OBJECTIVE: To analyze FOXC2 gene variant in a family affected with lymphodema-distichiasis syndrome (LDS). METHODS: Peripheral blood samples were collected for the extraction of DNA and protein. Whole-exome sequencing was carried out to detect variants in the proband. Suspected variant was validated by Sanger sequencing. Western blotting was used to detect changes in protein expression. RESULTS: The proband and his mother were both found to carry a heterozygous nonsense variant c.177C>G (p.Tyr59X) of the FOXC2 gene, which was previously unreported. Down-regulated expression of FOXC2 was detected by Western blotting. Prenatal ultrasonography of the fetus indicated increased nuchal thickness. Amniocentesis was performed at 21+1 weeks of pregnancy, genetic testing suggested that the fetus also carried the c.177C>G variant. CONCLUSION The patients' condition may be attributed to the heterozygous nonsense variant c.177C>G of the FOXC2 gene, which resulted in a significant decrease in FOXC2 expression. Increased nuchal thickness may also be related with decreased FOXC2 expression. Above finding has expanded the variant spectrum of the FOXC2 gene.
Codon, Nonsense ; Eyelashes ; abnormalities ; Female ; Forkhead Transcription Factors ; genetics ; metabolism ; Gene Expression ; Genetic Testing ; Genetic Variation ; Humans ; Lymphedema ; genetics ; Pedigree ; Pregnancy ; Prenatal Diagnosis

Animals ; Codon, Nonsense ; Disease ; genetics ; Drosophila ; genetics ; metabolism ; Drosophila Proteins ; genetics ; Humans ; Pseudogenes ; Receptors, Odorant ; genetics

p53 gene plays an important role in apoptosis, which is necessary for successful invasion of trophoblast cells. The change from an arginine (Arg) to a proline (Pro) at codon 72 can influence the biological activity of p53, which predisposes to an increased risk of recurrent spontaneous abortion (RSA). In order to investigate the association between p53 polymorphism at codon 72 and RSA, we conducted this meta-analysis. Pubmed, Embase and Web of science were used to identify the eligible studies. Odds ratio (OR) with 95% confidence interval (CI) was used to evaluate the strength of the association. Six studies containing 937 cases of RSA and 830 controls were included, and there was one study deviated from Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium (HWE). There was a significant association between p53 polymorphism at codon 72 and RSA in recessive model (Pro/Pro vs. Pro/Arg+Arg/Arg; OR=1.60, 95% CI: 1.14-2.24) and co-dominant model (Pro/Pro vs. Arg/Arg; OR=1.47, 95% CI: 1.02-2.12) whether the study that was deviated from HWE was eliminated or not. A significant association was observed in allelic model (Pro vs. Arg; OR=1.28, 95% CI: 1.04-1.57) after exclusion of the study that was deviated from HWE. No association was noted in recessive model (Pro/Pro+Pro/Arg vs. Arg/Arg; OR=1.05, 95% CI: 0.86-1.30) and co-dominant model (Pro/Arg vs. Arg/Arg; OR=0.96, 95% CI: 0.77-1.19). Subgroup analysis by ethnicity also indicated a significant association between p53 polymorphism at codon 72 and RSA in Caucasian group. No heterogeneity and publication bias were found. Our meta-analysis implied that p53 polymorphism at codon 72 carries high maternal risk of RSA.
Abortion, Spontaneous ; diagnosis ; ethnology ; genetics ; physiopathology ; Adult ; Alleles ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group ; Case-Control Studies ; Codon ; European Continental Ancestry Group ; Female ; Gene Frequency ; Genetic Predisposition to Disease ; Humans ; Odds Ratio ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide ; Pregnancy ; Recurrence ; Risk Factors ; Tumor Suppressor Protein p53 ; genetics ; metabolism

OBJECTIVETo explore the function of a novel nonsense mutation c.1476G>A of ITGB3 gene using an in vitro expression system.

METHODSAn eukaryotic expression vector containing ITGB3 c.1476G>A cDNA was generated by site-directed mutagenesis and transformed into E.coli. Plasmid DNA was extracted and sequenced to confirm the target mutations. Wild-type and mutant recombination plasmids were transfected into Chinese hamster ovarian cancer (CHO) cells by nonliposome method, and the stable expression cells were harvested by G418 screening. The ITGB3 gene mRNA transcription and GPIIIa expression level in CHO cells were detected with real-time quantitative PCR, Western blotting and flow cytometry, respectively.

