermediate prevalence of GD-CNVs; and vesicoureteral reflux (VUR) had the fewest GD-CNVs but was enriched for novel exonic CNVs, …

Genetic Predisposition To Necrotizing Enterocolitis In Premature Infants: Current Knowledge, Challenges, And Future Directions., Alain Cuna, Lovya George, Venkatesh Sampath

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

The role of genetics in the pathogenesis of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC) was initially informed by epidemiological data indicating differences in prevalence among different ethnic groups as well as concordance in twins. These early observations, together with major advances in genomic research, paved the way for studies that begin to reveal the contribution of genetics to NEC. Using the candidate gene or pathway approach, several potential pathogenic variants for NEC in premature infants have already been identified. More recently, genome-wide association studies and exome-sequencing based studies for NEC have been reported. These advances, however, are tempered by the lack of adequately …

On The Verge Of Diagnosis: Detection, Reporting, And Investigation Of De Novo Variants In Novel Genes Identified By Clinical Sequencing., Isabelle Thiffault, Maxime Cadieux-Dion, Emily G. Farrow, Raymond Caylor, Neil A. Miller, Sarah E. Soden, Carol J. Saunders

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

The variable evidence supporting gene-disease associations contributes to the difficulty of accurate variant reporting in a clinical setting. An evidence-based scoring system for evaluating the clinical validity of gene-disease associations, proposed by ClinGen, considers experimental as well as genetic evidence. De novo variants are heavily weighted, given the overall rarity in the genome and their contribution to human disease, however they are reported as "genes of unknown significance" in our center when there is insufficient evidence for the gene-disease assertion. We report a collection of 21 de novo variants in genes of unknown clinical significance ascertained via clinical testing, of …

An Eqtl Landscape Of Kidney Tissue In Human Nephrotic Syndrome., Christopher E. Gillies, Rosemary Putler, Rajasree Menon, Edgar Otto, Kalyn Yasutake, Viji Nair, Paul Hoover, David Lieb, Shuqiang Li, Sean Eddy, Damian Fermin, Michelle T. Mcnulty, Nephrotic Syndrome Study Network (Neptune), Nir Hacohen, Krzysztof Kiryluk, Matthias Kretzler, Xiaoquan Wen, Matthew G. Sampson, Tarak Srivastava

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Expression quantitative trait loci (eQTL) studies illuminate the genetics of gene expression and, in disease research, can be particularly illuminating when using the tissues directly impacted by the condition. In nephrology, there is a paucity of eQTL studies of human kidney. Here, we used whole-genome sequencing (WGS) and microdissected glomerular (GLOM) and tubulointerstitial (TI) transcriptomes from 187 individuals with nephrotic syndrome (NS) to describe the eQTL landscape in these functionally distinct kidney structures. Using MatrixEQTL, we performed cis-eQTL analysis on GLOM (n = 136) and TI (n = 166). We used the Bayesian "Deterministic Approximation of Posteriors" (DAP) to fine-map …

Inhibition Of Tnf-Alpha Decreases Microglia Activation In Rats Neonatally Treated With Poly I:C, Heath W. Shelton, Russell W. Brown

Appalachian Student Research Forum

Introduction: Current medical treatment for individuals diagnosed with schizophrenia (SCHZ) primarily relies on the inhibition of the dopamine D₂ receptor that has been shown to be supersensitive in these patients. Treatment occurs through the use of antipsychotic medication which leads to a number of debilitating dose-dependent side effects, such as weight gain, agranulocytosis, and seizures. Patients diagnosed with SCHZ have also been shown to have increased inflammation in their central nervous system (CNS), particularly within specific brain regions such as the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus. This is in large part due to the interaction between a pro-inflammatory cytokine called …

Arl2bp, A Novel Ciliopathy Protein, Is Required For Cilia Microtubule Formation, Abigail Ruth Moye

