Mutation analysis of the SLC26A4, FOXI1 and KCNJ10 genes in individuals with congenital hearing loss.

Pendred syndrome (PDS) and DFNB4 comprise a phenotypic spectrum of sensorineural hearing loss disorders that typically result from biallelic mutations of the SLC26A4 gene. Although PDS and DFNB4 are recessively inherited, sequencing of the coding regions and splice sites of SLC26A4 in individuals suspected to be affected with these conditions often fails to identify two mutations. We investigated the potential contribution of large SLC26A4 deletions and duplications to sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) by screening 107 probands with one known SLC26A4 mutation by Multiplex Ligation-dependent Probe Amplification (MLPA).

Duplication and maintenance of the Myb genes of vertebrate animals.

Gene duplication is an important means of generating new genes. The major mechanisms by which duplicated genes are preserved in the face of purifying selection are thought to be neofunctionalization, subfunctionalization, and increased gene dosage. However, very few duplicated gene families in vertebrate species have been analyzed by functional tests in vivo.

Improving the limit of detection for Sanger sequencing: A comparison of methodologies for KRAS variant detection.

Fluorescent dye terminator Sanger sequencing (FTSS), with detection by automated capillary electrophoresis (CE), has long been regarded as the gold standard for variant detection. However, software analysis and base-calling algorithms used to detect mutations were largely optimized for resequencing applications in which different alleles were expected as heterozygous mixtures of 50%. Increasingly, the requirements for variant detection are an analytic sensitivity for minor alleles of <20%, in particular, when assessing the mutational status of heterogeneous tumor samples.

Improving the limit of detection for Sanger sequencing: a comparison of methodologies for KRAS variant detection.

Fluorescent dye terminator Sanger sequencing (FTSS), with detection by automated capillary electrophoresis (CE), has long been regarded as the gold standard for variant detection. However, software analysis and base-calling algorithms used to detect mutations were largely optimized for resequencing applications in which different alleles were expected as heterozygous mixtures of 50%. Increasingly, the requirements for variant detection are an analytic sensitivity for minor alleles of <20%, in particular, when assessing the mutational status of heterogeneous tumor samples.

Functional evolution of the vertebrate Myb gene family: B-Myb, but neither A-Myb nor c-Myb, complements Drosophila Myb in hemocytes.

The duplication of genes and genomes is believed to be a major force in the evolution of eukaryotic organisms. However, different models have been presented about how duplicated genes are preserved from elimination by purifying selection. Preservation of one of the gene copies due to rare mutational events that result in a new gene function (neofunctionalization) necessitates that the other gene copy retain its ancestral function.

Fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS) of Drosophila hemocytes reveals important functional similarities to mammalian leukocytes.

Drosophila is a powerful model for molecular studies of hematopoiesis and innate immunity. However, its use for functional cellular studies remains hampered by the lack of single-cell assays for hemocytes (blood cells). Here we introduce a generic method combining fluorescence-activated cell sorting and nonantibody probes that enables the selective gating of live Drosophila hemocytes from the lymph glands (larval hematopoietic organ) or hemolymph (blood equivalent).

Molecular evolution of the vertebrate blood coagulation network.

In mammalian blood coagulation 5 proteases, factor VII (FVII), factor IX (FIX), factor X (FX), protein C (PC) and prothrombin act with two cofactors factor V and factor VIII to control the generation of fibrin. Biochemical evidence and molecular cloning data have previously indicated that blood coagulation involving tissue factor, prothrombin and fibrinogen is present in all vertebrates. Using degenerate RT-PCR we have isolated and characterized novel cDNAs with sequence identity to the blood coagulation serine proteases and cofactors from chicken and the puffer fish (Fugu rubripes).