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Objective:To explore the influence factors of neurodevelopmental disorders in children with SCN8A-related early-onset epilepsy through analyzing their clinical characteristics and following up their neurodeve-lopmental status. Methods:A retrospective analysis was carried out on 21 children (13 males and 8 females, the age ranged from 4 months to 8 years, average 31.6 months)with SCN8A-related early-onset epilepsy treated in Guangzhou Women and Children′s Medical Center and Kunming Children′s Hospital between January 2017 and February 2021.All patients underwent whole-exome sequencing and Sanger sequencing.The pathogenicity was estimated according to the American College of Medical Genetics and Genomics guidelines.The clinical data of all patients were also collected, including the age of onset of the disease, forms of seizures, seizure frequency, neurological development at onset, electroencephalogram (EEG) and brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Besides, the patients were followed up to acquire the effect of sodium channel blockers after the onset of seizures, the process or improvement of neurodeve-lopment, EEG evaluation and neurodevelopmental outcomes.Patients were grouped based on data analysis results.The Fisher′s exact test was conducted to measure the effect of various factors on the neurodevelopmental process and outcome, and corresponding coe-fficients were calculated. Results:The average onset age of 21 patients was 0-9 months.The follow-up duration was 4 months-8 years.Three cases died.Sixteen cases (76.2%) had early infantile epileptic encephalopathy (EIEE), 5 cases (23.8%) had epilepsy without encephalopathy, and 1 case had benign infantile epilepsy.Fourteen cases (66.7%) belonged to drug resistant epilepsy.Only one child showed normal neurodevelopment.Eleven children showed delayed neurodevelopment, but improvement was observed.Nine children were retrogressed and stagnated in terms of neurodevelopment.Small age at onset ( Fisher=9.517, P=0.020, r=0.571), high seizure frequency ( Fisher=10.512, P=0.003, r=0.572), EEG background ( Fisher=10.512, P=0.003, r=0.572), epileptic discharges ( Fisher=8.288, P=0.008, r=0.542), and EEG changes before and after treatment ( Fisher=10.437, P=0.009, r=0.586) were important factors affecting the neurodevelopmental process.Neurodevelopmental outcome was normal in only 1 case, 1 child belonged to mild mental retardation (MR), 7 children belonged to moderate MR, 3 children belonged to severe MR, and 9 children belonged to profound MR.Statistical analysis indicated that the clinical phenotype ( Fisher=10.059, P=0.004, r=0.739) and drug resistance ( Fisher=13.706, P=0.001, r=0.640) were significantly correlated with neurodevelopmental outcomes.However, the forms of seizures, EEG findings at onset and mutation sites were not related to neurodevelopmental disorders. Conclusions:Most children with SCN8A-related early-onset epilepsy are accompanied with neurodevelopmental retardation of varying degrees.Epileptic encephalopathy and poor response to drug treatment will lead to severe neurodevelopmental disorders.
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OBJECTIVE@#To explore the genetic basis for a child with myopathy and cerebellar atrophy with ataxia.@*METHODS@#Clinical examinations and laboratory testing were carried out for the patient. The proband and the parents' genomic DNA was extracted from peripheral blood samples and subjected to trio whole-exome sequencing. Candidate variant was validated by Sanger sequencing.@*RESULTS@#The 1-year-and-8-month-old boy manifested motor developmental delay, ataxia, hypomyotonia, increased serum creatine kinase. Cranial MRI showed cerebellar atrophy with progressive aggravation. Genetic testing revealed that the patient has harbored compound heterozygous variants of the MSTO1 gene, namely c.13delG (p.Ala5ProfsTer68) and c.971C>T (p.Thr324Ile), which were respectively inherited from his mother and father. The former was unreported previously and was predicted to be likely pathogenic, whilst the latter has been reported previously and was predicted to be of uncertain significance.@*CONCLUSION@#The compound heterozygous c.13delG (p.Ala5ProfsTer68) and c.971C>T (p.Thr324Ile) variants probably underlay the disease in the proband. Above finding has enriched the spectrum of MSTO1 gene variants underlying mitochondrial myopathy and cerebellar atrophy with ataxia.
