Publications by authors named "Jennifer Wambach"

We report three unrelated individuals with atypical clinical findings for cardio-facio-cutaneous (CFC) syndrome, all of whom have the same novel, heterozygous de novo p.H119Y (c.355 C>T) transition variant in MAP2K1, identified by exome sequencing.

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  • Children's interstitial and diffuse lung diseases (chILDs) are different types of lung problems that happen in kids and can cause breathing issues.
  • Kids with chILDs often show signs of lung trouble and have special images taken of their lungs that reveal abnormalities.
  • Improving care for these kids has come from teamwork between different doctors and hospitals, as well as research efforts to find better ways to diagnose and treat these lung diseases.
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  • * Through analysis of fibroblasts and a fruit fly model, we found that these variants resulted in decreased lipid droplet formation and impaired gene expression linked to SREBP, indicating disrupted pathway function.
  • * Our findings suggest that SREBF2 variants hinder the cleavage of S1P targets, causing disease symptoms by negatively affecting SREBP1 and SREBP2 activity.
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  • Tubulin is a key component of the cytoskeleton and has various isotypes in animals, but it's unclear how these isotypes influence microtubule structures in different cell types.
  • Research on 12 patients with primary ciliary dyskinesia and mouse models uncovered variants in the tubulin isotype that disrupted the formation of centrioles and cilia, impacting microtubule dynamics.
  • The study identified different variants causing distinct effects on tubulin interactions, allowing for the classification of patients into three types of ciliopathic diseases, highlighting the unique roles of specific tubulin isotypes in cellular functions.
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  • Mutations in ABCA3, a crucial transporter for lung surfactant balance, are the leading genetic cause of childhood interstitial lung disease (chILD), but effective treatments are limited due to a lack of understanding of how these mutations cause disease.
  • Researchers generated induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from affected patients with ABCA3 mutations to create alveolar type II epithelial cells (AEC2s) for in vitro modeling, which revealed decreased surfactant secretion and unexpected abnormal characteristics in mutant cells.
  • Using ABCA3:GFP fusion reporters, the study quantified how different ABCA3 mutations affect lamellar body size and protein trafficking, providing insights into the
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Genetic disorders of surfactant dysfunction are a rare cause of chronic, progressive or refractory respiratory failure in term and preterm infants. This review explores genetic mechanisms underpinning surfactant dysfunction, highlighting specific surfactant-associated genes including SFTPB, SFTPC, ABCA3, and NKX2.1.

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Alveolar capillary dysplasia with misalignment of pulmonary veins (ACDMPV) is a lethal developmental disorder of lung morphogenesis caused by insufficiency of FOXF1 (forkhead box F1) transcription factor function. The cellular and transcriptional mechanisms by which FOXF1 deficiency disrupts human lung formation are unknown. To identify cell types, gene networks, and cell-cell interactions underlying the pathogenesis of ACDMPV.

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Purpose: To describe variation in genomic medicine services across level IV neonatal intensive care units (NICUs) in the United States and Canada.

Methods: We developed and distributed a novel survey to the 43 level IV NICUs belonging to the Children's Hospitals Neonatal Consortium, requesting a single response per site from a clinician with knowledge of the provision of genomic medicine services.

Results: Overall response rate was 74% (32/43).

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Introduction: Childhood interstitial and diffuse lung disease (chILD) encompasses a broad spectrum of rare disorders. The Children's Interstitial and Diffuse Lung Disease Research Network (chILDRN) established a prospective registry to advance knowledge regarding etiology, phenotype, natural history, and management of these disorders.

Methods: This longitudinal, observational, multicenter registry utilizes single-IRB reliance agreements, with participation from 25 chILDRN centers across the U.

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  • Researchers found 15 new genetic variants in the PSMC3 gene, linked to a specific type of neurodevelopmental delay and intellectual disability in 23 unrelated patients.
  • Mouse and fruit fly experiments showed that these variants hindered normal neuron growth and learning abilities.
  • The variants were shown to disrupt proteasome function, leading to cellular stress and abnormal immune responses, suggesting a connection between proteasome issues and neurodevelopmental disorders.
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Objectives: Cerebellar ataxia with neuropathy and bilateral vestibular areflexia syndrome (CANVAS) results from biallelic intronic pentanucleotide repeats in We describe an adult male proband with progressive imbalance, cerebellar atrophy, somatosensory neuronopathy, and absence of peripheral vestibular function for whom clinical testing demonstrated a heterozygous expansion consistent with an unaffected carrier.

