AIM: To study the influences of P1 promoter activity of furin gene on the functions of hepatocytes in patients with liver cirrhosis.METHODS: The patients with liver cirrhosis of 180 cases were recruited.The single nucleotide polymorphism(SNP-229 C/T) in P1 promoter of furin gene was genotyped using competitively differentiated polymerase chain reaction.The relationships between the promoter activity based on genotyping and the serum levels of liver enzymes,total bilirubin,albumin and prothrombin were observed.RESULTS: The distribution frequencies of allele C and T were 75.3%(271/360) and 24.7%(89/360).Those of genotypes CC,CT and TT were 62.2%(112/180),26.1%(47/180) and 11.7%(21/180),respectively.The distribution frequencies of the genotypes were not related to the serum levels of major liver enzymes,albumin,total bilirubin and prothrombin,except for alkaline phosphatase and ?-glutamyl transferase.CONCLUSION: The activity of furin promoter exerts no effects on the main functions of hepatocytes,suggesting that furin may be a new therapeutic target for HBV infection.

Objective To discuss the diagnostic value of ultrasonography in piriformis syndrome . Methods Ultrasonography was performed in thirty‐eight patients with unilateral piriformis syndrome and forty healthy volunteers . The morphological structures and the internal echoes of their bilateral piriformises and sciatic nerves were observed and their thicknesses were measured . These parameters of the patients and voluteers were recorded and compared . Results The ultrasonographic images of piriformis and sciatic nerve of the healthy voluteers showed no abnormal change . The thickness difference of their bilateral piriformises and sciatic nerves had no statistical significance ( P > 0 .05 ) . The ultrasonography image of the morphological structure and the internal echo of the sick side piriformis and sciatic nerve of the patients with piriformis syndrome showed a change ,that the sick side piriformis was significantly thicker than the healthy side piriformis [(25 .74 ± 3 .12) mm vs (22 .48 ± 2 .60) mm , P < 0 .05] . The area under the operator characteristic curve ( AUC ) for the thickness difference of bilateral piriformises in diagnosing piriformis syndrome was 0 .896 ,with the optimal cut‐off value of 2 .15 mm . However ,the thickness difference of their bilateral sciatic nerves had no statistical significance ( P >0 .05) . Conclusions Ultrasonography can show piriformis and sciatic nerve clearly . The ultrasonographic images and the thickness difference of the bilateral piriformises is helpful to diagnose piriformis syndrome ,and can provide more informations for clinic .

Objective To explore the clinical value of genetic diagnosis of SMA,the homozygous deletion of survival motor neuron 1 (SMN1) gene in suspected spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) patients were analyzed in this study.Methods A total of 154 patients suspected with SMA and 20 healthy volunteers were recruited from January 2007 to December 2014 in the Genetic Diagnosis Center of the First People's Hospital of Yunnan Province and the Department of Neurology of the Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Kunming Medical University.Potential deletions in exons 7 and 8 of SMN1 gene were screened by use of polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method in both 154 patients suspected with SMA and 20 healthy volunteers.The frequencies of the deletions in exons 7 and 8 of SMN1 were calculated and statistical analysis of different deletion types among 3 SMA groups was performed with SPSS 13.0 software package.Results Among 154 suspected SMA patients,101 cases with homozygous deletions of exon 7 of SMN1 gene were detected,which accounted 65.6％ (101/154) of the suspected SMA patients.Among the 101 SMA patients,97.0％ (98/101) of the patients with both homozygous deletions of exons 7 and 8 for SMN1 gene and 3.0％ (3/101) of the patients with homozygous deletions of only exon 7 for SMN1 gene were detected.The patient with only deletion of exon 8 for SMN1 gene was notdetected.Four cases with negative results were subjected to be followed-up,but they were characteristic of SMA symptom by clinical re-visit.Thus,total 105 patients were confirmed with SMA,among them,68 were type Ⅰ SMA,27 were type Ⅱ SMA,and 10 were type Ⅲl SMA,which accounted for 64.8％ (68/105),25.7％ (27/105) and 9.5％ (10/105) of the SMA patients,respectively.Type Ⅳ SMA was not observed in these patients.No deletion was detected among 20 healthy volunteers.Conclusions PCR-RFLP assay is a noninvasive,simple,high sensitive and specific method for SMA diagnosis,which can be considered as the first-line genetic test for the suspected SMA patients.It will help to improve the accuracy of clinical diagnosis and the detection rate by strengthening the clinical diagnostic criteria and re-evaluating the suspected patients after negative genetic diagnosis.

