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BMC Pediatrics May 2024Donohue syndrome (DS), also referred to as leprechaunism, is a remarkably uncommon autosomal recessive disorder that primarily affects the endocrine system. Its...
INTRODUCTION
Donohue syndrome (DS), also referred to as leprechaunism, is a remarkably uncommon autosomal recessive disorder that primarily affects the endocrine system. Its incidence rate is exceedingly low, with only 1 case reported per 4 million live births. The syndrome is distinguished by a series of characteristic clinical features.
CASE PRESENTATION
We present a case of a twenty-month-old male with DS who experienced a range of dysmorphic and clinical features with the involvement of multiple systems. These features include skin hyperpigmentation, hypertrichosis, distinct facial features, abdominal distension, and microcephaly, with the involvement of the endocrine, renal, respiratory, and cardiac systems.
CONCLUSION
The primary features of DS involve severe insulin resistance and growth abnormalities, the association with pulmonary hypertension (PHTN) has not been reported before. This finding adds more complexity to the condition. To the best of the author's knowledge, this is the first report for a patient with DS who has PHTN. Further investigation is required since the mechanisms behind the development of PHTN in DS are not entirely understood. Shedding light on this association will contribute to better management strategies and outcomes for affected patients.
Topics: Humans; Male; Hypertension, Pulmonary; Infant; Donohue Syndrome
PubMed: 38773407
DOI: 10.1186/s12887-024-04714-1 -
Molecular Genetics and Metabolism... 2014Mutations in the insulin receptor gene cause the inherited insulin resistant syndromes Leprechaunism and Rabson-Mendenhall syndrome. These recessive conditions are...
UNLABELLED
Mutations in the insulin receptor gene cause the inherited insulin resistant syndromes Leprechaunism and Rabson-Mendenhall syndrome. These recessive conditions are characterized by intrauterine and post-natal growth restrictions, dysmorphic features, altered glucose homeostasis, and early demise. The insulin receptor gene () maps to the short arm of chromosome 19 and is composed of 22 exons. Here we optimize the conditions for sequencing this gene and report novel mutations in patients with severe insulin resistance.
METHODS
PCR amplification of the 22 coding exons of the gene was performed using M13-tailed primers. Bidirectional DNA sequencing was performed with BigDye Terminator chemistry and M13 primers and the product was analyzed on the ABI 3100 genetic analyzer. Data analysis was performed using Mutation Surveyor software comparing the sequence to a reference sequence (Genbank NC_000019).
RESULTS
We sequenced four patients with Leprechaunism or Rabson-Mendenhall syndromes as well as seven samples from normal individuals and confirmed previously identified mutations in the affected patients. Three of the four mutations identified in this group caused premature insertion of a stop codon. In addition, the gene was sequenced in 14 clinical samples from patients with suspected insulin resistance and one novel mutation was found in an infant with a suspected diagnosis of Leprechaunism.
DISCUSSION
Leprechaunism and Rabson-Mendenhall syndrome are very rare and difficult to diagnose. Diagnosis is currently based mostly on clinical criteria. Clinical availability of DNA sequencing can provide an objective way of confirming or excluding the diagnosis.
PubMed: 27896077
DOI: 10.1016/j.ymgmr.2013.12.006 -
Alzheimer's & Dementia (Amsterdam,... 2023Apathy is one of the most common neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) and is associated with poor clinical outcomes. Research that helps define the apathy phenotype is...
UNLABELLED
Apathy is one of the most common neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) and is associated with poor clinical outcomes. Research that helps define the apathy phenotype is urgently needed, particularly for clinical and biomarker studies. We used latent class analysis (LCA) with two independent cohorts to understand how apathy and depression symptoms co-occur statistically. We further explored the relationship between latent class membership, demographics, and the presence of other NPS. The LCA identified a four-class solution (no symptoms, apathy, depression, and combined apathy/depression), reproducible over both cohorts, providing robust support for an apathy syndrome distinct from depression and confirming that an apathy/depression syndrome exists, supported by the model fit test with the four-class solution scores evidencing better fitting (Bayesian information criterion adjusted and entropy ). Using a data-driven method, we show distinct and statistically meaningful co-occurrence of apathy and depressive symptoms. There was evidence that these classes have different clinical associations, which may help inform diagnostic categories for research studies and clinical practice.
HIGHLIGHTS
We found four classes: no symptoms, apathy, depression and apathy/depression.Apathy conferred a higher probability for agitation.Apathy diagnostic criteria should include accompanying neuropsychiatric symptoms.
