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Pediatric Neurology Apr 2023Cockayne syndrome (CS) is a DNA repair disorder primarily associated with pathogenic variants in ERCC6 and ERCC8. As in other Mendelian disorders, there are a number of...
BACKGROUND
Cockayne syndrome (CS) is a DNA repair disorder primarily associated with pathogenic variants in ERCC6 and ERCC8. As in other Mendelian disorders, there are a number of genetically unsolved CS cases.
METHODS
We ascertained five individuals with monoallelic pathogenic variants in MORC2, previously associated with three dominantly inherited phenotypes: an axonal form of Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease type 2Z; a syndrome of developmental delay, impaired growth, dysmorphic facies, and axonal neuropathy; and a rare form of spinal muscular atrophy.
RESULTS
One of these individuals bore a strong phenotypic resemblance to CS. We then identified monoallelic pathogenic MORC2 variants in three of five genetically unsolved individuals with a clinical diagnosis of CS. In total, we identified eight individuals with MORC2-related disorder, four of whom had clinical features strongly suggestive of CS.
CONCLUSIONS
Our findings indicate that some forms of MORC2-related disorder have phenotypic similarities to CS, including features of accelerated aging. Unlike classic DNA repair disorders, MORC2-related disorder does not appear to be associated with a defect in transcription-coupled nucleotide excision repair and follows a dominant pattern of inheritance with variants typically arising de novo. Such de novo pathogenic variants present particular challenges with regard to both initial gene discovery and diagnostic evaluations. MORC2 should be included in diagnostic genetic test panels targeting the evaluation of microcephaly and/or suspected DNA repair disorders. Future studies of MORC2 and its protein product, coupled with further phenotypic characterization, will help to optimize the diagnosis, understanding, and therapy of the associated disorders.
Topics: Humans; Cockayne Syndrome; DNA Repair Enzymes; Phenotype; Microcephaly; Mutation; Transcription Factors
PubMed: 36791574
DOI: 10.1016/j.pediatrneurol.2023.01.011 -
Annales de Dermatologie Et de... Oct 1999Trichothiodystrophy is an autosomal recessive genodermatosis associating congenital dysplasia of the hair and neuroectodermal defects. Clinical expression is variable,...
INTRODUCTION
Trichothiodystrophy is an autosomal recessive genodermatosis associating congenital dysplasia of the hair and neuroectodermal defects. Clinical expression is variable, although abnormalities are generally noted from birth. We report trichothiodystrophy in two brothers with the same phenotype who presented unusual progressive manifestations.
OBSERVATIONS
Case 1: A six-year-old boy was seen for vesicular blisters due to photosensitization. Clinical examination showed dry, brittle, unmanageable hair, discrete koilonychia-type nail defects and an ichthyosiform state. The teeth were normal. In addition to psychomotor retardation, the patient presented a dysmorphic syndrome (poorly rimmed low-set ears; thick, triangular upper lip; scaphocephalic skull; short hands) and congenital bilateral cataract. The diagnosis of trichothiodystrophy was confirmed by a study of DNA repair after exposure to ultraviolet light. A repair defect was found similar to that in xeroderma pigmentosum group D. The patient experienced a worsening of psychomotor retardation and episodes of hair loss with edema and inflammation of the scalp resulting from infections. He also showed marked asthenia which resolved spontaneously within a few months. Case 2: The other brother, born as a collodion baby, presented the same clinical picture (cutaneous, exoskeletal, dysmorphic), including congenital bilateral cataract, photosensitivity and a parenchymatous blister-type pulmonary lesion probably secondary to bronchiectasis. The patient's cutaneous state progressively improved. He was seen at six years of age for an episode of inflammatory edema of the scalp with hair loss. Within six months, all of the hair redrew. The diagnosis of trichothiodystrophy was confirmed by a DNA repair defect after exposure to ultraviolet light.