Objective To investigate mutation spectrums of α- and β-haemoglobin genes in thalassemia patients and carriers in Yunnan province,and to establish procedures on prenatal gene diagnosis.MethodsTotally 10 033 counseling couples and pregnant women,and 22 cases of children with moderate or severe thalassemia were recruited from 5 parts of Yunnan Province,middle,western,eastern,southern and northern areas, during July 2009 to July 2011.Medical records, including results of haemoglobin electrophoresis,blood routine examination,and gene diagnosis of subjects were collected and saved in an database in Excel software by the Key Laboratory for Birth Defects and Genetic Diseases.Using multiple gap-PCR and PCR-reversed dot blotting kits, DNA samples collected from 1077 cases of haematological positive thalassemia patients and carriers were tested to determine common mutations of the α-or β-haemoglobin genes.The codon regions of haemoglobin genes were sequenced by the Sanger sequencing in cases that the mutation tests were negative.Mutation spectrums of α- and β-haemoglobin genes were concluded.Prenatal gene diagnosis was offered to fetuses who had risk of thalassemia major.Results( 1 ) In 1077 cases of haemological screen positive subjects,deletions and mutations of α-haemoglobin gene were tested in 119 subjects among 347 cases suspected as α-thalassemia patients and carriers.Five kinds of deletions and mutations on α-haemoglobin gene were found.In 104 subjects,four kinds of common deletions and mutations onα-haemoglobin gene were determined:--SEA, -α3.7, αCS α,-α4.2.Other 14 subjects were double heterozygotes with haemoglobin H disease and severe α-thalassemia phenotypes.A rare mutation of insertion and deletion in α2 haemoglobin gene intron,α301-24-301-23 indel,was found in one carrier subject.(2)In 1077 cases of haemological screen positive subjects,deletions and mutations of β-haemoglobin gene were tested in 297 subjects among 730 cases suspected as β-thalassemia patients and carriers.Sixteen kinds of β-haemoglobin gene mutations were found,including 7 cases of rare abnormal haemoglobinopathy patients with β-haemoglobin gene mutations.In one case with β + phenotype patient,the Codon 5 (-CT)mutation at β-haemoglobin gene was found (firstly reported in China ). (3) Three fetuses with high riskS of α-thalassemia were accepted for prenatal diagnosis.One case of Hb Bart's hydrops syndrome fetus with the genotype --SEA/--SEA,and one case of mild α-thalassemia fetus with the genotype αCS α/αα were found.Another one fetus was found with normal α-haemoglobin.In 6 fetuses accepted for prenatal diagnosis due to high risks of β-thalassemia,one case of β-thalassemia major with the genotype CD17( A→T)/-28 (A→G) was found,3 fetuses were heterozygote carriers,and 2 fetuses had normal genotypes without mutations found in their parents.Medical terminations for 2 fetuses with severe thalassemia were made according to the choice of pregnant women.Other 7 pregnancies continued to term.Anemia or growth retardation was not found in the 7 infants when following up after given-birth 6 to 12 months.Conclusions The mutation spectrums of α- and β-haemoglobin genes of thalassemia patients and αarriers.in Yunnan province are special,in which β-haemoglobin gene exits more polymorphism in the mutation spectrum.Carrier screening in pregnant women,and offering prenatal gene diagnosis to the high risk pregnancies should be an efficient strategy to prevent thalassemia major.