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Cilia are specialized organelles essential for cellular function. Not surprisingly, mutations in cilia- related genes are linked to multi-syndromic diseases termed ciliopathies. These include blinding diseases such as retinitis pigmentosa (RP). One such novel gene is ARL2BP (ARL2-binding protein) and is linked to RP and situs inversus (organ reversal) in humans, a phenotype produced by defects in the nodal cilia of developing embryos. Defects in photoreceptor cilia, as well as situs inversus in human patients, suggest that ARL2BP plays an invaluable role in the structure and function of cilia. However little is known about the role for this protein in …

Possible Breakdown Of Dopamine Receptor Synergism In A Mouse Model Of Huntington's Disease, Samantha F. Kennedy

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The model of basal ganglia function proposed by Albin, Young and Penney (1989) describes two anatomically independent motor pathways, the direct and indirect. However, under normal conditions striatal dopamine (DA) is required for the expression of motor behavior, and DAergic control of the two pathways (via D1 and D2 receptors, respectively) is dependent on co-activation. We tested for a possible breakdown of D1/D2 synergism using transgenic R6/1 mice bearing the human huntingtin allele (Htt). Motor stereotypy, observed prior to the onset of HD-related symptoms, was rated on a 5-point scale following activation of: A) D1 receptors alone, B) D2 receptors …

Lymphoid Hematopoiesis And The Role Of B-Cells In Transgenic Mouse Model Of Sickle Cell Disease, Christina Cotte

University Scholar Projects

Sickle cell disease (SCD) has been shown to be associated with decreased baseline immunity and thus increased susceptibility to infection. I sought to discern possible causes of this by looking into the correlations between SCD and hematopoiesis, the immune system and the neuroendocrine system, and ultimately by conducting experiments surrounding the impaired immune system of SCD. These experiments focused on the potential causes and effects of the diminution of B-1a cells in the SCD spleen. Adoptive transfers, infections with Streptococcus pneumoniae, and histologic imaging were conducted to establish if the diminution of the B-1a cells in the SCD spleen …

Persistent Neurobehavioral Traits In A Mouse Model Of Prenatal Ethanol Exposure, Jill M. Lawrence

Neuroscience Honors Papers

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) effect an estimated 2% of the population, causing a range of symptoms: from craniofacial defects to inhibited cortical growth (May, et al., 2009; Murawski, et al., 2015). Impaired medial forebrain function apparent in FASD is associated with lifelong cognitive behavioral deficits, but these consequences may be avoided with early diagnosis and intervention (Streissguth, et al., 2004). Our goal is to identify early neurobehavioral abnormalities that persist into adulthood that could potentially serve as early indicators for FASD. Mouse models of prenatal ethanol exposure were developed using a voluntary drinking paradigm that introduced a sweetened ethanol …

Novel Genetic Variants Associated With Child Refractory Esophageal Stricture With Food Allergy By Exome Sequencing., Min Yang, Min Xiong, Huan Chen, Lanlan Geng, Peiyu Chen, Jing Xie, Shui Qing Ye, Ding-You Li, Sitang Gong

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: Refractory esophageal stricture (RES) may be attributed to food allergy. Its etiology and pathogenesis are not fully understood. Identification of novel genetic variants associated with this disease by exome sequencing (exome-seq) may provide new mechanistic insights and new therapeutic targets.

METHODS: To identify new and novel disease-associating variants, whole-exome sequencing was performed on an Illumina NGS platform in three children with RES as well as food allergy.

RESULTS: A total of 91,024 variants were identified. By filtering out 'normal variants' against those of the 1000 Genomes Project, we identified 12,741 remaining variants which are potentially associated with RES plus …

A Rare Case Of Vascular Ring And Coarctation Of The Aorta In Association With Charge Syndrome., Jonathan B. Wagner, Joshua Q. Knowlton, Peter Pastuszko, Sanket Shah

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

A male neonate presented with CHARGE syndrome, a multiorgan genetic disorder involving the Coloboma of the eyes, congenital Heart defects, nasal choanal Atresia, growth and development Retardation, Genitourinary disorders, and Ear anomalies and deafness. Moreover, he had a rare case of vascular ring-consisting of a right aortic arch with retroesophageal brachiocephalic artery-combined with coarctation of the mid-aortic arch. He underwent both vascular ring and aortic arch repair at our institution. To our knowledge, this is the 4th documented case of this exceedingly rare type of aortic arch anomaly combined with aortic arch obstruction. Moreover, it is the first confirmed case …

