Objectives Inborn errors of metabolism (IEM) has a diverse spectrum and different incidence in different countries, the early diagnosis at presymptomatic stage is imperative to benefic patient from sequelae. Phenylke-tonuria (PKU) / hyperphenylalaninemia (HPA) is the most common metabolism disorder in Shanghai as well as in other regions. The study is to further clarify the incidence of inborn errors of metabolism among newborn in Shanghai. Methods The dried blood spot specimens were collected from near 90 local maternity and children's hospitals or general hospitals in Shanghai. PKU/HPA screening was carried out by fluorometric method. Neonatal screening using tandem mass spectrometry was performed in one of the study centers, Xinhua neonatal screening center. Results A total of 815 160 cases were screened from 2001 - 2007 in Shanghai, the incidence of PKU/HPA was 1 : 12 351. The tetrahydrobiopterin deficiency was 12.9% among hyperphenylalaninemia patients. According to the 116 000 neonatal samples data detected by tandem mass spectrometry, 20 cases were confirmed diagnosis, including 6 kinds diseases, it was PKU/HPA, maple syrup urine disease, methylmalonicacidemia, propionic acidemia, 3-methylcrotonyl-CoA carboxylase defection, and short chain aeyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency. Conclusions The pilot study shown that inborn errors of metabolism neonatal screen-ing using tandem mass was 1 : 5 800 in Shanghai, PKU/HPA was the most common disease. It is expected that the expansion of newborn screening using tandem mass spectrometry could be further considered and further improving inborn errors of metabolism preventive services in Shanghai.

Objective To investigate the brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features and clinical manifesta-tions of the patients with citrullinemia, and to promote awareness of, early diagnosis of and better treatment for the disease.Methods One case with citrullinemia was reported, and other eight cases reported in the literature in nearly 14 years were reviewed.Results The case was a 15-month-old girl with type I citrullinemia diagnosed by the mutation analysis of the ASS1 gene performed in local hospital after birth. The patient was admitted to our hospital for recurrent lethargy for a year and the high level of blood ammonia (311 μmol/L, normal range 9-33 μmol/L). The blood ammonia reduced to normal on the 11th day after arginine treatment. On MRI scans, the diffusion weighted imaging (DWI) showed diffuse hyperintensity on bilateral frontal, parietal and temporal cortex, which indicated restricted diffusion due to cytotoxic edema. On the follow-up MRI after 10 day's treatment, the affected regions was similar but the intensity decreased compared to the previous scan,which accompanied by cere-bral atrophy. Eight cases in the literature were reviewed, and the clinical manifestations in these patients were lack of speciifcity, the most common features included feeding dififculties, lethargy, and vomiting. Brain MRI was performed on 7 cases, computed tomography (CT) was performed on 1 case, with the result of cytotoxic edema in 3 cases and atrophy in 2 cases.Conclusions Citrullinemia often lacks of speciifc symptoms in the early phase. Brain MRI could provide the clinician a valuable help for early diagnosis and treatment of this disease.

Objective To investigate the characteristics of brain MRI in the patients with maple syrup urine disease(MSUD). Methods Nine patients with MSUD were diagnosed by gas chromatography mass spectrometry,tandem mass spectrometry and gene test.The MRI,clinical featuresand laboratory tests were analyzed.Results The 9 patients onset age were 3 days to 6 years old.The symptoms were varied such as poor response,lethargy,seizures and learning difficulties.Remarkable elevations of blood levels of leucine and valine were found in all patients.All patients had MRI examination,2 of them also took the examination of proton magnetic resonance spectroscopy (1 H-MRS).Involving cerebellar hemisphere,cerebellar peduncle,cerebral peduncle,brain stem,globus pallidus in 5 cases respectively,thalamus and posterior limb of internal capsule in 4 cases,centrum semiovale in 3 cases.2 cases also showed abnormal signal in corpus callosum,occipital,deep temporal lobe,and frontal lobe,parietal lobe.All lesions showed mild low signal intensity in T1 ,mild high signal intensity in T2 and obvious high signal intensity in DWI,except one case.1 H-MRS did not show a methyl resonance peak at 0.9 ppm in the two patients.Conclusion The MSUD lacked of specific clinical features.The MRI characteristics are the myelinated white matter such as the cerebellar hemispheres,posterior limb of the internal capsule,the brainstem,cerebellar peduncle,cerebral peduncle showing high signal in DWI.

