Publications by authors named "Ferec C"

Just over thirty years is the span of a generation. It is also the time that has passed since the discovery of the gene responsible for cystic fibrosis. Today, it is safe to say that this discovery has revolutionized our understanding, research perspectives, and management of this disease, which was, thirty years ago, a pediatric condition with a grim prognosis.

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  • Researchers found a specific Alu insertion variant (Alu_Ins) in the SPINK1 gene, which causes severe pancreatic problems in infants by completely shutting down SPINK1 mRNA expression.
  • Initial hypotheses suggested that this insertion might disrupt the formation of mRNA ends or other processes, but tests showed only a partial reduction in gene activity that didn't explain the severity of the condition.
  • The study highlighted that structures formed by double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) between Alu elements likely contribute to the mRNA loss, suggesting that aligning these elements correctly could restore gene expression, with broader implications for understanding Alu insertions in genetic diseases.
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Chronic pancreatitis (CP) is a complex disease with genetic and environmental factors at play. Through trio exome sequencing, a de novo SEC16A frameshift variant in a Chinese teenage CP patient is identified. Subsequent targeted next-generation sequencing of the SEC16A gene in 1,061 Chinese CP patients and 1,196 controls reveals a higher allele frequency of rare nonsynonymous SEC16A variants in patients (4.

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  • The study investigates the demographic history of France using genotype datasets from individuals in Northern France, revealing significant population structure and differentiation in regions like Brittany and the Loire basin.
  • The research highlights a connection between the ancestry of local populations and genetic variations, particularly indicating a distinction in shared ancestry related to Neolithic and steppe populations.
  • Findings suggest the necessity of studying local demographics to better comprehend the distribution of genetic variants and their role in the prevalence of diseases among populations in Brittany and neighboring areas.
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Heterozygous mutations in SLC40A1, encoding a multi-pass membrane protein of the major facilitator superfamily known as ferroportin 1 (FPN1), are responsible for two distinct hereditary iron-overload diseases: ferroportin disease, which is associated with reduced FPN1 activity (i.e., decrease in cellular iron export), and SLC40A1-related hemochromatosis, which is associated with abnormally high FPN1 activity (i.

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Genetic testing is performed for unexplained pancreatitis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the diagnostic value of repeating genetic testing in idiopathic pancreatitis when new predisposing genes are identified. We investigated 330 patients who were initially screened for PRSS1, SPINK1 and CFTR genes.

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Background: Single-nucleotide variants (SNVs) within gene coding sequences can significantly impact pre-mRNA splicing, bearing profound implications for pathogenic mechanisms and precision medicine. In this study, we aim to harness the well-established full-length gene splicing assay (FLGSA) in conjunction with SpliceAI to prospectively interpret the splicing effects of all potential coding SNVs within the four-exon SPINK1 gene, a gene associated with chronic pancreatitis.

Results: Our study began with a retrospective analysis of 27 SPINK1 coding SNVs previously assessed using FLGSA, proceeded with a prospective analysis of 35 new FLGSA-tested SPINK1 coding SNVs, followed by data extrapolation, and ended with further validation.

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Purpose: Interneuronopathies are a group of neurodevelopmental disorders characterized by deficient migration and differentiation of gamma-aminobutyric acidergic interneurons resulting in a broad clinical spectrum, including autism spectrum disorders, early-onset epileptic encephalopathy, intellectual disability, and schizophrenic disorders. SP9 is a transcription factor belonging to the Krüppel-like factor and specificity protein family, the members of which harbor highly conserved DNA-binding domains. SP9 plays a central role in interneuron development and tangential migration, but it has not yet been implicated in a human neurodevelopmental disorder.

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  • * The study focused on inhibiting the cleavage of the protein ATF6, which is linked to the p.Phe508del mutation, by targeting the protease MBTP1 in human bronchial cells.
  • * Results indicated that inhibiting MBTP1 enhances the expression of the defective p.Phe508del-CFTR and increases chloride efflux, likely due to the modulation of several related genes.
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Alpha-mannosidosis is a rare autosomal recessive lysosomal storage disorder caused by biallelic mutations in the MAN2B1 gene and characterized by a wide clinical heterogeneity. Diagnosis for this multisystemic disorder is confirmed by the presence of either a deficiency in the lysosomal enzyme acid alpha-mannosidase or biallelic mutations in the MAN2B1 gene. This diagnosis confirmation is crucial for both clinical management and genetic counseling purposes.