Mucopolysaccharidosis Type I Newborn Screening: Best Practices For Diagnosis And Management., Lorne A. Clarke, Andrea M. Atherton, Barbara K. Burton, Debra L. Day-Salvatore, Paige Kaplan, Nancy D. Leslie, C Ronald Ronald Scott, David W. Stockton, Janet A. Thomas, Joseph Muenzer

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

No abstract provided.

Genetic Drivers Of Kidney Defects In The Digeorge Syndrome., Esther Lopez-Rivera, Yangfan P. Liu, Miguel Verbitsky, Blair R. Anderson, Valentina P. Capone, Edgar A. Otto, Zhonghai Yan, Adele Mitrotti, Jeremiah Martino, Nicholas J. Steers, David A. Fasel, Katarina Vukojevic, Rong Deng, Silvia E. Racedo, Qingxue Liu, Max Werth, Rik Westland, Asaf Vivante, Gabriel S. Makar, Monica Bodria, Matthew G. Sampson, Christopher E. Gillies, Virginia Vega-Warner, Mariarosa Maiorana, Donald S. Petrey, Barry Honig, Vladimir J. Lozanovski, Rémi Salomon, Laurence Heidet, Wassila Carpentier, Dominique Gaillard, Alba Carrea, Loreto Gesualdo, Daniele Cusi, Claudia Izzi, Francesco Scolari, Joanna A E Van Wijk, Adela Arapovic, Mirna Saraga-Babic, Marijan Saraga, Nenad Kunac, Ali Samii, Donna M. Mcdonald-Mcginn, Terrence B. Crowley, Elaine H. Zackai, Dorota Drozdz, Monika Miklaszewska, Marcin Tkaczyk, Przemyslaw Sikora, Maria Szczepanska, Malgorzata Mizerska-Wasiak, Grazyna Krzemien, Agnieszka Szmigielska, Marcin Zaniew, John M. Darlow, Prem Puri, David Barton, Emilio Casolari, Susan L. Furth, Bradley A. Warady, Zoran Gucev, Hakon Hakonarson, Hana Flogelova, Velibor Tasic, Anna Latos-Bielenska, Anna Materna-Kiryluk, Landino Allegri, Craig S. Wong, Iain A Drummond, Vivette D'Agati, Akira Imamoto, Jonathan M. Barasch, Friedhelm Hildebrandt, Krzysztof Kiryluk, Richard P. Lifton, Bernice E. Morrow, Cecile Jeanpierre, Virginia E. Papaioannou, Gian Marco Ghiggeri, Ali G. Gharavi, Nicholas Katsanis, Simone Sanna-Cherchi

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: The DiGeorge syndrome, the most common of the microdeletion syndromes, affects multiple organs, including the heart, the nervous system, and the kidney. It is caused by deletions on chromosome 22q11.2; the genetic driver of the kidney defects is unknown.

METHODS: We conducted a genomewide search for structural variants in two cohorts: 2080 patients with congenital kidney and urinary tract anomalies and 22,094 controls. We performed exome and targeted resequencing in samples obtained from 586 additional patients with congenital kidney anomalies. We also carried out functional studies using zebrafish and mice.

RESULTS: We identified heterozygous deletions of 22q11.2 in 1.1% …

Metronidazole Metabolism In Neonates And The Interplay Between Ontogeny And Genetic Variation., Laura A. Wang, Daniel Gonzalez, J Steven Leeder, Rachel F. Tyndale, Robin E. Pearce, Daniel K. Benjamin, Gregory L. Kearns, Michael Cohen-Wolkowiez, Best Pharmaceuticals For Children Act-Pediatric Trials Network Steering Committee

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

No abstract provided.