Objective: To explore the molecular mechanism of HMC-1 cell apoptosis on exposure to tripterine. Methods: After the HMC-1 cells were incubated with tripterine, the expression of bcl-2, bax, bcl-X,c-myc and ICE were assayed by using immunohistochemical staining and RT-PCR. Results: The expression of bax,c-myc were up-regulated and bcl-2 down-regulated at protein level.The expression of bax,bcl-X L, especially bcl-2 were down-regulated, and ICE was up-regulated at mRNA level. Conclusion: These results suggest that apoptosis of HMC-1 cells induced by tripterine is regulated by different expression of apoptosis-related genes.

Objective To investigate the effect of tandem mass spectrometry and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry to make prenatal diagnosis of methylmalonic acidemia (MMA) by detecting organic acid and acylcarnitine in amniotic fluid.Methods From October 11,2007 to December 20,2014,131 pregnant women with MMA proband received prenatal diagnosis of MMA in Xin Hua Hospital Affiliated to Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine (case group).Another 120 cases of pregnant women for conventional prenatal diagnosis at the same period were as control group.The pregnant women of two groups had the amniocentesis at 16 to 20 weeks of gestation.The levels of propionylcarnitine(C3) and acetylcarnitine(C2)in amniotic fluid were detected by tandem mass spectrometry.The methylmalonic acid and methylcitrate acid were detected by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry.MMA gene of cells in amniotic fluid of eighty fetuses with proband clearly diagnosed were detected by gene testing.Data were analyzed by Wilcoxon test.Results In case group,29 fetuses were found positive for higher level of C3,C3/C2,methylmalonic acid and methylcitrate acid compared with normal reference value,and the detected rate of fetal MMA was 22.1％(29/131).The levels of C3 and C3 / C2 in amniotic fluid of these 29 cases were higher than those in control group[8.13(2.42-16.70) vs 1.04(0.52-3.40) μmol/L,Z =-8.313; 0.77(0.30-1.79) vs 0.10(0.05-0.22),Z=-8.374; P ＜ 0.05 respectively].The levels of methylmalonic acid and methylcitrate acid were also higher[9.13(1.68-61.78) vs 0.00(0.00-1.31) mmol/mol Crea,Z=-11.348; 0.58(0.00-1.90) vs 0.05(0.00-0.52) mmol/mol Crea,Z=-6.632,P ＜ 0.05 respectively].For the other 102 cases in case group,the levels of C3,C3/C2,methylmalonic acid and methylcitrate acid were not higher than normal reference value,and were similar to those in control group (P ＞ 0.05); while they were lower than those of positive MMA fetuses (all P ＜ 0.05).Among 29 positive fetuses,16 fetuses were detected MMA gene,five were diagnosed as MUT forms of MMA and 11 were MMACHC forms of MMA.In 102 MMA negative fetuses,64 fetuses were detected MMA gene,44 were found one mutant site and 20 were found no gene mutation.The coincidence rate between gene detecting and mass spectrometry was 100％(80/80).Conclusions Mass spectrometry could be used to measure the C3,methylmalonic acid and methylcitrate acid levels in amniotic fluid of pregnant women with MMA proband to make prenatal diagnosis.

OBJECTIVETo investigate the clinical and laboratory features of very long chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency ( VLCADD ) and the correlations between its genotype and phenotype.

METHODEleven patients diagnosed as VLCADD of Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine seen from September 2006 to May 2014 were included. There were 9 boys and 2 girls, whose age was 2 d-17 years. Analysis was performed on clinical features, routine laboratory examination, and tandem mass spectrometry (MS-MS) , gas chromatography mass spectrometry (GC-MS) and genetic analysis were conducted.

