A novel TUBG1 mutation with neurodevelopmental disorder caused by malformations of cortical development

Retracted: A novel TUBG1 mutation with neurodevelopmental disorder caused by malformations of cortical development

[This retracts the article DOI: 10.1155/2021/6644274.].

Systematic assessment of the contribution of structural variants to inherited retinal diseases

Despite increasing success in determining genetic diagnosis for patients with inherited retinal diseases (IRDs), mutations in about 30% of the IRD cases remain unclear or unsettled after targeted gene panel or whole exome sequencing. In this study, we aimed to investigate the contributions of structural variants (SVs) to settling the molecular diagnosis of IRD with whole-genome sequencing (WGS). A cohort of 755 IRD patients whose pathogenic mutations remain undefined were subjected to WGS. Four SV calling algorithms including include MANTA, DELLY, LUMPY and CNVnator were used to detect SVs throughout the genome. All SVs identified by any one of these four algorithms were included for further analysis. AnnotSV was used to annotate these SVs. SVs that overlap with known IRD-associated genes were examined with sequencing coverage, junction reads and discordant read pairs. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) followed by Sanger sequencing was used to further confirm the SVs and identify the breakpoints. Segregation of the candidate pathogenic alleles with the disease was performed when possible. A total of 16 candidate pathogenic SVs were identified in 16 families, including deletions and inversions, representing 2.1% of patients with previously unsolved IRDs. Autosomal dominant, autosomal recessive and X-linked inheritance of disease-causing SVs were observed in 12 different genes. Among these, SVs in CLN3, EYS and PRPF31 were found in multiple families. Our study suggests that the contribution of SVs detected by short-read WGS is about 0.25% of our IRD patient cohort and is significantly lower than that of single nucleotide changes and small insertions and deletions.

Functional Pathway and Process Enrichment Analysis of Genes Associated With Morphological Abnormalities of the Outer Ear

Congenital anomalies of the outer ear are common birth defects, including a variety of congenital deformities or malformations ranging from mild structural anomalies to total absence of the ear. Despite its high incidence and detrimental impact on patients, the etiology of outer ear abnormalities remains poorly understood. The goal of this study was to summarize the related genes and improve our understanding of the genetic etiology of morphological abnormalities of the outer ear. Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO) database, Mouse Genome Informatics (MGI) database, and PubMed search engine were used to acquire the genes associated with abnormal human or mouse outer ear. Metascape was employed on the genes above to conduct functional annotation, pathway and process enrichment analysis, protein-protein interaction network analysis, and MCODE component analysis. After a comprehensive review of the databases and literature, we identified 394 human genes and 148 mouse genes that have been associated with abnormal phenotypes of the outer ear, and we identified several biological pathways for human and mouse respectively. Especially, the analysis of common genes shared by human and mouse emphasized the importance of certain genes ( PAX6 , PBX1 , HOXA1 , HOXA2 , TBX1 , TBX15 , PRRX1 , and HMX1 ) in the embryonic development of the external ear. Through our analysis of genes associated with morphological abnormalities of the outer ear, the authors have shown that embryonic development pathways take important roles in the morphogenesis of abnormal external ear and highlighted some potential genetic drivers.

Roles of the cytoskeleton in human diseases

Recently, researches have revealed the key roles of the cytoskeleton in the occurrence and development of multiple diseases, suggesting that targeting the cytoskeleton is a viable approach for treating numerous refractory diseases. The cytoskeleton is a highly structured and complex network composed of actin filaments, microtubules, and intermediate filaments. In normal cells, these three cytoskeleton components are highly integrated and coordinated. However, the cytoskeleton undergoes drastic remodeling in cytoskeleton-related diseases, causing changes in cell polarity, affecting the cell cycle, leading to senescent diseases, and influencing cell migration to accelerate cancer metastasis. Additionally, mutations or abnormalities in cytoskeletal proteins and their related proteins are closely associated with several congenital diseases. Therefore, this review summarizes the roles of the cytoskeleton in cytoskeleton-related diseases as well as its potential roles in disease treatment to provide insights regarding the physiological functions and pathological roles of the cytoskeleton.