Surrogate Pregnancy After Prenatal Diagnosis Of Spina Bifida., Lynnette J. Mazur, Mary Kay Kisthardt, Helen H. Kim, Laura M. Rosas, John Lantos

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Some pregnancies today involve infertile individuals or couples who contract with a fertile woman to carry a pregnancy for them. The woman who carries the pregnancy is referred to as a "gestational carrier." The use of such arrangements is increasing. Most of the time, these arrangements play out as planned; sometimes, however, problems arise. This article discusses a case in which a fetal diagnosis of spina bifida led the infertile couple to request that the gestational carrier terminate the pregnancy, and the gestational carrier did not wish to do so. Experts in the medical and legal issues surrounding surrogacy discuss …

Use Of The Ketogenic Diet In The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit-Safety And Tolerability., Lindsey M. Thompson, Erin Day Fecske, Mohammad Salim, Ara Hall

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Drug-resistant epilepsy poses a challenge in neonatal patients, especially those in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), who have various secondary comorbidities. We present results of four children with a history of drug-resistant epilepsy for whom a ketogenic diet was initiated and used in the NICU. A nonfasting induction into ketosis over 1-2 weeks was utilized, with gradual increases in the ketogenic ratio every 2-3 days. Data were collected retrospectively from a database, which included medical history, daily progress notes, relevant laboratory data, and imaging and diagnostic information. The ketogenic diet was well tolerated in all cases. The most common …

Immunodeficiency-Associated Lymphoid Hyperplasia As A Cause Of Intussusception In A Case Of Activated Pi3k-Δ Syndrome., Daniel Mettman, Isabelle Thiffault, Chitra Dinakar, Carol J. Saunders

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Activated PI3K-δ syndrome refers to a recently described primary immunodeficiency syndrome consisting of recurrent sinopulmonary infections, lymphadenopathy, mucosal lymphoid aggregates, increased susceptibility to Epstein-Barr virus and cytomegalovirus, and increased incidence of B-cell lymphomas. Variants in PIK3CD, which encodes the phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate 3-kinase catalytic subunit delta isoform, enhance membrane association and kinase activity, resulting in increased signal transduction through the PI3K-Akt pathway. Whole-exome sequencing revealed a pathogenic PIK3CD variant in a patient with history of immunologic impairment, recurrent sinopulmonary infections, and lymphoid hyperplasia presenting as intussusception. This case illustrates that while lymphoid hyperplasia secondary to immunodeficiency is most often unsurprising and …

A Novel Compound-Heterozygous Epithelial Cell Adhesion Molecule Mutation In Tufting Enteropathy., Valentina Shakhnovich, Darrell Dinwiddie, Amber Hildreth, Thomas M. Attard, Stephen Kingsmore

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

No abstract provided.

Biomarkers Of Sepsis: A Retrospective Approach, Jose M. Roberts

Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects

Background: Biomarkers are taking the spotlight in becoming the norm for early diagnoses. Sepsis is an inflammatory disease that increases metabolic rate in children. The first biomarker is hyponatremia. Hyponatremia is a frequent electrolyte imbalance in clinical practice, often observed in children with inflammatory disease and infection. Presence of hyponatremia is associated with electrical signaling imbalances, inflammation and renal dysfunction. The clinical value of hyponatremia in pediatric patients is unknown. The C-reactive protein is a second biomarker. Its presence signifies that necrotic cells and inflammation are present.

Objectives: To evaluate the use of biomarkers in children seen in the Emergency …

Functional Validation Of Novel Compound Heterozygous Variants In B3gat3 Resulting In Severe Osteopenia And Fractures: Expanding The Disease Phenotype., Florian Job, Shuji Mizumoto, Laurie Smith, Natario Couser, Ashley Brazil, Howard Saal, Melanie Patterson, Margaret Gibson, Sarah E. Soden, Neil A. Miller, Isabelle Thiffault, Carol J. Saunders, Shuhei Yamada, Katrin Hoffmann, Kazuyuki Sugahara, Emily G. Farrow

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND: A new disease class of syndromes, described as linkeropathies, which are derived from defects in the glycosaminoglycan-linker region as well as glycosaminoglycan-side chains of proteoglycans is increasingly being recognized as a cause of human disease. Proteoglycans are an essential component of the extracellular matrix. Defects in the enzymatic process of proteoglycan synthesis broadly occur due to the incorrect addition of side chains. Previously, homozygous missense variants within the B3GAT3 gene encoding beta 1,3 glucuronyltransferase 3(GlcAT-I) responsible for the biosynthesis of glycosaminoglycans have been described in 7 individuals.