RESULTAll cases had elevated levels of blood tetradecanoylcarnitine (C14:1) recognized as the characteristic biomarker for VLCADD. The eleven patients were classified into three groups: six cases in neonatal onset group, three in infancy onset group form patients and two in late onset group. Neonatal onset patients were characterized by hypoactivity, hypoglycemia shortly after birth. Infancy onset patients presented hepatomegaly and hypoglycemia in infancy. The two adolescent patients showed initial manifestations of exercise intolerance or rhabdomyolysis. Six of the eleven patients died at the age of 2-8 months, including four neonatal onset and two infant onset patients, with one or two null mutations. The other two neonatal onset patients were diagnosed since early birth through neonatal screening and their clinical manifestation are almost normal after treatments. Among 11 patients, seventeen different mutations in the ACADVL gene were identified, with a total mutation detection rate of 95.45% (21/22 alleles), including eleven reported mutations ( p. S22X, p. G43D, p. R511Q, p. W427X, p. A213T, p. C215R, p. G222R, p. R450H, p. R456H, c. 296-297delCA, c. 1605 + 1G > T) and six novel mutations (p. S72F, p. Q100X, p. M437T, p. D466Y, c. 1315delG insAC, IVS7 + 4 A > G). The p. R450H was the most frequent mutation identified in three alleles (13.63%, 3/22 alleles), followed by p. S22X and p. D466Y mutations which were detected in two alleles (9.09%, 2/22 alleles).

CONCLUSIONThe ACADVL gene mutations were heterozygous in our patients. The mortality of neonatal onset form and infant onset form is much higher than the late onset form patients, suggesting a certain correlation between the genotype and phenotype was found. The earlier diagnosis and treatment of VLCADD are of vital importance for the improvement of the prognosis of the patients.

Acyl-CoA Dehydrogenase, Long-Chain ; deficiency ; genetics ; Adolescent ; Age of Onset ; Alleles ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; China ; Female ; Genetic Testing ; Genotype ; Heterozygote ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Lipid Metabolism, Inborn Errors ; complications ; genetics ; Male ; Mitochondrial Diseases ; complications ; genetics ; Muscular Diseases ; complications ; genetics ; Mutation ; Neonatal Screening ; Phenotype ; Prognosis ; Rhabdomyolysis ; etiology ; Spectrum Analysis ; Tandem Mass Spectrometry

Objective Sphingolipidoses are a group of rare genetic disorders caused by catabolism defect of sphingolipids by lysosomal hydrolases with diverse presentations,and represent an important health problem to almost all ethnic populations. To date,there is no epidemiologic study on the prevalence of sphinglipidoses,individually,or as a group,in China. We set up a series of enzymatic assays that could make definite diagnoses with the aim to collect data for an epidemiologic investigation of sphingolipidoses and also pave the way to prenatal diagnosis to decrease the rate of inborn error of metabolism. Methods Patients with suspected sphingolipidosis were recruited from pediatric endocrinology and inherited metabolism outpatient clinics of Xinhua Hospital. Leukocytes were isolated with dextran from peripheral bloods. Activities of leukocyte acid β-glucosidase,acid sphingomyelinase,arylsulphatase A,galacto-cerebrosidase,beta-galactosidase were measured using their specific artificial fluorescent substrates,while arylsulfatase A was determined by a colorimetric assay with dipotassium 2-hydroxy-5-nitrophenyl sulfate as the substrate. Results In one year,we identified 17 patients with 5 different kinds of sphingolipidoses,including 3 patients with Gaucher disease,9 patients with Niemann-Pick type A/B,2 patients with metachromatic leukodystrophy,2 patients with Krabbe disease,and 1 patient with GM1 gangliosidosis. We made brief descriptions of disease characters of each different kind disease and compared our results with findings of other ethnic groups. Conclusions Sphinglipidoses was markedly under-diagnosed in China and general pediatricians should be alerted to sphinglipidoses.

Objective To analyze gene mutations of a Niemann-Pick disease type C (NPC) proband,and carry out prenatal diagnosis for the family.Methods The coding regions of NPC1 gene in the proband (late-infantile form) and white blood cell (WBC) in peripheral blood of its parents were amplified by polymerase chain reaction and direct DNA sequencing in both directions was performed.The sequencing results were compared with human NPC1 gene sequence (NM_000271) in GenBank,and sequences of mutated exons were determined.Direct sequencing was used on 50 normal Chinese individuals' DNA samples (control) to exclude mutation's single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP).An inter-species alignment of homologous NPC1 proteins was performed using ClustalX 1.81 software.During the second pregnancy of the proband's mother,the amniotic fluid was obtained at 18 weeks of gestation and the amniocytes were cultured for gene mutation analysis.Neonate's DNA of WBC in peripheral blood was also extracted for NPC1 gene analysis.Results Mutation analysis of NPC1 gene revealed two novel heterozygous mutations (c.2284-2287 delCTCT and p.V959G) in the proband,which originated from her father and mother,respectively.These two mutations were absent in the control,suggesting that these mutations were not SNP.While comparing with the amino acid in NPC1 protein of human,mouse,rat,rabbit,cat and pig,it revealed that p.V959 belonged to a conservative amino acid region and the missense mutation of p.V959G may perturb the function of NPC protein.Neither mutation was found in DNA from amniotic fluid or from the cultivated amniocytes in the second pregnancy,suggesting a normal fetus.c.2284-2287 delCTCT and p.V959G mutation were not found in NPC1 gene analysis of WBC in peripheral blood of the neonate,which was consistent with the prenatal diagnosis.Conclusions PCR-direct sequencing could be used as genetic diagnosis for NPC proband and prenatal diagnosis for its family.The mutation p.V959G may be correlated to late infantile form of NPC.