RESULTSThe eukaryotic expression vectors of wild ITGB3 cDNA and c.1476G>A mutant were successfully constructed. CHO cells with stable expression were obtained after transfection and screening. Compared with the wild-type transfected cells, the amount of CD61 antigen expression was 37% and mRNA transcription level was only 6% in the mutant-transfected cells. Full length GPIIIa protein was found only in the stably wild-type-transfected cells, but not in mutant-transfected cells by Western blotting analysis.

CONCLUSIONThe ITGB3 c.1476G>A mutation can decrease the transcription level and further affect GPIIIa synthesis and CD61 antigen expression.

Animals ; Base Sequence ; Blood Platelets ; cytology ; metabolism ; CHO Cells ; Cloning, Molecular ; Codon, Nonsense ; genetics ; Cricetinae ; Cricetulus ; Humans ; Integrin beta3 ; genetics ; metabolism ; Molecular Sequence Data ; Plasmids ; genetics ; metabolism ; Point Mutation

Research of the FLG mutation in various ethnic groups revealed non-overlapping mutation patterns. In addition, Japanese and Chinese atopic patients showed somewhat different mutations. These ethnic differences make the research on Korean patients mandatory; however, no systematic research on Korean atopic dermatitis (AD) patients has been performed. This study aims to investigate the genetic polymorphism of FLG in Korean atopic dermatitis patients. The study was made up of three groups including 9 Ichthyosis vulgaris (IV) patients, 50 AD patients and 55 normal controls: the ichthyosis group was incorporated due to the reported association between the FLG mutation and IV. In comparison to other sequencing methods, the overlapping long-range PCR was used. We revealed the genetic polymorphism of filaggrin in Koreans, and at the same time, we discovered nonsense mutations in p.Y1767X and p.K4022X in Korean AD patients. By using FLG sequencing techniques confirmed in this study, new mutations or genetic polymorphisms with ethnic characteristics would be detected and further larger studies of repeat number polymorphisms could be performed.
Adult ; Alleles ; Asian Continental Ancestry Group/*genetics ; Base Sequence ; Codon, Nonsense ; DNA/blood/chemistry/metabolism ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; Dermatitis, Atopic/*genetics ; Female ; Genotype ; Heterozygote ; Humans ; Ichthyosis Vulgaris/genetics ; Intermediate Filament Proteins/*genetics ; Male ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide

The present study was designed to investigate the effects of start codon of nosM on the biosynthesis of nosiheptide. Target genes were amplified by overlap PCR. After homologous recombination to construct engineered strains, nosiheptide production was analyzed by HPLC. Three mutants with different start codon of nosM were constructed, and nosiheptide production of each mutant was analyzed and compared. Replacement of the start codon of nosM significantly decreased the production of nosiheptide. In conclusion, start codon usage could greatly affect the biosynthetic efficiency in the biosynthetic gene cluster of nosiheptide.
Anti-Bacterial Agents ; biosynthesis ; Chromatography, High Pressure Liquid ; Codon, Initiator ; Escherichia coli ; Genes, Bacterial ; Mutation ; Streptomyces ; genetics ; metabolism ; Thiazoles ; metabolism

To express recombinant carboxypeptidase from Thermus aquaticus (Cpase Taq) in Pichia pastosis, the open reading frame coding thermostable Cpase Taq was optimized based on the preference of P. pastoris codon usage and synthesized in vitro. The novel gene was cloned into P. pastoris expression vector pHBM905A and the sequence coding 6xHis tag was fused with the ORF of Cpase Taq gene. The recombinant plasmid was named pHBM905A-Cpase Taq and transformed into P. pastoris GS 115. Transformants were induced with 1% methanol for 72 h until the enzyme yield reached 0.1 mg/ml. The enzyme was purified and its enzymatic properties were analyzed. The results showed that the specific enzyme activity reached maximum at 75 °C and pH 7.5, which was about 80 U/mg. It was the first report about the secretory expression of Cpase Taq in P. pastoris GS115. Because of its large-scale preparation, this enzyme may be applied in industrial hydrolysis of peptides into amino acids in the future.
Bacterial Proteins ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Carboxypeptidases ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Cloning, Molecular ; Codon ; Hydrolysis ; Open Reading Frames ; Pichia ; metabolism ; Recombinant Proteins ; biosynthesis ; genetics ; Thermus ; enzymology