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  • Genetic predisposition is significant for early-onset chronic pancreatitis (CP), with some cases linked to genetic changes in digestive enzyme genes, while others remain unexplained.
  • Researchers investigated CTRL, a chymotrypsin-like protease, by screening over 1,000 CP patients and 1,500 controls for genetic variants, analyzing their effects on enzyme secretion and activity.
  • Although several CTRL variants were identified, many did not impact function or were equally present in both patients and controls, suggesting that CTRL is probably not a major contributor to the development of CP.
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  • PRSS1 is a gene linked to chronic pancreatitis, and its variants can be difficult to classify due to differences in their effects on the enzyme's function.
  • The study analyzed 100 variants of the PRSS1 gene, categorizing them based on genetic impact and clinical significance using a new classification system.
  • Findings indicate that many PRSS1 variants can be classified as pathogenic, likely pathogenic, or benign, which could help improve how these variants are reported in medical databases.
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More than 2000 variations are described within the () gene and related to large clinical issues from cystic fibrosis to mono-organ diseases. Although these -associated diseases have been well documented, a large phenotype spectrum is observed and correlations between phenotypes and genotypes are still not well established. To address this issue, we present several regulatory elements that can modulate gene expression in a tissue-specific manner.

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Mutations in the PNLIP gene have recently been implicated in chronic pancreatitis. Several PNLIP missense variants have been reported to cause protein misfolding and endoplasmic reticulum stress although genetic evidence supporting their association with chronic pancreatitis is currently lacking. Protease-sensitive PNLIP missense variants have also been associated with early-onset chronic pancreatitis although the underlying pathological mechanism remains enigmatic.

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  • Non-invasive prenatal diagnosis for single-gene disorders has evolved to better assess maternal allele inheritance, but challenges remain in error control and quality assessment.
  • The enhanced-RHDO (eRHDO) procedure introduces an automated bioinformatics pipeline to improve analysis accuracy, validated by studying 43 families with specific genetic mutations.
  • Testing on a separate cohort of 56 pregnancies demonstrated the method's effectiveness, achieving a 94.9% success rate in determining fetal genotypes without errors, offering a standardized protocol for labs to incorporate.
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Cancer genetics has to date focused on epithelial malignancies, identifying multiple histotype-specific pathways underlying cancer susceptibility. Sarcomas are rare malignancies predominantly derived from embryonic mesoderm. To identify pathways specific to mesenchymal cancers, we performed whole-genome germline sequencing on 1644 sporadic cases and 3205 matched healthy elderly controls.

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Background: The majority of variants of unknown clinical significance (VUCS) in the CFTR gene are missense variants. While change on the CFTR protein structure or function is often suspected, impact on splicing may be neglected. Such undetected splicing default of variants may complicate the interpretation of genetic analyses and the use of an appropriate pharmacotherapy.

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  • Variants in the PRSS1 and PRSS2 genes are linked to chronic pancreatitis (CP), prompting research into whether a deletion variant affecting two trypsinogen pseudogenes (PRSS3P2 and TRY7) might influence CP risk.
  • A study analyzed this deletion in over 4,000 participants from different countries and found that it is associated with a protective effect against CP, especially in French, German, and Japanese populations.
  • The research suggests that the deletion enhances the function of remaining genes, leading to regulated PRSS2 expression, which could be crucial in understanding CP susceptibility.
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Background: Discriminating individuals with "Asian type DEL" from those who are "true D-negative" (D-) among serologically D- donors/patients in Asia would be very valuable, as clinical outcomes are different in these groups. Here we investigated the molecular basis of D-negativity in Thai blood donors, designing a specific strategy for this purpose.

Materials And Methods: After routine testing, a total of 1,270 serologically D- blood donors originating from Central, Northeastern and South Thailand underwent analysis of the RHD gene by (i) quantitative multiplex polymerase chain reaction of short fluorescent fragments (QMPSF); (ii) direct sequencing of exon 9 to identify the c.

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  • Modeling pre-mRNA splicing is crucial for understanding how nucleotide variations can affect gene expression and lead to diseases, as these variations can disrupt or create important splicing motifs.
  • Existing tools typically specialize in specific splicing motifs, which led to the development of the Splicing Prediction Pipeline (SPiP), a machine learning-based analysis that assesses the impact of variants on various splicing motifs simultaneously.
  • SPiP achieved impressive results with 83.13% sensitivity and 99% specificity in detecting spliceogenic variants, outperforming other existing tools and providing a comprehensive prediction approach for genomic medicine.
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Background And Aims: Heavy alcohol consumption and genetic factors represent the 2 major etiologies of chronic pancreatitis (CP). However, little is so far known about the clinical features and genetic basis of light-to-moderate alcohol consumption-related CP (LMA-CP).

Methods: A cross-sectional analysis was performed on 1061 Chinese CP patients between 2010 and 2015.

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The Publisher regrets that this article is an accidental duplication of an article that has already been published in Clinics and Research in Hepatology and Gastroenterology, Volume 45, Issue 1, 2021, 101497. https://doi.org/10.

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