Subject(s)
Child , Humans , Infant , Male , Ataxia/genetics , Atrophy/genetics , Cell Cycle Proteins/genetics , Cytoskeletal Proteins/genetics , Mitochondrial Myopathies , Mutation , Neurodegenerative Diseases , Exome SequencingABSTRACT
Streptococcus pyogenes Cas9 (SpCas9) has become a powerful genome editing tool, but has a limited range of recognizable protospacer adjacent motifs (PAMs) and shows off-target effects. To address these issues, we present a rational approach to optimize the xCas9 mutant derived from SpCas9 by directed evolution. Firstly, energy minimization with the Rosetta program was applied to optimize the three-dimensional structure of Cas9 to obtain the lowest energy conformation. Subsequently, combinatorial mutations were designed based on the mutations sites of xCas9 acquired during the directed evolution. Finally, optimal mutants were selected from the designed mutants by free energy ranking and subjected to experimental verification. A new mutant yCas9 (262A/324R/409N/480K/543D/694L/1219T) with multiple PAM recognition ability and low off-target effects was obtained and verified by DNA cleavage experiments. This mutant recognizes the NG, GAA and GAT PAMs and shows low off-target DNA cleavage activity guided by mismatched sgRNA, thus provides a gene editing tool with potential applications in biomedical field. Furthermore, we performed molecular dynamics simulations on the structures of SpCas9, xCas9 and yCas9 to reveal the mechanisms of their PAM recognition and off-target effects. These may provide theoretical guidance for further optimization and modification of CRISPR/Cas9 proteins.
Subject(s)
CRISPR-Associated Protein 9/metabolism , CRISPR-Cas Systems/genetics , Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats , Gene Editing , /genetics , Streptococcus pyogenes/metabolismABSTRACT
Objective:To investigate the variation of T, B, NK lymphocyte subgroup in children with anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor(NMDAR)encephalitis and their clinical significance.Methods:This was a prospective and control study.Forty children primarily diagnosed with anti-NMDAR encephalitis in the department of neurology in Guangzhou Women and Children′s Medical Center from January 2017 to August 2019 served as patient group, 20 healthy children served as control group.Absolute counts and percentages of T, B and NK lymphocytes in whole blood were detected before and 1 month after treatment in patient group.Serum immunoglobulin G(IgG), IgA and IgM were measured before treatment.The blood levels of T, B, NK lymphocyte subgroup were detected with flow cytometer.NMDAR antibody titers of serum and cerebrospinal fluid were detected in patient group.The differences between patient group at different time points and control group were compared.The patients were divided into two groups according to the response to treatment after 2 weeks and the absolute counts of T, B and NK lymphocytes before treatment were compared between groups.Results:Compared with control group, the blood absolute count of B lymphocyte in patient group were significantly higher before and after treatment( P<0.05). There was no significant difference of B lymphocyte in patient group between before and after treatment.After treatment, T cells(including T inhibitory cells and T helper cells)were significantly increased compared with those before treatment and those in control group( P<0.05), but there was no significant difference between patient group and control group before treatment.These with poor response to treatment after 2 weeks had higher level of B, T lymphocyte subgroup compared to those with good response( P<0.05). The level of IgG, IgA, IgM in patient group showed no significant difference with control group.There was no significant correlation between B lymphocyte count in blood and NMDAR antibody titer in cerebrospinal fluid( r=0.282, P>0.05). Conclusion:B lymphocytes increase greatly in children with anti-NMDAR encephalitis, and the level of B lymphocyte subgroup before treatment are associated with treatment response, and T lymphocytes increase greatly after treatment.There is no significant correlation between the titer of NMDAR antibody in cerebrospinal fluid and B lymphocyte level.
