OBJECTIVE: To explore the genetic variation of a Chinese family affected with congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis and albinism. METHODS: Whole exome sequencing (WES) was carried out to screen potential variants within genomic DNA extracted from the proband and his parents. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) was applied when variants were not found completely. Suspected variants were validated by Sanger sequencing. RESULTS: WES has identified a heterozygous c.1729G>C (p.G577R) variant of NTRK1 gene and two heterozygous variants of OCA2 gene, namely c.1363A>G (p.R455G) and c.1182+1G>A. WGS has identified two additional heterozygous variants c.(851-798C>T; 851-794C>G) in deep intronic regions of the NTRK1 gene. CONCLUSION The compound heterozygous variants of the NTRK1 gene probably underlay the congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis. And the compound heterozygous variants of the OCA2 gene probably underlay the albinism in the proband. In the case where no variant is detected by WES in the coding region, WGS should be considered to screen potential variants in the whole genome.
Albinism ; Child ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; Hereditary Sensory and Autonomic Neuropathies/genetics* ; Heterozygote ; Humans ; Membrane Transport Proteins ; Mutation ; Pedigree

Congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis (CIPA) is a rare, autosomal recessive disorder; affected patients are characterized by inability to feel pain and to sweat over the entire body, as well as by mental retardation. Because, in the oral examination, no specific findings on soft or hard tissue may be found except possible lesions due to self-mutilation, early recognition and diagnosis are essential for these patients. Pediatric dentists must be aware of the clinical manifestations and treatment considerations related to uncontrolled body temperature, tactile hyperesthesia and lack of pain reflex. In this case report, dental management of CIPA was suggested by presenting a 6-year follow-up of young patient.
Body Temperature ; Dentists ; Diagnosis ; Diagnosis, Oral ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hereditary Sensory and Autonomic Neuropathies ; Humans ; Hyperesthesia ; Hypohidrosis ; Intellectual Disability ; Pain Insensitivity, Congenital ; Reflex ; Sweat

Congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis (CIPA) is a rare disease that affects the sensory and autonomic nervous system. The patients do not have the ability to sense different sensations, such as pain, which tends to lead to different injuries. In addition, the patients suffer from fluctuations in body temperature due to autonomic involvement. The present case was a five-year-old girl with a neglected distal femur fracture. X-rays taken during the follow-up showed marked callus formation and pseudarthrosis of the distal femur. She had biting injuries of the tongue, auto-amputation of the fingers, some developmental delay and a history of recurrent fever with an unknown origin. The electrodiagnostic study was normal. The quantitative sudomotor axon reflex test revealed markedly reduced postganglionic sudomotor axonal responses at all sites recorded on the left. She was diagnosed with CIPA. As the initial presentation of CIPA involves the musculoskeletal system, orthopedic surgeons should have a high index of suspicion.
Autonomic Nervous System ; Axons ; Body Temperature ; Bony Callus ; Female ; Femur ; Fever ; Fingers ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hereditary Sensory and Autonomic Neuropathies ; Humans ; Musculoskeletal System ; Orthopedics ; Pain Insensitivity, Congenital ; Pseudarthrosis ; Rare Diseases ; Reflex ; Sensation ; Surgeons ; Tongue

Mutations in the DNA methyltransferase 1 gene (DNMT1) were reported to cause two phenotypes: OMIM 604121 and OMIM 614116. The first phenotype includes autosomal dominant cerebellar ataxia, deafness, and narcolepsy, which were reported to be caused by mutations in exon 21. The second phenotype includes hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathy type 1E, which was suggested to be caused by mutations in exon 20 and 21. In this article, we report a novel heterozygous missense variant c.898A>C, p.(Lys300Gln) in exon 12 of DNMT1 in a young woman who presented with pure cerebellar ataxia. This report indicates that a mutation in exon 12 may lead to pure cerebellar ataxia. Another possibility is that the patient is currently in an early stage of the disease, and as the disease progresses, she will have more manifestations. To confirm or exclude this possibility, a subsequent follow-up study reporting the disease progression in this patient may be needed. Further reports of cases with the same mutation are needed to confirm the phenotype of this mutation.
Cerebellar Ataxia* ; Databases, Genetic ; Deafness ; Disease Progression ; DNA ; DNA Methylation ; Exons ; Female ; Follow-Up Studies ; Hereditary Sensory and Autonomic Neuropathies ; Humans ; Narcolepsy ; Phenotype ; Saudi Arabia

OBJECTIVETo screen for mutations of NTRK1 gene in a Chinese family affected with congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis (CIPA).

METHODSGenomic DNA was extracted from the proband and her family members. All of the 17 exons and intron-exon boundaries of the NTRK1 gene were analyzed by direct Sanger sequencing. For the deletional mutation, the PCR products were subjected to T-A cloning and sequencing to verify the mutation.