DISCUSSION
Trichothiodystrophy is clinically associated with photosensitivity (P), ichthyosis (I), dry, brittle hair (B), intellectual impairment (I), decreased fertility (D) and short stature (S), which accounts for the acronym PIBIDS or IBIDS syndrome, depending on whether photosensitivity is involved or not (actually in about 50 p. 100 of cases). Other possibly associated features include ungueal dysplasias, bilateral cataract, defective teeth, dysmorphic disorders predominant in the ears, neurologic disorders, pulmonary bronchiectasis and recurrent infections. The two cases presented here were thus very symptomatologically complete. The two problems of current concern are psychomotor retardation and temporary hair loss as a result of infections. The latter has only been described once in the literature. This case was similar to ours since photosensitivity was involved. Analysis of DNA repair also showed a defect after exposure to ultraviolet light similar to that found in xeroderma pigmentosum group D. Thus, episodic hair loss could be a symptom characteristic of forms of trichothiodystrophy with a DNA repair defect. However, the explanation for this hair loss is not known. Other ectodermal dysplasias can be complicated by hair loss with superinfection, such as AEC syndrome (ankyloblepharon, ectodermal dysplasia, cleft palate).
Topics: Abnormalities, Multiple; Cataract; Child; DNA Helicases; DNA Repair; DNA-Binding Proteins; Follow-Up Studies; Genes, Recessive; Hair; Humans; Ichthyosis; Infant, Newborn; Male; Nails, Malformed; Neurocutaneous Syndromes; Phenotype; Photosensitivity Disorders; Proteins; Psychomotor Disorders; Skin Diseases, Vesiculobullous; Transcription Factors; Xeroderma Pigmentosum Group D Protein
PubMed: 10604009
DOI: No ID Found -
DNA Repair Jul 2011Helicases must unwind DNA at the right place and time to maintain genomic integrity or gene expression. Biologically critical XPB and XPD helicases are key members of... (Review)
Review
Helicases must unwind DNA at the right place and time to maintain genomic integrity or gene expression. Biologically critical XPB and XPD helicases are key members of the human TFIIH complex; they anchor CAK kinase (cyclinH, MAT1, CDK7) to TFIIH and open DNA for transcription and for repair of duplex distorting damage by nucleotide excision repair (NER). NER is initiated by arrested RNA polymerase or damage recognition by XPC-RAD23B with or without DDB1/DDB2. XP helicases, named for their role in the extreme sun-mediated skin cancer predisposition xeroderma pigmentosum (XP), are then recruited to asymmetrically unwind dsDNA flanking the damage. XPB and XPD genetic defects can also cause premature aging with profound neurological defects without increased cancers: Cockayne syndrome (CS) and trichothiodystrophy (TTD). XP helicase patient phenotypes cannot be predicted from the mutation position along the linear gene sequence and adjacent mutations can cause different diseases. Here we consider the structural biology of DNA damage recognition by XPC-RAD23B, DDB1/DDB2, RNAPII, and ATL, and of helix unwinding by the XPB and XPD helicases plus the bacterial repair helicases UvrB and UvrD in complex with DNA. We then propose unified models for TFIIH assembly and roles in NER. Collective crystal structures with NMR and electron microscopy results reveal functional motifs, domains, and architectural elements that contribute to biological activities: damaged DNA binding, translocation, unwinding, and ATP driven changes plus TFIIH assembly and signaling. Coupled with mapping of patient mutations, these combined structural analyses provide a framework for integrating and unifying the rich biochemical and cellular information that has accumulated over forty years of study. This integration resolves puzzles regarding XP helicase functions and suggests that XP helicase positions and activities within TFIIH detect and verify damage, select the damaged strand for incision, and coordinate repair with transcription and cell cycle through CAK signaling.
