Clinical characteristics and genetic analysis of a neonate with Smith-Magenis syndrome / 中华医学遗传学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the clinical features and genetic etiology for a neonate with Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS).@*METHODS@#Copy number variation sequencing (CNV-seq) was applied to the neonate and his parents, and the genotype-phenotype correlation was analyzed.@*RESULTS@#On the second day after birth, the neonate had presented with pathological jaundice and immunodeficiency. Cranial MRI revealed ventricular enlargement and enlargement of cisterna magna. At 3 months, the infant has presented with square face, prominent forehead, deep-set eyes, hypertelorism, palpebral fissure upward and button noses. Genetic testing showed that he had carried a 2.9 Mb deletion in 17p11.2 region, seq[GRCh37] del(17)(p11.2)(chr17:16 836 379-19 880 992). The same deletion was not found in either parent.@*CONCLUSION@#SMS is mostly diagnosed in child and adulthood, but rarely in neonates. For neonates with SMS, the neurological and behavioral abnormalities have not been shown, but pathological jaundice, CNS abnormalities and immune deficiency may be the characteristics, which require attention of neonatal physicians.

Sleep disturbance associated with Smith-Magenis syndrome / 中华医学遗传学杂志

Smith-Magenis syndrome (SMS) (OMIM #182290) is a rare genetic disorder with a prevalence of 1 in 25 000 live births. Approximately 90% of SMS patients have harbored a 3.7 Mb interstitial 17p11.2 deletion involving the RAI1 gene, while 10% of cases have carried pathogenic variants of the RAI1 gene. SMS is characterized by sleep disturbance, intellectual impairment, developmental delay, craniofacial and cardiovascular anomalies, obesity, self injury, aggressive and autistic-like behaviors. Most SMS patients have sleep disorders such as short total sleep time, frequent night waking, short sleep onset, and early morning waking. The sleep disturbance may aggravate with age and persist throughout life. Three mechanisms have been delineated. The first concern was the abnormal secretion of melatonin, with high levels during daytime and low levels at night. Evaluation of the integrity of the intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cell (ipRGC)/melanopsin system has found that SMS patients showed dysfunction in the sustained component of the pupillary light responses to blue light. Synchronization of daily melatonin profile and its photoinhibition are dependent on the activation of melanopsin. Dysfunction of the retina-melanin system may be one of the causes of melatonin spectrum disorders. Secondly, dysregulation of circadian rhythm gene expression has also been noted in mice and SMS patients. Finally, there may be association between sleep deprivation symptoms and DNA methylation patterns, which has provided new insights for SMS-associated sleep disorders and symptoms alike. Treatment for SMS-related sleep disorders is administered primarily through medications like melatonin tablets, which can alleviate insomnia-related sleep difficulties, in particular externalizing behavior in children. Researchers are also actively exploring other treatments for SMS currently.