Publications by authors named "Dijana Plaseska Karanfilska"

Background: The 313-variant polygenic risk score (PRS) provides a promising tool for clinical breast cancer risk prediction. However, evaluation of the PRS across different European populations which could influence risk estimation has not been performed.

Methods: We explored the distribution of PRS across European populations using genotype data from 94,072 females without breast cancer diagnosis, of European-ancestry from 21 countries participating in the Breast Cancer Association Consortium (BCAC) and 223,316 females without breast cancer diagnosis from the UK Biobank.

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  • - Carney Complex (CNC) is a rare genetic syndrome causing spotty skin pigmentation and multiple tumors, including heart tumors (myxomas) and specific testicular tumors, and is usually inherited in an autosomal dominant manner.
  • - A 30-year-old male patient with CNC experienced severe infertility issues connected to both oligoasthenozoospermia and a rare testicular tumor (LCCSCT), along with recurring cardiac myxomas.
  • - Molecular testing revealed a novel gene mutation that may lead to male infertility in CNC patients; highlighting the need for early diagnosis and management of infertility in affected males.
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  • * This review evaluates existing comparative proteomics studies on samples from women with RPL, focusing on analyzed materials, biomarker candidates, and pathways linked to the condition.
  • * It highlights the most identified biomarkers, discusses bioinformatics data, and explores future therapeutic strategies to address RPL more effectively.
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Objectives: To highlight the worldwide presence of -related disorder (-RD), discuss its penetrance, and provide the first haplotype analysis.

Methods: Data on patients worldwide were collected, including demographics, genotype, family history, and clinical status. For haplotype analysis, polymorphisms of short tandem repeats in 3 distinct families with p.

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Purpose: Recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) represents a common disorder with consequences on family and society. As more than half of the RPL cases do not have a clearly identified cause, uncovering the mechanisms behind the idiopathic RPL is urgently needed.

Experimental Design: Using label-free data-independent LC-MS/MS acquisition coupled with ion mobility, we compared the proteome of chorionic villi from 13 RPL cases with 10 age and gestational week-matched elective pregnancies.

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  • AI platforms are important tools in genetics and medicine, helping to analyze lots of patient data and find new diseases.
  • They are making it possible to better understand complex health issues and improve treatments for things like rare diseases and cancers.
  • These technologies are helping doctors make better decisions for patient care, leading to more personalized and effective treatments.
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  • Scientists looked at the timing of when girls start their periods (called menarche) and how it can affect their health later in life.
  • They studied about 800,000 women and found over a thousand genetic signals that influence when menstruation starts.
  • Some women have a much higher chance of starting their periods too early or too late based on their genetic makeup, suggesting that genes play a big role in this process!
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Introduction: Factors contributing to recurrent pregnancy loss (RPL) in more than half of the cases are still unknown. The incidence and societal impact of this condition requires urgent elucidation of the mechanisms behind it, which could aid in significant improvement of clinical management.

Materials And Methods: Using a highly efficient in-solution digestion method and label-free data-independent LC-MS/MS acquisition with ion mobility, we performed comparative proteomics analysis of the decidua tissues from 19 RPL patients and 10 controls.

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  • A study compared the ABC and ACMG variant classification systems using 10 challenging cases, involving 43 European clinical laboratories, to determine how each system influences variant reporting and clinical utility.
  • Although the ACMG system is primarily for assessing pathogenicity rather than reporting, it still affects reporting in many labs, leading to some noted differences in how variants are classified and communicated.
  • The comparison revealed that ABC-based classifications tend to be clearer and more adaptable to clinical questions, allowing for more context-appropriate reporting of variants, unlike ACMG which can mislabel variants in certain clinical scenarios.
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The 313-variant polygenic risk score (PRS) provides a promising tool for breast cancer risk prediction. However, evaluation of the PRS across different European populations which could influence risk estimation has not been performed. Here, we explored the distribution of PRS across European populations using genotype data from 94,072 females without breast cancer, of European-ancestry from 21 countries participating in the Breast Cancer Association Consortium (BCAC) and 225,105 female participants from the UK Biobank.

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Background: The fetal monogenic causes of early pregnancy losses (EPLs) are mainly unknown, with only a few articles on the subject published. In our previous study of EPLs using whole-exome sequencing analysis, we confirmed a genetic diagnosis of -related Joubert syndrome (JS) in three EPLs from two couples and identified a relatively common allele among our population (NM_001384732.1:c.