Topics: Adenosine Triphosphate; Bacterial Proteins; Catalytic Domain; Cell Cycle; Cyclin-Dependent Kinases; DNA; DNA Damage; DNA Repair; DNA Repair Enzymes; DNA-Binding Proteins; Humans; Models, Molecular; Protein Structure, Tertiary; Signal Transduction; Transcription Factor TFIIH; Transcription, Genetic; Xeroderma Pigmentosum; Xeroderma Pigmentosum Group D Protein; Cyclin-Dependent Kinase-Activating Kinase
PubMed: 21571596
DOI: 10.1016/j.dnarep.2011.04.028 -
Biomolecules Aug 2015DNA damage causally contributes to aging and cancer. Congenital defects in nucleotide excision repair (NER) lead to distinct cancer-prone and premature aging syndromes.... (Review)
Review
DNA damage causally contributes to aging and cancer. Congenital defects in nucleotide excision repair (NER) lead to distinct cancer-prone and premature aging syndromes. The genetics of NER mutations have provided important insights into the distinct consequences of genome instability. Recent work in mice and C. elegans has shed new light on the mechanisms through which developing and aging animals respond to persistent DNA damage. The various NER mouse mutants have served as important disease models for Xeroderma pigmentosum (XP), Cockayne syndrome (CS), and trichothiodystrophy (TTD), while the traceable genetics of C. elegans have allowed the mechanistic delineation of the distinct outcomes of genome instability in metazoan development and aging. Intriguingly, highly conserved longevity assurance mechanisms respond to transcription-blocking DNA lesions in mammals as well as in worms and counteract the detrimental consequences of persistent DNA damage. The insulin-like growth factor signaling (IIS) effector transcription factor DAF-16 could indeed overcome DNA damage-driven developmental growth delay and functional deterioration even when DNA damage persists. Longevity assurance mechanisms might thus delay DNA damage-driven aging by raising the threshold when accumulating DNA damage becomes detrimental for physiological tissue functioning.
Topics: Aging; Animals; Caenorhabditis elegans; DNA Damage; DNA Repair; Genomic Instability; Humans; Mice
PubMed: 26287260
DOI: 10.3390/biom5031855 -
Human Molecular Genetics Aug 2021Trichothiodystrophy (TTD) is a rare hereditary neurodevelopmental disorder defined by sulfur-deficient brittle hair and nails and scaly skin, but with otherwise...
Trichothiodystrophy (TTD) is a rare hereditary neurodevelopmental disorder defined by sulfur-deficient brittle hair and nails and scaly skin, but with otherwise remarkably variable clinical features. The photosensitive TTD (PS-TTD) forms exhibits in addition to progressive neuropathy and other features of segmental accelerated aging and is associated with impaired genome maintenance and transcription. New factors involved in various steps of gene expression have been identified for the different non-photosensitive forms of TTD (NPS-TTD), which do not appear to show features of premature aging. Here, we identify alanyl-tRNA synthetase 1 and methionyl-tRNA synthetase 1 variants as new gene defects that cause NPS-TTD. These variants result in the instability of the respective gene products alanyl- and methionyl-tRNA synthetase. These findings extend our previous observations that TTD mutations affect the stability of the corresponding proteins and emphasize this phenomenon as a common feature of TTD. Functional studies in skin fibroblasts from affected individuals demonstrate that these new variants also impact on the rate of tRNA charging, which is the first step in protein translation. The extension of reduced abundance of TTD factors to translation as well as transcription redefines TTD as a syndrome in which proteins involved in gene expression are unstable.
Topics: Alanine-tRNA Ligase; Child; Enzyme Stability; Female; Humans; Methionine-tRNA Ligase; Trichothiodystrophy Syndromes; Whole Genome Sequencing
PubMed: 33909043
DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddab123 -
DNA Repair Jul 2008Nucleotide excision repair (NER) is a highly conserved mechanism to remove helix-distorting DNA base damage. A major substrate for NER is DNA damage caused by... (Review)
Review
Nucleotide excision repair (NER) is a highly conserved mechanism to remove helix-distorting DNA base damage. A major substrate for NER is DNA damage caused by environmental genotoxins, most notably ultraviolet radiation. Xeroderma pigmentosum, Cockayne syndrome and trichothiodystrophy are three human diseases caused by inherited defects in NER. The symptoms and severity of these diseases vary dramatically, ranging from profound developmental delay to cancer predisposition and accelerated aging. All three syndromes include neurological disease, indicating an important role for NER in protecting against spontaneous DNA damage as well. To study the pathophysiology caused by DNA damage, numerous mouse models of NER-deficiency were generated by knocking-out genes required for NER or knocking-in disease-causing human mutations. This review explores the utility of these mouse models to study neurological disease caused by NER-deficiency.