PubMed: 36777092
DOI: 10.1002/dad2.12398 -
Frontiers in Endocrinology 2021Defects in the insulin receptor () gene cause various severe insulin resistance conditions, including Donohue syndrome (DS), Rabson-Mendenhall syndrome (RMS) and type A...
OBJECTIVE
Defects in the insulin receptor () gene cause various severe insulin resistance conditions, including Donohue syndrome (DS), Rabson-Mendenhall syndrome (RMS) and type A insulin resistance (type A-IR). This study aimed to investigate the clinical characterization and molecular defects in three Chinese children with -related insulin resistance syndrome.
METHODS
We reviewed the clinical data of three Chinese children with -related insulin resistance syndrome from two unrelated kindreds. Genetic analysis was performed using whole-exome sequencing and the effects of the novel variants were further assessed by functional assays.
RESULTS
The proband with type A-IR presented with acanthosis nigricans, hypertrichosis, and euglycemia with mild insulin resistance in early childhood. His sister presented with features typical of type A-IR and was diagnosed with diabetes mellitus with severe insulin resistance at the age of 9.8 years. The proband with DS showed typical dysmorphic characteristics, severe intrauterine growth retardation, extreme insulin resistance, fasting hypoglycemia and postprandial hyperglycemia from birth. The heterozygote variants c.[3670G>A]; c.[3614C>T] were identified in both siblings with type A-IR; and c.[749_751del]; c.[3355C>T] in the patient with DS. studies showed that the novel variant c.749_751del [p.(Thr250del)] in the α-subunit, reduced expression of the mature INSR protein and severely impaired INSR function. In contrast, the novel variant c.3670G>A [p.(Val1224Met)] in the β-subunit had no effect on total protein expression and phosphorylation of INSR and Akt, suggesting that the variant p.Val1224Met appeared to be tolerated and was not responsible for the severe insulin resistance.
CONCLUSION
Our study detailed the clinical features of three patients with type A-IR and DS, and identified two novel variants in the gene. Functional assays indicated the novel variant p.Thr250del was pathogenic. In contrast, the novel variant p.Val1224Met was suggested to be tolerated by our experimental data, even though bioinformatics analyses predicted the variant as deleterious.
Topics: Acanthosis Nigricans; Animals; Antigens, CD; CHO Cells; Child; Child, Preschool; China; Cricetulus; DNA Mutational Analysis; Diabetes Complications; Donohue Syndrome; Family; Female; Humans; Insulin Resistance; Male; Metabolic Syndrome; Mutation, Missense; Patient Acuity; Pedigree; Receptor, Insulin; Syndrome
PubMed: 33995269
DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2021.606964 -
The New England Journal of Medicine Jan 2021Recent data suggest that complications and death from coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) may be related to high viral loads. (Randomized Controlled Trial)
Randomized Controlled Trial
BACKGROUND
Recent data suggest that complications and death from coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19) may be related to high viral loads.
METHODS
In this ongoing, double-blind, phase 1-3 trial involving nonhospitalized patients with Covid-19, we investigated two fully human, neutralizing monoclonal antibodies against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) spike protein, used in a combined cocktail (REGN-COV2) to reduce the risk of the emergence of treatment-resistant mutant virus. Patients were randomly assigned (1:1:1) to receive placebo, 2.4 g of REGN-COV2, or 8.0 g of REGN-COV2 and were prospectively characterized at baseline for endogenous immune response against SARS-CoV-2 (serum antibody-positive or serum antibody-negative). Key end points included the time-weighted average change in viral load from baseline (day 1) through day 7 and the percentage of patients with at least one Covid-19-related medically attended visit through day 29. Safety was assessed in all patients.
RESULTS
Data from 275 patients are reported. The least-squares mean difference (combined REGN-COV2 dose groups vs. placebo group) in the time-weighted average change in viral load from day 1 through day 7 was -0.56 log copies per milliliter (95% confidence interval [CI], -1.02 to -0.11) among patients who were serum antibody-negative at baseline and -0.41 log copies per milliliter (95% CI, -0.71 to -0.10) in the overall trial population. In the overall trial population, 6% of the patients in the placebo group and 3% of the patients in the combined REGN-COV2 dose groups reported at least one medically attended visit; among patients who were serum antibody-negative at baseline, the corresponding percentages were 15% and 6% (difference, -9 percentage points; 95% CI, -29 to 11). The percentages of patients with hypersensitivity reactions, infusion-related reactions, and other adverse events were similar in the combined REGN-COV2 dose groups and the placebo group.
