scholarly journals G protein-coupled potassium channels implicated in mouse and cellular models of GNB1 Encephalopathy

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sophie Colombo ◽  
Sabrina Petri ◽  
Boris Shalomov ◽  
Haritha P. Reddy ◽  
Galit Tabak ◽  
...  

SUMMARYDe novo mutations in GNB1, encoding the Gβ1 subunit of G proteins, cause a neurodevelopmental disorder with global developmental delay and epilepsy. Mice carrying a pathogenic mutation, K78R, recapitulate aspects of the disorder, including developmental delay and frequent spike-wave discharges (SWD). Cultured mutant cortical neurons display aberrant bursting activity on multi-electrode arrays. Strikingly, the antiepileptic drug ethosuximide (ETX) restores normal neuronal network behavior in vitro and suppresses SWD in vivo. In contrast, while valproic acid suppresses SWD, it does not restore normal network behavior, suggesting that ETX has mechanistic specificity for the effects of aberrant Gβ1 signaling. Consistent with this, we show that K78R is a gain-of-function of G protein-coupled potassium channel (GIRK) activation that is potently inhibited by ETX. This work suggests that altered Gβ1 signaling causes disease in part through effects on GIRK channels, illustrates the utility of cultured neuronal networks in pharmacological screening, and establishes effective pre-clinical models for GNB1 Encephalopathy.

Author(s):  
Gabriel C. Dworschak ◽  
Jaya Punetha ◽  
Jeshurun C. Kalanithy ◽  
Enrico Mingardo ◽  
Haktan B. Erdem ◽  
...  

Abstract Purpose To investigate the effect of PLXNA1 variants on the phenotype of patients with autosomal dominant and recessive inheritance patterns and to functionally characterize the zebrafish homologs plxna1a and plxna1b during development. Methods We assembled ten patients from seven families with biallelic or de novo PLXNA1 variants. We describe genotype–phenotype correlations, investigated the variants by structural modeling, and used Morpholino knockdown experiments in zebrafish to characterize the embryonic role of plxna1a and plxna1b. Results Shared phenotypic features among patients include global developmental delay (9/10), brain anomalies (6/10), and eye anomalies (7/10). Notably, seizures were predominantly reported in patients with monoallelic variants. Structural modeling of missense variants in PLXNA1 suggests distortion in the native protein. Our zebrafish studies enforce an embryonic role of plxna1a and plxna1b in the development of the central nervous system and the eye. Conclusion We propose that different biallelic and monoallelic variants in PLXNA1 result in a novel neurodevelopmental syndrome mainly comprising developmental delay, brain, and eye anomalies. We hypothesize that biallelic variants in the extracellular Plexin-A1 domains lead to impaired dimerization or lack of receptor molecules, whereas monoallelic variants in the intracellular Plexin-A1 domains might impair downstream signaling through a dominant-negative effect.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Konstantina Kosma ◽  
Konstantinos Varvagiannis ◽  
Anastasios Mitrakos ◽  
Maria Tsipi ◽  
Joanne Traeger-Synodinos ◽  
...  

