Publications by authors named "Sylvia Safwat"

Article Synopsis
  • FLVCR1 is a protein involved in transporting essential compounds like heme and choline, with mutations linked to serious developmental disorders and neurodegenerative conditions in humans.
  • Researchers identified 30 patients with biallelic FLVCR1 variants who displayed severe developmental issues, including brain malformations and other complications, paralleling symptoms seen in mouse models and conditions like Diamond-Blackfan anemia (DBA).
  • The findings emphasize that FLVCR1 variants could cause a wide range of health problems, underscoring the need for diverse genetic testing and consideration of animal model data in understanding human genetic disorders.
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ATPase, class 1, type 8 A, member 2 (ATP8A2) is a P4-ATPase with a critical role in phospholipid translocation across the plasma membrane. Pathogenic variants in ATP8A2 are known to cause cerebellar ataxia, impaired intellectual development, and disequilibrium syndrome 4 (CAMRQ4) which is often associated with encephalopathy, global developmental delay, and severe motor deficits. Here, we present a family with two siblings born from a consanguineous, first-cousin union from Sudan presenting with global developmental delay, intellectual disability, spasticity, ataxia, nystagmus, and thin corpus callosum.

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Article Synopsis
  • Dysmorphologists face challenges due to the diverse phenotypic variability of human faces, particularly when using Next-Generation Phenotyping (NGP) tools, which are often trained on limited data.
  • To address this, the GestaltMatcher Database (GMDB) was created, compiling over 10,980 facial images from various global populations, significantly improving the representation of underrepresented ancestries, especially African and Asian patients.
  • The study found that incorporating data from non-European patients enhanced NGP accuracy by over 11% without compromising performance for European patients, highlighting the importance of diverse datasets in identifying genetic disorders.
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ATPase, class 1, type 8A, member 2 (ATP8A2) is a P4-ATPase with a critical role in phospholipid translocation across the plasma membrane. Pathogenic variants in are known to cause cerebellar ataxia, mental retardation, and disequilibrium syndrome 4 (CAMRQ4) which is often associated with encephalopathy, global developmental delay, and severe motor deficits. Here, we present a family with two siblings presenting with global developmental delay, intellectual disability, spasticity, ataxia, nystagmus, and thin corpus callosum.

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encodes Feline leukemia virus subgroup C receptor 1 (FLVCR1), a solute carrier (SLC) transporter within the Major Facilitator Superfamily. FLVCR1 is a widely expressed transmembrane protein with plasma membrane and mitochondrial isoforms implicated in heme, choline, and ethanolamine transport. While knockout mice die with skeletal malformations and defective erythropoiesis reminiscent of Diamond-Blackfan anemia, rare biallelic pathogenic variants are linked to childhood or adult-onset neurodegeneration of the retina, spinal cord, and peripheral nervous system.

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Congenital muscular dystrophies (CMDs) are a group of rare muscle disorders characterized by early onset hypotonia and motor developmental delay associated with brain malformations with or without eye anomalies in the most severe cases. In this study, we aimed to uncover the genetic basis of severe CMD in Egypt and to determine the efficacy of whole exome sequencing (WES)-based genetic diagnosis in this population. We recruited twelve individuals from eleven families with a clinical diagnosis of CMD with brain malformations that fell into two groups: seven patients with suspected dystroglycanopathy and five patients with suspected merosin-deficient CMD.

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Article Synopsis
  • The significant phenotypic variability of human faces complicates the work of dysmorphologists by challenging Next-Generation Phenotyping (NGP) tools, especially when analyzing patients from diverse genetic backgrounds.
  • The research established the GestaltMatcher Database (GMDB), which includes over 10,000 facial images from patients with rare genetic disorders worldwide, striving to improve representation of underrepresented populations, particularly Asian and African patients.
  • The analysis showed that incorporating data from non-European patients enhanced the accuracy of NGP in diagnosing facial disorders without negatively affecting performance on European patients, emphasizing the need for more diverse datasets in medical genetics.
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Article Synopsis
  • Lipoid proteinosis (LP) is a rare genetic disorder caused by mutations in the ECM1 gene, leading to symptoms like hoarseness, skin lesions, and neuropsychological issues.
  • Researchers conducted clinical evaluations and genetic testing on eight patients from four unrelated Arab families, identifying two new ECM1 variants and two known variants.
  • The study highlights intrafamilial differences in patient symptoms while confirming that exon 6 is a common site for mutations in the ECM1 gene.
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