RESULTSNTRK1 gene analysis revealed that proband has carried a c.1786C>T (p.Arg596*) nonsense mutation inherited from her mother and a novel deletional mutation c.1928-2028+23del from her father. Her elder brother only carried the deletional mutation.

CONCLUSIONThe diagnosis of CIPA relied on typical clinical symptoms of no pain, anhidrosis and intellectual disability and detection of the biallelic NTRK1 mutations. The novel deletional mutation has enriched the spectrum of NTRK1 mutations.

Child, Preschool ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; Exons ; Female ; Hereditary Sensory and Autonomic Neuropathies ; diagnosis ; genetics ; Humans ; Mutation ; Receptor, trkA ; genetics

OBJECTIVETo screen for mutations in the neurotrophic tyrosine kinase receptor type 1 (NTRK1) gene in a Chinese family affected with congenital insensitivity to pain with anhidrosis (CIPA).

METHODSWith informed consent obtained, peripheral blood samples were obtained from the patient and his family members. Seventeen coding exons and intron-exon boundaries of the NTRK1 gene were amplified with PCR and analyzed by direct sequencing.

RESULTSA novel mutation c.2086_2087insC (p.Arg696 fsx) was identified in exon 16 of the NTRK1 gene in the proband. This insertion has caused open reading frame shifting and a premature termination has occurred just one codon downstream. Truncation of 72 amino acids at the C terminus has wiped out part of the tyrosine kinase domain (TKD) of the protein. Both of the proband's parents and two grandmothers have carried the c.2086_2087insC (p.Arg696 fsx) mutation. No mutation was found in the NTRK1 gene of other siblings.

CONCLUSIONMutation analysis of the NTRK1 gene has been carried out in a Chinese family affected with CIPA, and a novel NTRK1 gene mutation was identified.

Base Sequence ; Child, Preschool ; DNA Mutational Analysis ; Exons ; genetics ; Hereditary Sensory and Autonomic Neuropathies ; genetics ; Humans ; Male ; Mutation ; Polymerase Chain Reaction ; Receptor, trkA ; genetics

No abstract available.
Adult ; Arthritis, Rheumatoid/*complications/diagnosis ; Female ; Hand/pathology ; Hereditary Sensory and Autonomic Neuropathies/*complications/diagnosis ; Humans ; Rheumatoid Factor/blood

Adolescent ; Female ; Hereditary Sensory and Autonomic Neuropathies ; surgery ; Humans ; Hypohidrosis ; surgery ; Pain ; Spine ; surgery

Riley Day Syndrome, also known as familial dysautonomia, is a rare reported entity characterised by disturbance of pain and temperature perceptions, inability to produce tears, labile blood pressure and poor growth due to disorder of the autonomic and sensory nervous system. It is an autosomal recessive condition with the genetic locus mapped to chromosome 9q31-q33. Traumatic fractures are common and due to lack of pain, may go unrecognised for prolonged periods of time, resulting in nonunion or pseudoarthrosis. Scoliosis is seen in up to 90% of the patients. Complications of are common in these patients and range from infection to wound breakdown to failure of fixation. We report a case (nineyear-old girl) of Riley Day Syndrome with general absence of pain and damage to the extremities to highlight this rare syndrome
Pseudoarthrosis ; Dysautonomia, Familial

The generation of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from somatic cells demonstrated that adult mammalian cells can be reprogrammed into a pluripotent state by introducing defined transcription factors. iPSCs show almost identical properties in self-renewal and pluripotency, and can circumvent ethical concerns because they do not use embryonic materials. Therefore, iPSCs from a patient's somatic cells have great potential in studying drug development and regenerative medicine. Several human disease models have already been established using patient-specific iPSCs from Parkinson's disease and familial dysautonomia. Moreover, the correction of genetic defects by homologous recombination has already been accomplished with Fanconi anemia patient-specific iPSCs. However, the generation of patient-specific iPSCs for clinical application requires alternative strategies, because genome-integrating viral vectors may raise tumorigenic risk after transplantation. Moreover, the use of iPSCs for eventual clinical application is limited by the low efficiency of current methods for reprogramming. Studies on the mechanism underlying the reprogramming and on establishment of non-integration methods contribute evidence toward resolving the safety concerns associated with iPSCs. Small molecules involved in the epigenetic modification and signaling pathway not only improve reprogramming efficiencies, but also bypass the addition of certain reprogramming factors. However, reprogramming somatic cells purely by small molecule treatment still remains a challenge. Here, we review recent progress made by the use of transcription factors and small molecules that can either replace reprogramming factors or enhance reprogramming efficiency. We also discuss the progress that has been made in the rapidly moving iPSC field, with an emphasis on understanding the mechanisms of cellular reprogramming and its potential application to cell therapy.
Adult ; Dysautonomia, Familial ; Epigenomics ; Fanconi Anemia ; Homologous Recombination ; Humans ; Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells ; Parkinson Disease ; Regenerative Medicine ; Tissue Therapy ; Transcription Factors ; Transplants