Methods: We performed whole-genome sequencing (WGS) on peripheral blood DNA samples from the proband and his unaffected mother. We performed DNA long-read sequencing and synthesized complementary DNA from RNA using peripheral blood from the proband.

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Alveolar capillary dysplasia with misalignment of pulmonary veins (ACDMPV) is linked to heterozygous mutations in the (Forkhead Box F1) gene, a key transcriptional regulator of pulmonary vascular development. There are no effective treatments for ACDMPV other than lung transplant, and new pharmacological agents activating FOXF1 signaling are urgently needed. Identify-small molecule compounds that stimulate FOXF1 signaling.

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  • Genetic disorders related to surfactant dysfunction cause serious health issues in individuals of all ages, with few effective treatments currently available.
  • Mutations in specific genes necessary for surfactant production lead to lung disease and higher rates of morbidity and mortality, particularly affecting the alveolar type 2 (AT2) cells in the lungs.
  • Ongoing research into gene-based therapies shows promise as potential effective treatments, focusing on correcting the genetic issues in the AT2 cells linked to these disorders.
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Background: Bardet-Biedl syndrome (BBS) is a rare, autosomal recessive ciliopathy characterized by early onset retinal dystrophy, renal anomalies, postaxial polydactyly, and cognitive impairment with considerable phenotypic heterogeneity. BBS results from biallelic pathogenic variants in over 20 genes that encode key proteins required for the assembly or primary ciliary functions of the BBSome, a heterooctameric protein complex critical for homeostasis of primary cilia. While variants in BBS1 are most frequently identified in affected individuals, the renal and pulmonary phenotypes associated with BBS1 variants are reportedly less severe than those seen in affected individuals with pathogenic variants in the other BBS-associated genes.

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ABCA3 is a phospholipid transporter protein required for surfactant assembly in lamellar bodies of alveolar type II cells. Biallelic pathogenic ABCA3 variants cause severe neonatal respiratory distress syndrome or childhood interstitial lung disease. However, ABCA3 genotype alone does not explain the diversity in disease presentation, severity, and progression.

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Pathogenic variants in surfactant proteins SP-B and SP-C cause surfactant deficiency and interstitial lung disease. Surfactant proteins are synthesized as precursors (proSP-B, proSP-C), trafficked, and processed via a vesicular-regulated secretion pathway; however, control of vesicular trafficking events is not fully understood. Through the Undiagnosed Diseases Network, we evaluated a child with interstitial lung disease suggestive of surfactant deficiency.

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Pulmonary surfactant is critically important to prevent atelectasis by lowering the surface tension of the alveolar lining liquid. While respiratory distress syndrome (RDS) is common in premature infants, severe RDS in term and late preterm infants suggests an underlying genetic etiology. Pathogenic variants in the genes encoding key components of pulmonary surfactant including surfactant protein B (SP-B, gene), surfactant protein C (SP-C, gene), and the ATP-Binding Cassette transporter A3 (ABCA3, gene) result in severe neonatal RDS or childhood interstitial lung disease (chILD).

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A recent report by Majethia and Girisha described a patient with biallelic pathogenic variants in and Wiedemann-Rautenstrauch syndrome. In this correspondence, we compare the features of this patient to that of a cohort of patients with severe POLR3-related leukodystrophy and a similar genotype and clinical course. We comment on the phenotyping and classification of POLR3-related disorders.

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  • * A clinical trial involving 354 infants evaluated the effect of early versus delayed WGS results on clinical management within 60 days, looking at outcomes like changes in treatment and hospitalization duration.
  • * Results showed that infants who received WGS results earlier were twice as likely to have their management changed compared to those receiving results later, indicating the potential benefits of timely genetic testing in acute care settings.
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  • AEC2 dysfunction plays a crucial role in both adult and pediatric interstitial lung diseases, including idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF), but studying early disease mechanisms has been challenging due to limited access to primary AEC2s.
  • Researchers developed an in vitro model using patient-specific induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) with a disease-associated variant to explore AEC2 dysfunction.
  • Findings show that mutant AEC2s accumulate improperly processed proteins, leading to reduced progenitor capacity and metabolic issues, and treatment with hydroxychloroquine worsens these dysfunctions, demonstrating the model's potential for studying disease mechanisms in ILD.
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