Objective:To analyze the genetic mutation characteristics of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency among infants in Kunming.Methods:A total of 15 533 infants (7 994 males and 7 539 females) born in Kunming from January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2020, with an age range of 2 to 44 days, were selected. G6PD enzyme activity and gene mutation types were detected using fluorescence quantitative analysis, multicolor melting curve analysis (MMCA), and Sanger sequencing. Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) was used for quantitative analysis of a newly identified variant family to determine the mutant allele proportion in family members. Meanwhile,the protein structure model and pathogenicity prediction of the novel variant were analyzed.Data analysis was conducted using SPSS 26.0. Specifically, chi-square tests were used for the detection rates of G6PD enzyme activity and gene mutations between different genders. One-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) was used for the comparison of enzyme activity among different mutation types.Results:Among 15 533 infants, 143 cases (129 males and 14 females) were tested positive for G6PD activity, with a detection rate of 0.92% (143/15 533). The difference in detection rates between males and females was statistically significant (χ 2=96.76, P<0.001). Out of 89 enzyme activity-positive cases (83 males and 6 females) underwent genetic testing, 77 (72 males and 5 females) were detected by MMCAand other 12 negative samples were underwent further Sanger sequencing, revealing mutations in 6 samples, all of which were males. Among the 83 individuals with gene mutations, 78 had heterozygous mutations, 1 had a homozygous mutation, and 4 had compound heterozygous mutations. A total of 12 mutation types were detected, with G6PD c.487G>A, c.1024C>T, c.1388G>A, and c.1376G>T being the most common, accounting for 74.70% (62/83) of all mutation types. The average G6PD enzyme activity of c.1376G>T was the lowest, and the differences were statistically significant compared to the average enzyme activity of the other three mutations ( P<0.05). One male infant with a newly identified G6PD c.242G>C mutation was detected, predicted to be pathogenic. ddPCR confirmed that the mother of the affected child was a c.242G>C mutant chimera, with a chimera proportion of 6.66%. Conclusions:In the Kunming region, the predominant G6PD deficiency gene mutation is c.487G>A, with the detection of a novel G6PD c.242G>C mutation. The application of ddPCR technology can assist in detecting the proportion of mutation chimeras.

OBJECTIVETo establish a strategy for screening and diagnosing common microdeletion and microduplication syndromes among children with idiopathic mental retardation and development abnormalities.

METHODSPotential chromosomal variations among patients with unexplained mental retardation, cardiac anomalies, particular facial features, learning disabilities and other clinical characteristics were detected with bacterial artificial chromosome BACs-on-Beads (BoBs) technique and karyotyping. Positive results were verified with array-based comparative genomic hybridization (Array-CGH).

RESULTSFifty eight of the 60 patients had a normal chromosome karyotype. Ten patients with microdeletion and microduplication syndromes were detected by BoBs, which included two positive cases identified through chromosome karyotyping. Two patients were respectively diagnosed as Smith-Magenis syndrome and Prader-Willi/Angelman syndrome by BoBs and the results were confirmed by Array-CGH.

CONCLUSIONBoBs is capable of detecting chromosome microdeletion and microduplication with high specificity and throughput, which can compensate the shortcomings of conventional cytogenetic technology and will be widely applied for clinical diagnosis.

Adolescent ; Child ; Child, Preschool ; Chromosome Deletion ; Chromosome Duplication ; Chromosomes, Artificial, Bacterial ; genetics ; Comparative Genomic Hybridization ; Cytogenetic Analysis ; methods ; Female ; Humans ; Infant ; Infant, Newborn ; Karyotyping ; Male ; Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis

OBJECTIVETo provide genetic analysis for a pregnant woman with chromosomal translocations and intellectual disability, and to provide prenatal diagnosis for her fetus.

METHODSRoutine G-banding was performed to analyze the karyotypes of the woman and her fetus. Copy number variants were determined with array comparative genomic hybridization (array-CGH).

RESULTSThe pregnant woman has carried an apparently balanced translocation involving chromosomes 1, 2, 6 and 7, with a karyotype of 46, XX, t(1;2) (p22;p23), t(6;7) (q21;p15). The karyotype of her fetus was ascertained as 46, XY, t(6;7) (q21;p15) mat. Array-CGH has detected a 4 Mb microdeletion at 6q22.1-q22.31 (115 311 507-119 332 956) in both individuals. As the 6q22.1-q22.31 microdeletion may be associated with the main clinical manifestations of the woman, the family decided to terminate the pregnancy. The fetus was male and appeared to have no obvious abnormality.

