| 1. |
- Bjursell, Magnus K., et al.
(författare)
-
Adenosine Kinase Deficiency Disrupts the Methionine Cycle and Causes Hypermethioninemia, Encephalopathy, and Abnormal Liver Function
- 2011
-
Ingår i: American Journal of Human Genetics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0002-9297 .- 1537-6605. ; 89:4, s. 507-515
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Four inborn errors of metabolism (IEMs) are known to cause hypermethioninemia by directly interfering with the methionine cycle. Hypermethioninemia is occasionally discovered incidentally, but it is often disregarded as an unspecific finding, particularly if liver disease is involved. In many individuals the hypermethioninemia resolves without further deterioration, but it can also represent an early sign of a severe, progressive neurodevelopmental disorder. Further investigation of unclear hypermethioninemia is therefore important. We studied two siblings affected by severe developmental delay and liver dysfunction. Biochemical analysis revealed increased plasma levels of methionine, S-adenosylmethionine (Ado Met), and S-adenosylhomocysteine (AdoHcy) but normal or mildly elevated homocysteine (Hcy) levels, indicating a block in the methionine cycle. We excluded S-adenosylhomocysteine hydrolase (SAHH) deficiency, which causes a similar biochemical phenotype, by using genetic and biochemical techniques and hypothesized that there was a functional block in the SAHH enzyme as a result of a recessive mutation in a different gene. Using exome sequencing, we identified a homozygous c.902C>A (p.Ala301Glu) missense mutation in the adenosine kinase gene (ADK), the function of which fits perfectly with this hypothesis. Increased urinary adenosine excretion confirmed ADK deficiency in the siblings. Four additional individuals from two unrelated families with a similar presentation were identified and shown to have a homozygous c.653A>C (p.Asp218Ala) and c.38G>A (p.Gly13Glu) mutation, respectively, in the same gene. All three missense mutations were deleterious, as shown by activity measurements on recombinant enzymes. ADK deficiency is a previously undescribed, severe IEM shedding light on a functional link between the methionine cycle and adenosine metabolism.
|
|
| 2. |
- George, Sophia H.L., et al.
(författare)
-
Increasing diversity of functional genetics studies to advance biological discovery and human health
- 2023
-
Ingår i: American Journal of Human Genetics. - : Cell Press. - 0002-9297 .- 1537-6605. ; 110:12, s. 1996-2002
-
Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- In this perspective we discuss the current lack of genetic and environmental diversity in functional genomics datasets. There is a well-described Eurocentric bias in genetic and functional genomic research that has a clear impact on the benefit this research can bring to underrepresented populations. Current research focused on genetic variant-to-function experiments aims to identify molecular QTLs, but the lack of data from genetically diverse individuals has limited analyses to mostly populations of European ancestry. Although some efforts have been established to increase diversity in functional genomic studies, much remains to be done to consistently generate data for underrepresented populations from now on. We discuss the major barriers for this continuity and suggest actionable insights, aiming to empower research and researchers from underserved populations.
|
|
| 3. |
- Kaessmann, H., et al.
(författare)
-
Extensive linkage disequilibrium in small human populations in Eurasia
- 2002
-
Ingår i: American Journal of Human Genetics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0002-9297 .- 1537-6605. ; 70:3, s. 673-685
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The extent of linkage disequilibrium (LD) was studied in two small food-gathering populations-Evenki and Saami- and two larger food-producing populations-Finns and Swedes-in northern Eurasia. In total, 50 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) from five genes were genotyped using real-time pyrophosphate DNA sequencing, whereas 14 microsatellites were genotyped in two X-chromosomal regions. In addition, hypervariable region I of the mtDNA was sequenced to shed light on the demographic history of the populations. The SNP data, as well as the microsatellite data, reveal extensive levels of LD in Evenki and Saami when compared to Finns and Swedes. mtDNA-sequence variation is compatible with constant population size over time in Evenki and Saami but indicates population expansion in Finns and Swedes. Furthermore, the similarity between Finns and Swedes in SNP allele- and haplotype-frequency distributions indicate that these two populations may share a recent common origin. These findings suggest that populations such as the Evenki and the Saami, rather than the Finns, may be particularly suited for the initial coarse mapping of common complex diseases.
|
|
| 4. |
- Kasela, Silva, et al.
(författare)
-
Interaction molecular QTL mapping discovers cellular and environmental modifiers of genetic regulatory effects
- 2024
-
Ingår i: American Journal of Human Genetics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0002-9297 .- 1537-6605. ; 111:1, s. 133-149
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Bulk-tissue molecular quantitative trait loci (QTLs) have been the starting point for interpreting disease-associated variants, and context-specific QTLs show particular relevance for disease. Here, we present the results of mapping interaction QTLs (iQTLs) for cell type, age, and other phenotypic variables in multi-omic, longitudinal data from the blood of individuals of diverse ancestries. By modeling the interaction between genotype and estimated cell-type proportions, we demonstrate that cell-type iQTLs could be considered as proxies for cell-type-specific QTL effects, particularly for the most abundant cell type in the tissue. The interpretation of age iQTLs, however, warrants caution because the moderation effect of age on the genotype and molecular phenotype association could be mediated by changes in cell-type composition. Finally, we show that cell-type iQTLs contribute to cell-type-specific enrichment of diseases that, in combination with additional functional data, could guide future functional studies. Overall, this study highlights the use of iQTLs to gain insights into the context specificity of regulatory effects.
|
|
| 5. |
- Singer-Berk, Moriel, et al.
(författare)
-
Advanced variant classification framework reduces the false positive rate of predicted loss-of-function variants in population sequencing data
- 2023
-
Ingår i: American Journal of Human Genetics. - : Elsevier BV. - 0002-9297 .- 1537-6605. ; 110:9, s. 1496-1508
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Predicted loss of function (pLoF) variants are often highly deleterious and play an important role in disease biology, but many pLoF variants may not result in loss of function (LoF). Here we present a framework that advances interpretation of pLoF variants in research and clinical settings by considering three categories of LoF evasion: (1) predicted rescue by secondary sequence properties, (2) uncertain biological relevance, and (3) potential technical artifacts. We also provide recommendations on adjustments to ACMG/AMP guidelines’ PVS1 criterion. Applying this framework to all high-confidence pLoF variants in 22 genes associated with autosomal-recessive disease from the Genome Aggregation Database (gnomAD v.2.1.1) revealed predicted LoF evasion or potential artifacts in 27.3% (304/1,113) of variants. The major reasons were location in the last exon, in a homopolymer repeat, in a low proportion expressed across transcripts (pext) scored region, or the presence of cryptic in-frame splice rescues. Variants predicted to evade LoF or to be potential artifacts were enriched for ClinVar benign variants. PVS1 was downgraded in 99.4% (162/163) of pLoF variants predicted as likely not LoF/not LoF, with 17.2% (28/163) downgraded as a result of our framework, adding to previous guidelines. Variant pathogenicity was affected (mostly from likely pathogenic to VUS) in 20 (71.4%) of these 28 variants. This framework guides assessment of pLoF variants beyond standard annotation pipelines and substantially reduces false positive rates, which is key to ensure accurate LoF variant prediction in both a research and clinical setting.
|
|