Pathogenic <i>KMT2E</i> variants underly O&apos;Donnell-Luria-Rodan syndrome, a recently described neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by global developmental delay, variable degrees of intellectual disability, and subtle facial dysmorphism. Less common findings include autism, seizures, gastrointestinal (GI) problems, and abnormal head circumference. Occurrence of mostly truncating variants as well as the similar phenotype observed in individuals with deletions spanning <i>KMT2E</i> suggest haploinsufficiency of this gene as a common mechanism for the disorder, while a gain-of-function or dominant-negative effect cannot be ruled out for some missense variants. Deletions reported in the literature encompass several additional known or presumed haploinsufficient genes, thus leading to more complex phenotypes. Here, we describe a male with antenatal onset hydronephrosis, hypotonia, global developmental delay, prominent GI symptoms as well as facial dysmorphism. Chromosomal microarray revealed a 239-kb de novo microdeletion spanning <i>KMT2E</i> and <i>LHFPL3</i>. Clinical presentation of our proband, harboring one of the smallest deletions of the region confirms the core features of this disorder, suggests GI symptoms as a prominent finding in affected individuals while expanding the phenotypic spectrum to abnormalities of the urinary tract.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soo Yeon Kim ◽  
YoungKyu Shim ◽  
Young Joon Ko ◽  
Soojin Park ◽  
Se Song Jang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background GNAO1 encephalopathy is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by distinct movement presentations and early onset epileptic encephalopathy. Here, we report the in-depth phenotyping of genetically confirmed patients with GNAO1 encephalopathy, focusing on movement presentations. Results Six patients who participated in Korean Undiagnosed Disease Program were diagnosed to have pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in GNAO1 using whole exome sequencing. All medical records and personal video clips were analyzed with a literature review. Three of the 6 patients were male. Mean follow-up duration was 39 months (range, 7–78 months) and age at last examination was 8.0 years (range, 3.3–16.9 years). Initial complaints were hypotonia or developmental delay in 5 and right-hand clumsiness in 1 patient, which were noticed at 20 months of age on average (range, 0–75 months). All patients showed global developmental delay and 4 had severely retarded development. Five patients (5/6, 83.3%) had many different movement symptoms with various onset and progression. The symptoms included stereotyped hands movement, non-epileptic myoclonus, dyskinesia, dystonia and choreoathetosis. Whole exome sequencing identified 6 different variants in GNAO1. Three were novel de novo variants and atypical presentation was noted in a patient. One variant turned out to be inherited from patient’s mother who had mosaic variant. Distinct phenotypes in patients with variant p.Glu246Lys and p.Arg209His were elucidated by in-depth phenotyping and literature review. Conclusions We reported 6 patients with GNAO1 encephalopathy showing an extremely diverse clinical spectrum on video. Some characteristic movement features identified by careful inspection may also provide important diagnostic insight and practice guidelines.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Soo Yeon Kim ◽  
YoungKyu Shim ◽  
Young Joon Ko ◽  
Soojin Park ◽  
Se Song Jang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background: GNAO1 encephalopathy is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by distinct movement presentations and early onset epileptic encephalopathy. Here, we report the in-depth phenotyping of genetically confirmed patients with GNAO1 encephalopathy, focusing on movement presentations.Results: Six patients who participated in Korean Undiagnosed Disease Program were diagnosed to have pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in GNAO1 using whole exome sequencing. All medical records and personal video clips were analyzed with a literature review. Three of the 6 patients were male. Median follow-up duration was 41 months (range, 7–78 months) and age at last examination was 7.4 years (range, 3.3–16.9 years). Initial complaints were hypotonia or developmental delay in 5 and right-hand clumsiness in 1 patient, which were noticed at median age of 3 months (range, 0–75 months). All patients showed global developmental delay and 4 had severely retarded development. Five patients (5/6, 83.3%) had many different movement symptoms with various onset and progression. The symptoms included stereotyped hands movement, non-epileptic myoclonus, dyskinesia, dystonia and choreoathetosis. Whole exome sequencing identified 6 different variants in GNAO1. Three were novel de novo variants and atypical presentation was noted in a patient. One variant turned out to be inherited from patient’s mother who had mosaic variant. Distinct and characteristics movement phenotypes in patients with variant p.Glu246Lys and p.Arg209His were elucidated by in-depth phenotyping and literature review. Conclusions: We reported 6 patients with GNAO1 encephalopathy showing an extremely diverse clinical spectrum on video. Some characteristic movement features identified by careful inspection may also provide important diagnostic insight and practice guidelines.


2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Soo Yeon Kim ◽  
YoungKyu Shim ◽  
Young Joon Ko ◽  
Soojin Park ◽  
Se Song Jang ◽  
...  

Abstract Background GNAO1 encephalopathy is a rare neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by distinct movement presentations and early onset epileptic encephalopathy. Here, we report the in-depth phenotyping of genetically confirmed patients with GNAO1 encephalopathy, focusing on movement presentations. Results Six patients who participated in Korean Undiagnosed Disease Program were diagnosed to have pathogenic or likely pathogenic variants in GNAO1 using whole exome sequencing. All medical records and personal video clips were analyzed with a literature review. Three of the 6 patients were male. Median follow-up duration was 41 months (range 7–78 months) and age at last examination was 7.4 years (range 3.3–16.9 years). Initial complaints were hypotonia or developmental delay in 5 and right-hand clumsiness in 1 patient, which were noticed at median age of 3 months (range 0–75 months). All patients showed global developmental delay and 4 had severely retarded development. Five patients (5/6, 83.3%) had many different movement symptoms with various onset and progression. The symptoms included stereotyped hands movement, non-epileptic myoclonus, dyskinesia, dystonia and choreoathetosis. Whole exome sequencing identified 6 different variants in GNAO1. Three were novel de novo variants and atypical presentation was noted in a patient. One variant turned out to be inherited from patient’s mother who had mosaic variant. Distinct and characteristics movement phenotypes in patients with variant p.Glu246Lys and p.Arg209His were elucidated by in-depth phenotyping and literature review. Conclusions We reported 6 patients with GNAO1 encephalopathy showing an extremely diverse clinical spectrum on video. Some characteristic movement features identified by careful inspection may also provide important diagnostic insight and practice guidelines.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilaria Mannucci ◽  
Nghi D. P. Dang ◽  
Hannes Huber ◽  
Jaclyn B. Murry ◽  
Jeff Abramson ◽  
...  