Topics: Animals; Cockayne Syndrome; DNA Repair; Disease Models, Animal; Humans; Mice; Nervous System Diseases; Xeroderma Pigmentosum
PubMed: 18272436
DOI: 10.1016/j.dnarep.2007.12.006 -
Nature Sep 2017Human transcription factor IIH (TFIIH) is part of the general transcriptional machinery required by RNA polymerase II for the initiation of eukaryotic gene...
Human transcription factor IIH (TFIIH) is part of the general transcriptional machinery required by RNA polymerase II for the initiation of eukaryotic gene transcription. Composed of ten subunits that add up to a molecular mass of about 500 kDa, TFIIH is also essential for nucleotide excision repair. The seven-subunit TFIIH core complex formed by XPB, XPD, p62, p52, p44, p34, and p8 is competent for DNA repair, while the CDK-activating kinase subcomplex, which includes the kinase activity of CDK7 as well as the cyclin H and MAT1 subunits, is additionally required for transcription initiation. Mutations in the TFIIH subunits XPB, XPD, and p8 lead to severe premature ageing and cancer propensity in the genetic diseases xeroderma pigmentosum, Cockayne syndrome, and trichothiodystrophy, highlighting the importance of TFIIH for cellular physiology. Here we present the cryo-electron microscopy structure of human TFIIH at 4.4 Å resolution. The structure reveals the molecular architecture of the TFIIH core complex, the detailed structures of its constituent XPB and XPD ATPases, and how the core and kinase subcomplexes of TFIIH are connected. Additionally, our structure provides insight into the conformational dynamics of TFIIH and the regulation of its activity.
Topics: Adenosine Triphosphatases; Adenosine Triphosphate; Cryoelectron Microscopy; Humans; Models, Molecular; Mutation; Protein Subunits; RNA Polymerase II; Transcription Factor TFIIH; Transcription Initiation, Genetic
PubMed: 28902838
DOI: 10.1038/nature23903 -
Ophthalmology Dec 2011Trichothiodystrophy (TTD) is a rare, autosomal recessive disorder characterized by sulfur-deficient brittle hair and multisystem abnormalities. Many TTD patients have a...
OBJECTIVE
Trichothiodystrophy (TTD) is a rare, autosomal recessive disorder characterized by sulfur-deficient brittle hair and multisystem abnormalities. Many TTD patients have a defect in known DNA repair genes. This report systematically evaluates the ocular manifestations of the largest-to-date cohort of TTD patients and xeroderma pigmentosum (XP)/TTD patients.
DESIGN
Case series.
PARTICIPANTS
Thirty-two participants, ages 1 to 30 years, referred to the National Eye Institute for examination from 2001 to 2010; 25 had TTD and 7 had XP/TTD.
METHODS
Complete, age- and developmental stage-appropriate ophthalmic examination.
MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES
Visual acuity (VA), best-corrected VA, ocular motility, state of the ocular surface and corneal endothelial cell density, corneal diameter, and lens assessment.
RESULTS
Developmental abnormalities included microcornea (44% TTD), microphthalmia (8% TTD, 14% XP/TTD), nystagmus (40% TTD), and infantile cataracts (56% TTD, 86% XP/TTD). Corrective lenses were required by 65% of the participants, and decreased best-corrected VA was present in 28% of TTD patients and 71% of XP/TTD patients. Degenerative changes included dry eye (32% TTD, 57% XP/TTD) and ocular surface disease identified by ocular surface staining with fluorescein (32% TTD) that usually are exhibited by much older patients in the general population. The 2 oldest TTD patients exhibited clinical signs of retinal/macular degeneration. Four XP/TTD patients presented with corneal neovascularization.