Objective Establish a method for measuring the activities of Galactocerebrosidase (GALC), α-Glucosidase(GAA), α-Galactosidase (GLA) and α-L-Iduronidase (IDUA) in dried blood spots specimen by tandem mass spectrometry ( MS/MS ).Methods A total of 2175 dried blood spot samples forinborn errors of metabolism in neonatalscreening center of Shanghai Xinhua hospital were collected in July and November, 2013.And twenty dried blood spot samples from patients withlysosomalstorage disorders( LSDs) of Shanghai Xin Hua Hospital were collected from September 2012 to January 2014.The extraction of DBS was incubated with enzyme substrates and internal standards.After liquid-liquid and solid-phase extraction, the extraction solution was dried under nitrogen and reconstituted.Then enzyme reaction products and internal standards were analyzed by MS/MS.Linearity, precision, accuracy and the limit of detection were evaluated.2175 dried blood spot samples were detected to establish the normal reference range for the activities of four enzymes according to 0.5th to 99.5th percentiles.20 specimens from patients withLSDs were detected to verify the reference range inclinical judgment.Results The intraassay and interassay precisions ranged from 1.7%to 11.8%, and the intraassay and interassay accuracies ranged from 85%to 115%.The linear coefficients for measured concentration of enzyme products/internal standards and theoretical concentration were 0.997-0.999.The limits of detection forGALC, GAA, GLA and GLA were 0.03 μmol/(L· h), 0.09 μmol/(L· h), 0.12 μmol/(L· h) and 0.16 μmol/(L· h) .The normal reference values for GALC, GAA, GLA and GLAwere 0.51-8.51μmol( L· h) ,1.99-22.22μmol/( L· h),1.68-41.59 μmol/(L· h) and 2.36-19.21 μmol/(L· h).The enzymes of 20 patients with LSDs were remarkably decreased compared to the normal range.The Krabbe, Pompe, Fabry, MPSⅠpatients can be effectively detected by this MS/MS method.Conclusions A MS/MS method for measuring GALC, GAA, GLA and IDUA enzyme activities in DBShas been established.

Objective Maple syrup urine disease (MSUD) is a rare metabolic disorder caused by deficiency of the activity of branched-chain 2-keto acid dehydrogenase complex.The complex contains E1α,E1β and E2 subunits which are encoded by BCKDHA,BCKDHB or DBT genes respectively.Mutation in any gene will cause MSUD.The aim of this study was to analyze the gene mutations of four cases with MSUD and carry out prenatal diagnosis for these four families for MSUD.Methods From 2005 to 2010,four neonates (two males and two females) were diagnosed as MSUD at 2,5,10and 26 days of life.The coding regions of BCKDHA gene and BCKDHB gene in the above four cases were amplified by polymerase chain reaction and analyzed by direct DNA sequencing.During the second pregnancy of the same mother,the amniotic fluid was drawn out at 16-20 weeks for gene mutation analysis after the amniocytes were cultured.Results Mutation analysis revealed six mutations in four patients,including four novel mutations (c.308T＞C,c.562G＞T,c.1279C＞G and c.1280-1291de112) and two previously reported mutations.Five mutations (c.308T＞C,c.562G ＞T,c.868G＞A,c.1279C＞G and c.1280-1291de112) were detected on BCKDHA gene in three patients.While one mutation (c.853C＞T) was found on BCKDHB gene in one patient.Only one mutation was found in the amniocytes of each patient's mother at their second pregnancies suggesting a MSUD heterozygous fetus.Conclusions Analysis of BCKDHA and BCKDHB allowed preliminary understand of gene mutations in the four MSUD families,and made prenatal diagnosis possible,which helped in consultation in the second pregnancy.