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Objective To investigate the clinical characteristics,treatment and prognosis of relapsed demyelinating disease (RDD) associated with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibodies (MOG abs) children in southern China.Methods Children with RDD associated with MOG abs at Department of Neurology in Guangzhou Women and Children's Medical Center from January 2015 to December 2018 were retrospectively analyzed.The annualized relapse rates (ARRs) and expand disability status scale (EDSS) were used to assess the recurrence frequency and neurological dysfunction respectively.Results Ten children were included with the age of (6.4 ± 3.6) years old,and male to female ratio was 4 ∶ 6.(1)Clinical phenotype:all children had 24 episodes during follow-up,with acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM)(7/10 cases) and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD)(3/10 cases) on the first episode.Among 14 recurrent episodes,ADEM (9/14 times) was the most common,followed by optic neuritis(ON) (3/14 times) and brainstem encephalitis (2/14 times).By the final follow-up,the final diagnosis was multiphasic disseminated encephalomyelitis (MDEM) (6/10 cases),NMOSD (3/10 cases),ADEM-ON (1/10 case),respectively.(2) Laboratory examination:all the children had positive serum MOG abs in the acute stage.The serum MOG abs titer high group(≥1 ∶ 640) (6 cases)on the first episode complicated ON (3 cases) and long segment myelitis (3 cases) more common than those of low group (1 ∶ 320) (4 cases).(3)Imaging changes:25 times of bain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were performed in the acute stage,MRI changes mostly involved the cortex and subcortical white matter.Four cases had abnormal spinal cord MRI.(4)Treatment and prognosis:intravenous methylprednone (IVMP) combined with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) were administrated in acute stage.Rituximab (2/10 cases),mycophenolate mofetil (4/10 cases),IVIG (2/10 cases) monthly and low dose prednisone orally (2/10 cases) were given respectively in maintains stage.ARRs decreased from 1.4 to 0 and EDSS score improved significantly after these treatments above.Seven cases had residual neurological dysfunction with 3 cases of NMOSD,3 cases of MDEM and 1 case of ADEM-ON,including motor dysfunction,learning disability and inattention,symptomatic epilepsy and visual impairment.Conclusions ADEM is the most common form of RDD associated with MOG abs in children.Those with high serum MOG abs titer on the first episode are prone to have ON or long segment myelitis.Immunomodification therapy is effective in the relapsed patients,residual neurological sequelae were related to the type of repeated demyelination.
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Objective@#To investigate the clinical characteristics, treatment and prognosis of relapsed demyeli-nating disease (RDD) associated with myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibodies (MOG abs) children in southern China.@*Methods@#Children with RDD associated with MOG abs at Department of Neurology in Guangzhou Women and Children′s Medical Center from January 2015 to December 2018 were retrospectively analyzed.The annualized relapse rates (ARRs) and expand disability status scale (EDSS) were used to assess the recurrence frequency and neurological dysfunction respectively.@*Results@#Ten children were included with the age of (6.4±3.6) years old, and male to female ratio was 4∶6.(1)Clinical phenotype: all children had 24 episodes during follow-up, with acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM)(7/10 cases) and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders (NMOSD)(3/10 cases) on the first episode.Among 14 recurrent episodes, ADEM (9/14 times) was the most common, followed by optic neuritis(ON)(3/14 times)and brainstem encephalitis (2/14 times). By the final follow-up, the final diagnosis was multiphasic disseminated encephalomyelitis(MDEM)(6/10 cases), NMOSD(3/10 cases), ADEM-ON(1/10 case), respectively.(2)Laboratory examination: all the children had positive serum MOG abs in the acute stage.The serum MOG abs titer high group(≥1∶640)(6 cases)on the first episode complicated ON (3 cases) and long segment myelitis (3 cases) more common than those of low group(1∶320)(4 cases). (3)Imaging changes: 25 times of bain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were performed in the acute stage, MRI changes mostly involved the cortex and subcortical white matter.Four cases had abnormal spinal cord MRI.(4)Treatment and prognosis: intravenous methylprednone (IVMP) combined with intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) were administrated in acute stage.Rituximab (2/10 cases), mycophenolate mofetil (4/10 cases), IVIG (2/10 cases) monthly and low dose prednisone orally (2/10 cases) were given respectively in maintains stage.ARRs decreased from 1.4 to 0 and EDSS score improved significantly after these treatments above.Seven cases had residual neurological dysfunction with 3 cases of NMOSD, 3 cases of MDEM and 1 case of ADEM-ON, including motor dysfunction, learning disability and inattention, symptomatic epilepsy and visual impairment.@*Conclusions@#ADEM is the most common form of RDD associated with MOG abs in children.Those with high serum MOG abs titer on the first episode are prone to have ON or long segment myelitis.Immunomodification therapy is effective in the relapsed patients, residual neurological sequelae were related to the type of repeated demyelination.