CONCLUSIONS
These TTD and XP/TTD study participants had a wide variety of ocular findings including refractive error, infantile cataracts, microcornea, nystagmus, and dry eye/ocular surface disease. Although many of these can be ascribed to abnormal development--likely owing to abnormalities in basal transcription of critical genes--patients may also have a degenerative course.
FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE(S)
Proprietary or commercial disclosures may be found after the references.
Topics: Abnormalities, Multiple; Adolescent; Adult; Cataract; Cell Count; Child; Child, Preschool; Cornea; Endothelium, Corneal; Eye Abnormalities; Female; Humans; Infant; Macular Degeneration; Male; Microphthalmos; Nystagmus, Congenital; Trichothiodystrophy Syndromes; Vision Disorders; Visual Acuity; Xeroderma Pigmentosum; Young Adult
PubMed: 21959366
DOI: 10.1016/j.ophtha.2011.05.036 -
Environmental and Molecular Mutagenesis Apr 2024DNA damage occurs throughout life from a variety of sources, and it is imperative to repair damage in a timely manner to maintain genome stability. Thus, DNA repair... (Review)
Review
DNA damage occurs throughout life from a variety of sources, and it is imperative to repair damage in a timely manner to maintain genome stability. Thus, DNA repair mechanisms are a fundamental part of life. Nucleotide excision repair (NER) plays an important role in the removal of bulky DNA adducts, such as cyclobutane pyrimidine dimers from ultraviolet light or DNA crosslinking damage from platinum-based chemotherapeutics, such as cisplatin. A main component for the NER pathway is transcription factor IIH (TFIIH), a multifunctional, 10-subunit protein complex with crucial roles in both transcription and NER. In transcription, TFIIH is a component of the pre-initiation complex and is important for promoter opening and the phosphorylation of RNA Polymerase II (RNA Pol II). During repair, TFIIH is important for DNA unwinding, recruitment of downstream repair factors, and verification of the bulky lesion. Several different disease states can arise from mutations within subunits of the TFIIH complex. Most strikingly are xeroderma pigmentosum (XP), XP combined with Cockayne syndrome (CS), and trichothiodystrophy (TTD). Here, we summarize the recruitment and functions of TFIIH in the two NER subpathways, global genomic (GG-NER) and transcription-coupled NER (TC-NER). We will also discuss how TFIIH's roles in the two subpathways lead to different genetic disorders.
Topics: Humans; DNA; DNA Damage; DNA Repair; Excision Repair; Transcription Factor TFIIH; Transcription, Genetic; Xeroderma Pigmentosum
PubMed: 37545038
DOI: 10.1002/em.22568 -
Acta Biochimica Polonica 2007The eukaryotic cell encounters more than one million various kinds of DNA lesions per day. The nucleotide excision repair (NER) pathway is one of the most important... (Review)
Review
The eukaryotic cell encounters more than one million various kinds of DNA lesions per day. The nucleotide excision repair (NER) pathway is one of the most important repair mechanisms that removes a wide spectrum of different DNA lesions. NER operates through two sub pathways: global genome repair (GGR) and transcription-coupled repair (TCR). GGR repairs the DNA damage throughout the entire genome and is initiated by the HR23B/XPC complex, while the CSB protein-governed TCR process removes DNA lesions from the actively transcribed strand. The sequence of events and the role of particular NER proteins are currently being extensively discussed. NER proteins also participate in other cellular processes like replication, transcription, chromatin maintenance and protein turnover. Defects in NER underlay severe genetic disorders: xeroderma pigmentosum (XP), Cockayne syndrome (CS) and trichothiodystrophy (TTD).
Topics: Animals; Bacterial Proteins; Cockayne Syndrome; DNA Damage; DNA Repair; Humans; Models, Biological; Xeroderma Pigmentosum
PubMed: 17893751
DOI: No ID Found