CONCLUSIONS
In this interim analysis, the REGN-COV2 antibody cocktail reduced viral load, with a greater effect in patients whose immune response had not yet been initiated or who had a high viral load at baseline. Safety outcomes were similar in the combined REGN-COV2 dose groups and the placebo group. (Funded by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals and the Biomedical and Advanced Research and Development Authority of the Department of Health and Human Services; ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT04425629.).
Topics: Adult; Antibodies, Monoclonal, Humanized; Antibodies, Neutralizing; COVID-19; Double-Blind Method; Drug Combinations; Female; Humans; Immunologic Factors; Least-Squares Analysis; Male; Middle Aged; Outpatients; Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; SARS-CoV-2; Viral Load; COVID-19 Drug Treatment
PubMed: 33332778
DOI: 10.1056/NEJMoa2035002 -
Journal of the Endocrine Society Nov 2017Hyperinsulinemia is often observed in obese people, owing to their insulin resistance accompanied by visceral fat accumulation, but the frequency of hyperinsulinemia in...
CONTEXT
Hyperinsulinemia is often observed in obese people, owing to their insulin resistance accompanied by visceral fat accumulation, but the frequency of hyperinsulinemia in nonobese people is not well known. Mutations in the insulin receptor gene are known to cause insulin resistance and hyperinsulinemia in type A insulin resistance syndrome, Rabson-Mendenhall syndrome, and Donohue syndrome. However, insulin receptor gene abnormalities have not been investigated in asymptomatic hyperinsulinemic subjects.
PURPOSE
The aim of the current study was to investigate the prevalence of hyperinsulinemia in nonobese Japanese subjects and to examine the involvement of insulin receptor gene mutations.
METHODS
We enrolled 11,046 subjects who received health checkups. From these, we extracted nonobese subjects (body mass index <25 kg/m) who exhibited hyperinsulinemia (serum fasting immunoreactive insulin ≥15 µU/mL). Genetic analysis was performed for the insulin receptor gene in 11 nonobese subjects with hyperinsulinemia.
RESULTS
The prevalence of hyperinsulinemia without apparent diabetes in nonobese subjects was 0.4% (33/8630). In the 11 analyzed subjects, two novel heterozygous nonsense mutations were detected [c.2106 T>G (p.Y702X) and c.2779-2780 GC>A]. The prevalence of insulin receptor gene mutations was 18.2% (2/11).
CONCLUSIONS
To our knowledge, this is the first report of the prevalence of hyperinsulinemia in nonobese healthy subjects. We identified two novel mutations in the insulin receptor gene. These findings indicate that mutations in the insulin receptor gene may be related to fasting hyperinsulinemia, and insulin receptor gene screening may be useful for determining the cause of unexplained hyperinsulinemia.
PubMed: 29264459
DOI: 10.1210/js.2017-00332 -
Endocrinology Jun 2015Donohue syndrome (DS) is characterized by severe insulin resistance due to mutations in the insulin receptor (INSR) gene. To identify molecular defects contributing to...
Donohue syndrome (DS) is characterized by severe insulin resistance due to mutations in the insulin receptor (INSR) gene. To identify molecular defects contributing to metabolic dysregulation in DS in the undifferentiated state, we generated mesenchymal progenitor cells (MPCs) from induced pluripotent stem cells derived from a 4-week-old female with DS and a healthy newborn male (control). INSR mRNA and protein were significantly reduced in DS MPC (for β-subunit, 64% and 89% reduction, respectively, P < .05), but IGF1R mRNA and protein did not differ vs control. Insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of INSR or the downstream substrates insulin receptor substrate 1 and protein kinase B did not differ, but ERK phosphorylation tended to be reduced in DS (32% decrease, P = .07). By contrast, IGF-1 and insulin-stimulated insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1) receptor phosphorylation were increased in DS (IGF-1, 8.5- vs 4.5-fold increase; INS, 11- vs 6-fold; P < .05). DS MPC tended to have higher oxygen consumption in both the basal state (87% higher, P =.09) and in response to the uncoupler carbonyl cyanide-p-triflouromethoxyphenylhydrazone (2-fold increase, P =.06). Although mitochondrial DNA or mass did not differ, oxidative phosphorylation protein complexes III and V were increased in DS (by 37% and 6%, respectively; P < .05). Extracellular acidification also tended to increase in DS (91% increase, P = .07), with parallel significant increases in lactate secretion (34% higher at 4 h, P < .05). In summary, DS MPC maintain signaling downstream of the INSR, suggesting that IGF-1R signaling may partly compensate for INSR mutations. However, alterations in receptor expression and pathway-specific defects in insulin signaling, even in undifferentiated cells, can alter cellular oxidative metabolism, potentially via transcriptional mechanisms.