Bartter syndrome (BS) is classified into 5 genotypes according to underlying mutant genes and BS III is caused by loss-of-function mutations in the CLCNKB gene encoding for basolateral ClC-Kb. BS III is the most common genotype in Korean patients with BS and W610X is the most common CLCNKB mutation in Korean BS III. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that the CLCNKB W610X mutation can be rescued in vitro using aminoglycoside antibiotics, which are known to induce translational read-through of a nonsense mutation. The CLCNKB cDNA was cloned into a eukaryotic expression vector and the W610X nonsense mutation was generated by site-directed mutagenesis. Cultured polarized MDCK cells were transfected with the vectors, and the read-through was induced using an aminoglycoside derivative, G418. Cellular expression of the target protein was monitored via immunohistochemistry. While cells transfected with the mutant CLCNKB failed to express ClC-Kb, G418 treatment of the cells induced the full-length protein expression, which was localized to the basolateral plasma membranes. It is demonstrated that the W610X mutation in CLCNKB can be a good candidate for trial of translational read-through induction as a therapeutic modality.
Animals ; Bartter Syndrome/genetics/*pathology ; Chloride Channels/analysis/genetics/*metabolism ; Cloning, Molecular ; Codon, Nonsense ; Dogs ; Humans ; Immunohistochemistry ; Madin Darby Canine Kidney Cells ; Microscopy, Confocal ; Mutagenesis, Site-Directed ; Recombinant Fusion Proteins/analysis/biosynthesis/genetics ; Transfection

BACKGROUND: N-ras mutations are one of the most commonly detected abnormalities of myeloid origin. N-ras mutations result in a constitutively active N-ras protein that induces uncontrolled cell proliferation and inhibits apoptosis. We analyzed N-ras mutations in adult patients with AML at a particular institution and compared pyrosequencing analysis with a direct sequencing method for the detection of N-ras mutations. METHODS: We analyzed 90 bone marrow samples from 83 AML patients. We detected N-ras mutations in codons 12, 13, and 61 using the pyrosequencing method and subsequently confirmed all data by direct sequencing. Using these methods, we screened the N-ras mutation quantitatively and determined the incidence and characteristic of N-ras mutation. RESULTS: The incidence of N-ras mutation was 7.2% in adult AML patients. The patients with N-ras mutations showed significant higher hemoglobin levels (P=0.022) and an increased incidence of FLT3 mutations (P=0.003). We observed 3 cases with N-ras mutations in codon 12 (3.6%), 2 cases in codon 13 (2.4%), and 1 case in codon 61 (1.2%). All the mutations disappeared during chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: There is a low incidence (7.2%) of N-ras mutations in AML patients compared with other populations. Similar data is obtained by both pyrosequencing and direct sequencing. This study showed the correlation between the N-ras mutation and the therapeutic response. However, pyrosequencing provides quantitative data and is useful for monitoring therapeutic responses.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Antineoplastic Agents/therapeutic use ; Bone Marrow/metabolism ; Codon ; Cytogenetic Analysis ; Female ; Hemoglobins/metabolism ; Humans ; Incidence ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute/drug therapy/epidemiology/*genetics ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mutation ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3/genetics ; ras Proteins/*genetics

BACKGROUND: N-ras mutations are one of the most commonly detected abnormalities of myeloid origin. N-ras mutations result in a constitutively active N-ras protein that induces uncontrolled cell proliferation and inhibits apoptosis. We analyzed N-ras mutations in adult patients with AML at a particular institution and compared pyrosequencing analysis with a direct sequencing method for the detection of N-ras mutations. METHODS: We analyzed 90 bone marrow samples from 83 AML patients. We detected N-ras mutations in codons 12, 13, and 61 using the pyrosequencing method and subsequently confirmed all data by direct sequencing. Using these methods, we screened the N-ras mutation quantitatively and determined the incidence and characteristic of N-ras mutation. RESULTS: The incidence of N-ras mutation was 7.2% in adult AML patients. The patients with N-ras mutations showed significant higher hemoglobin levels (P=0.022) and an increased incidence of FLT3 mutations (P=0.003). We observed 3 cases with N-ras mutations in codon 12 (3.6%), 2 cases in codon 13 (2.4%), and 1 case in codon 61 (1.2%). All the mutations disappeared during chemotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: There is a low incidence (7.2%) of N-ras mutations in AML patients compared with other populations. Similar data is obtained by both pyrosequencing and direct sequencing. This study showed the correlation between the N-ras mutation and the therapeutic response. However, pyrosequencing provides quantitative data and is useful for monitoring therapeutic responses.
Adult ; Aged ; Aged, 80 and over ; Antineoplastic Agents/therapeutic use ; Bone Marrow/metabolism ; Codon ; Cytogenetic Analysis ; Female ; Hemoglobins/metabolism ; Humans ; Incidence ; Leukemia, Myeloid, Acute/drug therapy/epidemiology/*genetics ; Male ; Middle Aged ; Mutation ; Sequence Analysis, DNA ; fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 3/genetics ; ras Proteins/*genetics