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Objective To evaluate the correlations between the cerebral hemodynamic changes of severe acute encephalopathy with the clinical features from emergency periods to stable periods and the value of transcranial Doppler ultrasonography( TCD)in cerebral function assess. Methods Thirty patients with acute brain diseases by assisted mechanical ventilator from Jun 2014 to May 2015 in PICU were included and followed up to Nov 2015,then grouped by Glasgow Coma Scale( GCS),MRI,prognosis( mental sequelae after half a year). Each subject was examined through the temporal bone window by TCD at emergency peri-ods and stable periods. The systolic cerebral blood flow velocity( sCBFV),and pulsatility index( PI)of bilat-eral middle cerebral artery( MCA),anterior cerebral artery,posterior cerebral artery were analyzed. Multivari-ant analysis of variance,repeated measures analysis of variance was conducted to compare sCBFV and PI of MCA among groups in different clinical periods. The variants included sex,disease diagnosis,prognosis, MRI,GCS,and the first abnormal TCD. The variation within groups was tested via a Hotelling T2 test. All sCBFV and PI of each artery and the D-value of sCBFV between the different periods were compared accord-ing to the prognosis groups. Results (1)Five patients could be lateralized,and their lateralization of MRI focus was consistent with the abnormal sides of sCBFV in the stable periods.(2)The D-value of sCBFV in left MCA between the different periods in the poor prognosis group was significantly higher than that in the good prognosis group[(71. 93 ± 58. 21)cm/s vs.(33. 20 ± 30. 23)cm/s,t = -2. 287,P =0. 033].(3) Multivariant analysis of variance showed that GCS classification and disease diagnosis were significantly cor-related with the cerebral hemodynamic changes respectively(P =0. 042,0. 005,respectively).(4)sCBFV and PI of left MCA reduced significantly in the stable periods than those in the emergency periods( P =0. 002,0. 003,respectivly). Conclusion The cerebral hemodynamic changes by TCD from emergency peri-ods to stable periods are consistent with the clinical status,dynamic evaluation by TCD may facilitate the evaluation of brain dysfunction in the severe acute encephalopathy.
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Objective To evaluate the factors influencing prognosis and to explore the pathological mechanism in which herpes simplex virus encephalitis(HSE) was one of the severe types of acute viral encephalitis in children and had poor prognosis.Methods Twenty-one children with HSE were diagnosed by the clinical syndrome of focal encephalitis and HSV DNA-PCR positive in cerebrospinal fluid(CSF) from Jan.2012 to Oct.2013,among whom,19 patients were treated with intravenous Acyclovir,30 mg/(kg · d) 48 hours after onset and were followed up for 6 to 24 months.Clinical data were collected including Glasgow Coma Score,the brain magnetic resonance imaging(MRI),and electroencephalography(EEG).All MRI examinations including plain scan and contrast enhancement were carried out at the beginning of admission and 1 month after the onset of symptoms.The clinical outcomes were divided into two levels accoming to the severity of the neurological deficit,then the data were analyzed by using Logistic regression and Fisher's exact probability method.The OR value was calculated.Results Eighteen children survived,of whom 5 cases had no neurological deficit(27.8％),3 cases were left with mild impairment(16.7％),and the above 8 cases were thought to have better outcome.Six cases had moderate impairment (33.3％) and 4 cases had severe impairment(22.2％) and 1 child died,and these 11 cases were thought to have worse outcome.Patients aged between 1 month and 10 years,average (2.03 ± 2.23) years old.The mean GCS score was (9.68 ± 2.65) scores,the GCS of the patients were more than 7except for one death child with 3 scores.The multiple factor analysis showed that EEG,age,GCS and the range and character in MRI were significantly correlative to the prognosis(P ＜ 0.05).The single factor analysis illustrated that age 1-4 years old(OR =30,95％ CI 2.066-366.510,P =0.002),GCS ≤ 10 scores(OR =27.518,95％ C1 2.066-366.510,P =0.004)and the wide necrosis existence involving diffuse white matter or deep nuclei of MRI findings (OR =12,95 ％ CI 1.294-111.323,P =0.017) indicated the worse outcome.Conclusions Age,GCS score,nature and damage degree of MRI lesions are the main important factors affecting the prognosis of children's HSE.HSE in children is apt to involve the cortex such as frontal lobe,parietal lobe even diffuse white matter or deep nuclei,which indicates the poor prognosis.
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OBJECTIVE@#To explore the effects of nuclear protein-like transcription factor nuclear receptor subfamily 2 group E member 1 (NR2E1) on the growth, division, and proliferation of neuroblastoma cell line IMR32.@*METHODS@#A NR2E1 shiRNA plasmid vector was constructed and transfected into neuroblastoma cell line IMR32 using lipofedamine™2000. Subsequent cell growth was measured by cell counting and the protein expression of somatic nuclear division was examined by immunofluorescent staining.@*RESULTS@#At 48 h after the neuroblastoma cells IMR32 were transfected with NR2E1-shiRNA vector, the related nuclear division protein and the proliferation of the transfected cells IMR32 were remarkably depressed.@*CONCLUSION@#Cells division and proliferation of neuroblastoma cell line IMR32 is inhibited through transfection with the NR2E1-shiRNA plasmid vector.