Topics: Cell Survival; Cells, Cultured; DNA, Mitochondrial; Female; Flow Cytometry; Humans; Induced Pluripotent Stem Cells; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Insulin Resistance; Male; Mesenchymal Stem Cells
PubMed: 25811318
DOI: 10.1210/en.2014-1403 -
BMJ (Clinical Research Ed.) Aug 2020To characterise the clinical features of children and young people admitted to hospital with laboratory confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2... (Observational Study)
Observational Study
OBJECTIVE
To characterise the clinical features of children and young people admitted to hospital with laboratory confirmed severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection in the UK and explore factors associated with admission to critical care, mortality, and development of multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children and adolescents temporarily related to coronavirus disease 2019 (covid-19) (MIS-C).
DESIGN
Prospective observational cohort study with rapid data gathering and near real time analysis.
SETTING
260 hospitals in England, Wales, and Scotland between 17 January and 3 July 2020, with a minimum follow-up time of two weeks (to 17 July 2020).
PARTICIPANTS
651 children and young people aged less than 19 years admitted to 138 hospitals and enrolled into the International Severe Acute Respiratory and emergency Infections Consortium (ISARIC) WHO Clinical Characterisation Protocol UK study with laboratory confirmed SARS-CoV-2.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Admission to critical care (high dependency or intensive care), in-hospital mortality, or meeting the WHO preliminary case definition for MIS-C.
RESULTS
Median age was 4.6 (interquartile range 0.3-13.7) years, 35% (225/651) were under 12 months old, and 56% (367/650) were male. 57% (330/576) were white, 12% (67/576) South Asian, and 10% (56/576) black. 42% (276/651) had at least one recorded comorbidity. A systemic mucocutaneous-enteric cluster of symptoms was identified, which encompassed the symptoms for the WHO MIS-C criteria. 18% (116/632) of children were admitted to critical care. On multivariable analysis, this was associated with age under 1 month (odds ratio 3.21, 95% confidence interval 1.36 to 7.66; P=0.008), age 10-14 years (3.23, 1.55 to 6.99; P=0.002), and black ethnicity (2.82, 1.41 to 5.57; P=0.003). Six (1%) of 627 patients died in hospital, all of whom had profound comorbidity. 11% (52/456) met the WHO MIS-C criteria, with the first patient developing symptoms in mid-March. Children meeting MIS-C criteria were older (median age 10.7 (8.3-14.1) 1.6 (0.2-12.9) years; P<0.001) and more likely to be of non-white ethnicity (64% (29/45) 42% (148/355); P=0.004). Children with MIS-C were five times more likely to be admitted to critical care (73% (38/52) 15% (62/404); P<0.001). In addition to the WHO criteria, children with MIS-C were more likely to present with fatigue (51% (24/47) 28% (86/302); P=0.004), headache (34% (16/47) 10% (26/263); P<0.001), myalgia (34% (15/44) 8% (21/270); P<0.001), sore throat (30% (14/47) (12% (34/284); P=0.003), and lymphadenopathy (20% (9/46) 3% (10/318); P<0.001) and to have a platelet count of less than 150 × 10/L (32% (16/50) 11% (38/348); P<0.001) than children who did not have MIS-C. No deaths occurred in the MIS-C group.
CONCLUSIONS
Children and young people have less severe acute covid-19 than adults. A systemic mucocutaneous-enteric symptom cluster was also identified in acute cases that shares features with MIS-C. This study provides additional evidence for refining the WHO MIS-C preliminary case definition. Children meeting the MIS-C criteria have different demographic and clinical features depending on whether they have acute SARS-CoV-2 infection (polymerase chain reaction positive) or are post-acute (antibody positive).
STUDY REGISTRATION
ISRCTN66726260.