Abstract Background We aimed to define the clinical and variant spectrum and to provide novel molecular insights into the DHX30-associated neurodevelopmental disorder. Methods Clinical and genetic data from affected individuals were collected through Facebook-based family support group, GeneMatcher, and our network of collaborators. We investigated the impact of novel missense variants with respect to ATPase and helicase activity, stress granule (SG) formation, global translation, and their effect on embryonic development in zebrafish. SG formation was additionally analyzed in CRISPR/Cas9-mediated DHX30-deficient HEK293T and zebrafish models, along with in vivo behavioral assays. Results We identified 25 previously unreported individuals, ten of whom carry novel variants, two of which are recurrent, and provide evidence of gonadal mosaicism in one family. All 19 individuals harboring heterozygous missense variants within helicase core motifs (HCMs) have global developmental delay, intellectual disability, severe speech impairment, and gait abnormalities. These variants impair the ATPase and helicase activity of DHX30, trigger SG formation, interfere with global translation, and cause developmental defects in a zebrafish model. Notably, 4 individuals harboring heterozygous variants resulting either in haploinsufficiency or truncated proteins presented with a milder clinical course, similar to an individual harboring a de novo mosaic HCM missense variant. Functionally, we established DHX30 as an ATP-dependent RNA helicase and as an evolutionary conserved factor in SG assembly. Based on the clinical course, the variant location, and type we establish two distinct clinical subtypes. DHX30 loss-of-function variants cause a milder phenotype whereas a severe phenotype is caused by HCM missense variants that, in addition to the loss of ATPase and helicase activity, lead to a detrimental gain-of-function with respect to SG formation. Behavioral characterization of dhx30-deficient zebrafish revealed altered sleep-wake activity and social interaction, partially resembling the human phenotype. Conclusions Our study highlights the usefulness of social media to define novel Mendelian disorders and exemplifies how functional analyses accompanied by clinical and genetic findings can define clinically distinct subtypes for ultra-rare disorders. Such approaches require close interdisciplinary collaboration between families/legal representatives of the affected individuals, clinicians, molecular genetics diagnostic laboratories, and research laboratories.


Author(s):  
Shinobu Fukumura ◽  
Takuya Hiraide ◽  
Akiyo Yamamoto ◽  
Kousuke Tsuchida ◽  
Kazushi Aoto ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. e539
Author(s):  
Daniel G. Calame ◽  
Meagan Hainlen ◽  
Danielle Takacs ◽  
Leah Ferrante ◽  
Kayla Pence ◽  
...  

ObjectiveTo demonstrate that de novo missense single nucleotide variants (SNVs) in EIF2AK2 cause a neurodevelopmental disorder with leukoencephalopathy resembling Pelizaeus-Merzbacher disease (PMD).MethodsA retrospective chart review was performed of 2 unrelated males evaluated at a single institution with de novo EIF2AK2 SNVs identified by clinical exome sequencing (ES). Clinical and radiographic data were reviewed and summarized.ResultsBoth individuals presented in the first year of life with concern for seizures and developmental delay. Common clinical findings included horizontal and/or pendular nystagmus during infancy, axial hypotonia, appendicular hypertonia, spasticity, and episodic neurologic regression with febrile viral illnesses. MRI of the brain demonstrated severely delayed myelination in infancy. A hypomyelinating pattern was confirmed on serial imaging at age 4 years for proband 1. In proband 2, repeat imaging at age 13 months confirmed persistent delayed myelination. These clinical and radiographic features led to a strong suspicion of PMD. However, neither PLP1 copy number variants nor pathogenic SNVs were detected by chromosomal microarray and trio ES, respectively. Reanalysis of trio ES identified heterozygous de novo EIF2AK2 missense variant c.290C>T (p.Ser97Phe) in proband 1 and c.326C>T (p.Ala109Val) in proband 2.ConclusionsThe autosomal dominant EIF2AK2-related leukoencephalopathy, developmental delay, and episodic neurologic regression syndrome should be considered in the differential diagnosis for PMD and other hypomyelinating leukodystrophies (HLDs). A characteristic history of developmental regression with febrile illnesses may help distinguish it from other HLDs.


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