CASE PRESENTATION: In this study, a 4-year-old patient with a severe phenotype …

A Hypothesis For Using Pathway Genetic Load Analysis For Understanding Complex Outcomes In Bilirubin Encephalopathy, Sean M. Riordan, Douglas C. Bittel, Jean-Baptist Lepichon, Silvia Gazzin, Claudio Tiribelli, Jon F. Watchko, Richard P. Wennberg, Steven Shapiro

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

© 2016 Riordan, Bittel, Le Pichon, Gazzin, Tiribelli, Watchko, Wennberg and Shapiro.

Genetic-based susceptibility to bilirubin neurotoxicity and chronic bilirubin encephalopathy (kernicterus) is still poorly understood. Neonatal jaundice affects 60-80% of newborns, and considerable effort goes into preventing this relatively benign condition from escalating into the development of kernicterus making the incidence of this potentially devastating condition very rare in more developed countries. The current understanding of the genetic background of kernicterus is largely comprised of mutations related to alterations of bilirubin production, elimination, or both. Less is known about mutations that may predispose or protect against CNS bilirubin neurotoxicity. …

Activation Of Target Gene Expression In Neurons By The C. Elegans Rfx Transcription Factor, Daf-19, Katherine P. Mueller

Lawrence University Honors Projects

DAF-19, the only RFX transcription factor found in C. elegans, is required for the formation of neuronal sensory cilia. Four isoforms of the DAF-19 protein have been reported, and the m86 nonsense (null) mutation affecting all four isoforms has been shown to prevent cilia formation. Transcriptome analyses employing microarrays of L1 and adult stage worms were completed using RNA from daf-19(m86) worms and an isogenic wild type strain to identify additional putative DAF-19 target genes. Using transcriptional fusions with GFP, we compared the expression patterns of several potential gene targets using fluorescence confocal microscopy. Expression patterns were characterized in …

Whole-Genome Sequencing And Disability In The Nicu: Exploring Practical And Ethical Challenges., Michael J. Deem

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

Clinical whole-genome sequencing (WGS) promises to deliver faster diagnoses and lead to better management of care in the NICU. However,several disability rights advocates have expressed concern that clinical use of genetic technologies may reinforce and perpetuate stigmatization of and discrimination against disabled persons in medical and social contexts. There is growing need, then, for clinicians and bioethicists to consider how the clinical use of WGS in the newborn period might exacerbate such harms to persons with disabilities. This article explores ways to extend these concerns to clinical WGS in neonatal care. By considering these perspectives during the early phases of …

Renal And Cardiovascular Morbidities Associated With Apol1 Status Among African-American And Non-African-American Children With Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis., Robert P. Woroniecki, Derek K. Ng, Sophie Limou, Cheryl A. Winkler, Kimberly J. Reidy, Mark Mitsnefes, Matthew G. Sampson, Craig S. Wong, Bradley A. Warady, Susan L. Furth, Jeffrey B. Kopp, Frederick J. Kaskel

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: African-American (AA) children with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) have later onset disease that progresses more rapidly than in non-AA children. It is unclear how APOL1 genotypes contribute to kidney disease risk, progression, and cardiovascular morbidity in children.

DESIGN SETTING PARTICIPANTS AND MEASUREMENTS: We examined the prevalence of APOL1 genotypes and associated cardiovascular phenotypes among children with FSGS in the Chronic Kidney Disease in Children (CKiD) study; an ongoing multicenter prospective cohort study of children aged 1-16 years with mild to moderate kidney disease.

RESULTS: A total of 140 AA children in the CKiD study were genotyped. High …