Topics: Adolescent; Age Factors; Betacoronavirus; COVID-19; Child; Child, Preschool; Cohort Studies; Coronavirus Infections; Critical Care; Female; Hospital Mortality; Hospitalization; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Male; Pandemics; Pneumonia, Viral; Respiration, Artificial; SARS-CoV-2; Systemic Inflammatory Response Syndrome; United Kingdom; Young Adult
PubMed: 32960186
DOI: 10.1136/bmj.m3249 -
The Journal of Clinical Endocrinology... Feb 2022Rabson-Mendenhall syndrome (RMS) is caused by biallelic pathogenic variants in the insulin receptor gene (INSR) leading to insulin-resistant diabetes, microvascular...
CONTEXT
Rabson-Mendenhall syndrome (RMS) is caused by biallelic pathogenic variants in the insulin receptor gene (INSR) leading to insulin-resistant diabetes, microvascular complications, and growth hormone resistance with short stature. Small, uncontrolled studies suggest that 1-year treatment with recombinant leptin (metreleptin) improves glycemia in RMS.
OBJECTIVE
This study aimed to determine effects of long-term metreleptin in RMS on glycemia, anthropometrics, the growth hormone axis, and kidney function.
METHODS
We compared RMS patients during nonrandomized open-label treatment with metreleptin (≥ 0.15 mg/kg/day) vs no metreleptin over 90 months (5 subjects in both groups at different times, 4 only in metreleptin group, 2 only in control group). Main outcome measures were A1c; glucose; insulin; 24-hour urine glucose; standard deviation scores (SDS) for height, weight, body mass index (BMI), and insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1); growth hormone; and estimated glomerular filtration rate.
RESULTS
Over time, metreleptin-treated subjects maintained 1.8 percentage point lower A1c vs controls (P = 0.007), which remained significant after accounting for changes in insulin doses. Metreleptin-treated subjects had a reduction in BMI SDS, which predicted decreased A1c. Growth hormone increased after metreleptin treatment vs control, with no difference in SDS between groups for IGF-1 or height. Reduced BMI predicted higher growth hormone, while reduced A1c predicted higher IGF-1.
CONCLUSION
Metreleptin alters the natural history of rising A1c in RMS, leading to lower A1c throughout long-term follow-up. Improved glycemia with metreleptin is likely attributable to appetite suppression and lower BMI SDS. Lower BMI after metreleptin may also worsen growth hormone resistance in RMS, resulting in a null effect on IGF-1 and growth despite improved glycemia.
Topics: Antigens, CD; Blood Glucose; Body Height; Body Mass Index; Body Weight; Donohue Syndrome; Glomerular Filtration Rate; Glycated Hemoglobin; Human Growth Hormone; Humans; Insulin; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I; Kidney; Leptin; Receptor, Insulin; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 34718628
DOI: 10.1210/clinem/dgab782 -
International Journal of Molecular... Apr 2018Mutations in the insulin receptor (INSR) gene underlie rare severe INSR-related insulin resistance syndromes (SIR), including insulin resistance type A,... (Review)
Review
Mutations in the insulin receptor (INSR) gene underlie rare severe INSR-related insulin resistance syndromes (SIR), including insulin resistance type A, Rabson⁻Mendenhall syndrome and Donohue syndrome (DS), with DS representing the most severe form of insulin resistance. Treatment of these cases is challenging, with the majority of DS patients dying within the first two years of life. rhIGF-I (mecasermin) has been reported to improve metabolic control and increase lifespan in DS patients. A case report and literature review were completed. We present a case involving a male patient with DS, harbouring a homozygous mutation in the INSR gene (c.591delC). Initial rhIGF-I application via BID (twice daily) injection was unsatisfactory, but continuous subcutaneous rhIGF-I infusion via an insulin pump improved weight development and diabetes control (HbA1c decreased from 10 to 7.6%). However, our patient died at 22 months of age during the course of a respiratory infection in in Libya. Currently available data in the literature comprising more than 30 treated patients worldwide seem to support a trial of rhIGF-I in SIR. rhIGF-I represents a treatment option for challenging SIR cases, but careful consideration of the therapeutic benefits and the burden of the disease is warranted. Continuous application via pump might be advantageous compared to single injections.
Topics: Blood Glucose; Donohue Syndrome; Humans; Infant; Infant, Newborn; Insulin; Insulin Resistance; Insulin-Like Growth Factor I; Male; Models, Biological; Mutation; Receptor, Insulin; Recombinant Proteins; Treatment Outcome
PubMed: 29695048
DOI: 10.3390/ijms19051268