CONCLUSIONPrenatal diagnosis for pregnant women with translocations and mental retardation is a challenging task. Combined application of cytogenetic analysis and array-CGH may facilitate the diagnosis and genetic counseling.

Adult ; Female ; Fetus ; abnormalities ; Genetic Testing ; methods ; Humans ; Intellectual Disability ; genetics ; Male ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Diagnosis ; methods ; Translocation, Genetic ; genetics ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVETo investigate the mutations of phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH) gene in 20 phenylketonuria (PKU) patients from Yunnan.

METHODSThe 13 exons and the splicing regions of 12 introns of the PAH gene were sequenced to detect mutations in 20 unrelated PKU patients.

RESULTSPAH gene sequencing has revealed 15 types of mutations, in which the most frequently mutation was p.R243Q (30.0%), followed by p.Y356X(10.0%), p.R111X (7.5%), IVS4+2T>A (7.5%) and p.V399V (7.5%). Exons 7, 11, 3 and introns 4, 11 were most frequently involved. Six novel mutations, including c.59A>C, c.60G>C, c.690_691insG, c.1119_1120insT, c.441+2T>A, c.842+4A>T and c.1200+1T>G were detected.

CONCLUSIONPAH gene mutations identified in Yunnan are more similar to those of northern China, with R243R being the most common, though there are still certain characteristics for the type and frequency of mutations.

Adolescent ; Adult ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; genetics ; Base Sequence ; Child ; China ; Female ; Humans ; Male ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Mutation ; Phenylalanine Hydroxylase ; genetics ; Phenylketonurias ; enzymology ; genetics ; Young Adult

OBJECTIVE: To perform carrier screening for spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) among 3049 reproductive-age individuals from Yunnan region and determine the copy number of survival motor neuron (SMN) gene and carrier frequencies. METHODS: Multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification (MLPA) was used to determine the copy number of exon 7 of SMN1 and SMN2 genes and identify those with a single copy of SMN1 gene. Prenatal diagnosis was performed for couples whom were both found to be SMA carriers. RESULTS: In total 62 SMA carriers were identified among the 3049 subjects, which yielded a carrier frequency of 1 in 49 (2.03%). No statistical difference was found in the carrier frequency between males and females (1.91% vs. 2.30%, P>0.05). Respectively, 1.3% (41/3049) and 0.69% (21/3049) of the carriers were caused by heterozygous deletion and conversion of the SMN1 gene. The average copy number for SMN1 alleles was 1.99. Two couples were found to be both as SMA carriers, for whom the birth of an affected fetus was avoided by prenatal diagnosis. CONCLUSION No difference was found in the carrier frequency of SMA-related mutations between the two genders in Yunnan region, which was in keeping to an autosomal recessive inheritance pattern. Determination of the carrier frequency for SMA and SMN gene variants may provide a basis for genetic counseling and prenatal diagnosis for the disease.
China ; Female ; Genetic Carrier Screening ; Genetic Counseling ; Genetic Variation ; Heterozygote ; Humans ; Male ; Muscular Atrophy, Spinal ; genetics ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Diagnosis ; Survival of Motor Neuron 1 Protein ; genetics ; Survival of Motor Neuron 2 Protein ; genetics

Dynasore is a small molecule that inhibits the GTPase activity of dynamin and mitochondria-related proteins both in vitro and in vivo,consequently preventing bacteria and viruses from entering cells via endocytic processes,impeding infection and spread of the pathogen.Dynasore is able to participate in cell survival,proliferation and apoptosis through a variety of dynamin protein-independent mechanisms such as reducing reactive oxygen species production,inhib-iting ferroptosis,lowering dynamin-related protein 1 activity to reduce mitophagy,and deeply engaging in vascular endo-thelial growth factor pathway.Here based on the molecular mechanisms and signaling pathways of dynasore involving in diseases,this review summarizes the role of dynasore in microbial infections,neurodegenerative diseases,and tumors.