Genetic heterogeneity in Pakistani microcephaly families revisited.

Autosomal recessive primary microcephaly (MCPH) is a rare and heterogeneous genetic disorder characterized by reduced head circumference, low cognitive prowess and, in general, architecturally normal brains. As many as 14 different loci have already been mapped. We recruited 35 MCPH families in Pakistan and could identify the genetic cause of the disease in 31 of them. Using homozygosity mapping complemented with whole-exome, gene panel or Sanger sequencing, we identified 12 novel mutations in 3 known MCPH-associated genes - 9 in ASPM, 2 in MCPH1 and 1 in CDK5RAP2. The 2 MCPH1 mutations were homozygous microdeletions of 164,250 and 577,594 bp, respectively, for which we were able to map the exact breakpoints. We also identified four known mutations - three in ASPM and one in WDR62. The latter was initially deemed to be a missense mutation but we demonstrate here that it affects splicing. As to ASPM, as many as 17 out of 27 MCPH5 families that we ascertained in our sample were found to carry the previously reported founder mutation p.Trp1326*. This study adds to the mutational spectra of four known MCPH-associated genes and updates our knowledge about the genetic heterogeneity of MCPH in the Pakistani population considering its ethnic diversity.

Nitric oxide synthase inhibitor and IL-18 enhance the anti-tumor immune response of rats carrying an intrahepatic colon carcinoma.

The role of nitric oxide (NO) produced by adherent spleen cells in the systemic immunosuppression developing in tumor-bearing hosts was investigated. After therapeutic immunization of rats carrying an intrahepatic colon carcinoma, H1D2, the spleen cell antitumor immune responsiveness was analyzed. Compared to parallel immunized tumor-free rats, tumor-bearing rats (TB rats) had a greatly reduced proliferative T-cell response to wild-type tumor stimulator cells. The TB rats had a depressed proliferative response to anti-CD3 and to the superantigen SEA. TB rats with small tumors had a stronger response to IL-18-producing H1D2 stimulator cells than to wild type H1D2 cells. This was not the case with TB rats carrying larger tumors. Also the IFN-gamma production and cytotoxicity against the wild-type tumor cells and the NK sensitive YAC cells were depressed in spleen cells of TB rats after 5-day restimulation with wild-type tumor cells. A part of this immunosuppression was mediated by adherent spleen cells, mostly consisting of macrophages. An important mode of action appears to involve their production of an enhanced level of nitric oxide, since the competitive nitric oxide synthase (NOS) inhibitor L-NAME could partially counteract the suppression in vitro. We conclude that NOS inhibitors in combination with immunostimulatory cytokines, such as IL-18, could be useful tools to enhance anti-tumor immune responses in TB rats and therefore to increase the efficiency of immunotherapies.

Repression of transcription by HoxC11 upon phorbol ester stimulation.

Hox genes encode transcription factors with a conserved DNA-binding domain and exhibit similar DNA-binding preferences. The in vivo specificity required for their biological function is brought about by combinatorial interactions with other factors. Such interactions also modulate their activation state. Here we show that HoxC11 can either activate or repress transcription in a signal-specific manner. We report the isolation of HoxC11 in a yeast one-hybrid screen for factors binding to a phorbol-ester, 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) response element (VLTRE), which is also a target for TPA-induced binding of Rel factors in gel-shift experiments. Although we detect no binding of in vitro translated HoxC11 to the TPA response element in EMSA, overexpression of HoxC11 in the HepG2 cell line leads to a complete block of TPA-induced transcription from a VLTRE-luciferase reporter. There is, however, no repression of the basal levels. The repression is furthermore not dependent on homeo-domain DNA binding. Our data suggest an interaction of HoxC11 with the basal-transcription machinery. We propose that HoxC11 is capable of mediating transcriptional activation or repression in a signal-specific manner and that its activation of the DNA target sequence in yeast might reflect in vivo recruitment to the promoter complex.

Analysis of PFK3--a gene involved in particulate phosphofructokinase synthesis reveals additional functions of TPS2 in Saccharomyces cerevisiae.

The pfk3 mutation of Saccharomyces cerevisiae causes glucose-negativity in a pfk1 genetic background, the mutant is temperature-sensitive for growth and homozygous diploids do not sporulate. It fails to accumulate trehalose, and has an altered glycogen accumulation profile under glucose-starvation conditions. pfk3-6, one of the alleles of pfk3, has an altered morphology, forming long chain-like structures at 36 degrees C. The PFK3 gene was cloned by complementation of the mutant phenotypes. Integrative transformation demonstrated that the complementing fragment encoded the authentic PFK3 gene. The disruption of the gene does not affect viability. Like the EMS-induced pfk3 mutant, the disruptants are temperature-sensitive and in a pfk1 genetic background are also glucose-negative. The PFK3 transcript is induced by heat-shock. Partial DNA sequence shows that PFK3 is identical to TPS2 (De Virgilio et al., 1993). We demonstrate that, apart from being a structural determinant of trehalose 6-phosphate phosphatase, PFK3 (TPS2) is required for PFKII synthesis and normal regulation of S. cerevisiae response to nutrient and thermal stresses.