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Pubertal timing varies considerably and has been associated with a range of health outcomes in later life. To elucidate the underlying biological mechanisms, we performed multi-ancestry genetic analyses in ~800,000 women, identifying 1,080 independent signals associated with age at menarche. Collectively these loci explained 11% of the trait variance in an independent sample, with women at the top and bottom 1% of polygenic risk exhibiting a ~11 and ~14-fold higher risk of delayed and precocious pubertal development, respectively.

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Genomic epidemiology has proven to be a useful tool for investigating pandemic outbreaks and tracking pathogen spread and evolution. This study describes the circulation of SARS-CoV-2 strains in N. Macedonia during a period of one year, encompassing three waves of the COVID-19 pandemic.

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  • Polygenic risk scores (PRSs), derived from genome-wide association studies (GWASs), can enhance breast cancer risk evaluation but are primarily based on European populations.
  • This study analyzed the effectiveness of European-based PRS models in identifying breast cancer risk among Ashkenazi Jewish women in Israel using data from two cohorts.
  • Results indicated that these PRS models successfully identified Ashkenazi Jewish women at high risk for breast cancer, suggesting they could improve risk assessment in this group.
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  • Breast cancer patients with the CHEK2 c.1100delC variant have a heightened risk of developing a second breast cancer (contralateral breast cancer) and generally experience worse survival outcomes compared to those without the variant.
  • A study involving over 82,000 women aimed to evaluate how the CHEK2 variant, radiotherapy, and systemic treatments affect the risk of contralateral breast cancer and breast cancer-specific survival.
  • Findings indicated that while systemic therapy (especially the combination of chemotherapy and endocrine therapy) lowers the risk of contralateral breast cancer, CHEK2 c.1100delC carriers still faced poorer survival rates, suggesting other factors at play beyond the risk of developing a second cancer.*
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  • - Neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) is a genetic disorder that causes skin changes, tumors, and issues with the nervous system, linked to over 3,100 reported mutations in the NF1 gene.
  • - A study in North Macedonia analyzed 30 patients suspected of having NF1, identifying 28 unique mutations, 10 of which were new to science, and found connections between gene variants and cognitive impairment.
  • - This research highlights the importance of genetic testing for accurate diagnosis in NF1, especially for younger individuals, and adds valuable data to the understanding of NF1 mutations globally.
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Breast cancer (BC) patients with a germline c.1100delC variant have an increased risk of contralateral BC (CBC) and worse BC-specific survival (BCSS) compared to non-carriers. We aimed to assess the associations of c.

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Autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome (ALPS) is a chronic non-malignant lymphoproliferative disorder caused by mutations in the genes involved in programmed cell death. It is inherited as an autosomal dominant pattern with variable penetrance. In this paper we present the first report of a Macedonian family with ALPS, caused by a novel heterozygous variant in the FAS gene.

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Background: Low-frequency variants play an important role in breast cancer (BC) susceptibility. Gene-based methods can increase power by combining multiple variants in the same gene and help identify target genes.

Methods: We evaluated the potential of gene-based aggregation in the Breast Cancer Association Consortium cohorts including 83,471 cases and 59,199 controls.

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  • Many variants found in disease susceptibility genes are classified as variants of uncertain significance (VUS), making their interpretation critical for clinical decisions.
  • This study introduces a new likelihood ratio-based method that takes into account gene-specific age-related penetrance to better analyze the pathogenicity of these variants.
  • The method outperformed traditional approaches in simulated and real datasets, allowing for clearer classifications of variants as pathogenic or non-pathogenic for conditions like breast cancer, and includes user-friendly tools for researchers.
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  • - The study investigates the causal relationship between physical activity, sedentary behavior, and breast cancer risk using Mendelian randomization, analyzing data from over 130,000 European women.
  • - Findings suggest that higher levels of genetic predisposition to physical activity are linked to a significantly lower overall breast cancer risk, particularly for pre/perimenopausal cases, while increased sedentary time correlates with a higher risk of certain types of tumors.
  • - The results are consistent across various test groups and indicate that promoting physical activity and reducing sedentary behavior might be beneficial in mitigating breast cancer risks.
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Background: The spectrum of and mutations varies among populations; however, some mutations may be frequent in particular ethnic groups due to the "founder" effect. The c.3700_3704del mutation was previously described as a recurrent variant in Eastern European countries.

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Purpose: Azoospermia, as the most severe form of male infertility, no longer indicates sterility due to modern medical advancements. The current diagnostic procedure based on testicular biopsy has several drawbacks which urges the development of novel, non-invasive diagnostic procedures based on biomarkers. In the last two decades, there have been many proteomics studies investigating potential azoospermia biomarkers.

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