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D H Cohn

Publications and source records attributed to D H Cohn.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources
PubMed1992

An amino acid substitution (Gly853-->Glu) in the collagen alpha 1(II) chain produces hypochondrogenesis.

The spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia subclassification of bone dysplasias includes achondrogenesis, hypochondrogenesis, and spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia congenita. The phenotypic expression of these disorders ranges from mild to perinatal lethal forms. We report the detection and partial characterization of a defect in type II collagen in a perinatal lethal form of hypochondrogenesis. Electrophoresis in sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide of CB peptides (where CB represents cyanogen bromide) from type II collagen of the diseased cartilage showed a doublet band for peptide alpha 1(II)CB10 and evidence for post-translational overmodification of the major peptides (CB8, CB10, and CB11) seen as a retarded electrophoretic mobility. Peptide CB10 was digested by endoproteinase Asp-N; and on reverse-phase high pressure liquid chromatography, fragments of abnormal mobility were noted. Sequence analysis of a unique peptide D12 revealed a single amino acid substitution (Gly-->Glu) at position 853 of the triple helical domain. This was confirmed by sequence analysis of amplified COL2A1 cDNA, which revealed a single nucleotide substitution (GGA-->GAA) in 5 of 10 clones. Electron micrographs of the diseased cartilage showed a sparse extracellular matrix and chondrocytes containing dilated rough endoplasmic reticulum, which suggested impaired assembly and secretion of the mutant protein. This case further documents the molecular basis of the spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia spectrum of chondrodysplasias as mutations in COL2A1.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1992

Recurrence of lethal osteogenesis imperfecta due to parental mosaicism for a mutation in the COL1A2 gene of type I collagen. The mosaic parent exhibits phenotypic features of a mild form of the disease.

We have determined that a man, ascertained because he fathered a child with lethal osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) with each of two partners, is mosaic in both his germline and somatic tissues for a mutation in the COL1A2 gene which encodes the pro alpha 2(I) chain of type I procollagen. His dermal fibroblasts were previously shown to synthesize a population of cysteine-containing alpha 2(I) chains that were posttranslationally overmodified. DNA sequence analysis of COL1A2 cDNAs demonstrated that the cysteine-containing chain resulted from a point mutation (G to T) in the first position of the codon for the glycine at residue 472 of the triple helical domain. Genomic DNA from the one available affected infant contained the mutant and normal COL1A2 alleles in equal proportion. Examination of DNA from several tissues of the father showed that the mutant allele was present in approximately 40% of his sperm, 80% of his lymphocytes, and nearly 100% of his dermal fibroblasts. Despite the high level of mosaicism detected in somatic tissues, the only phenotypic manifestation of OI in the proband was that he was shorter than his unaffected male relatives and had mild dentinogenesis imperfecta. Thermal stability of type I collagen molecules containing the substitution was decreased, but to a lesser extent than for a nonlethal cysteine for glycine substitution at residue 259 of alpha 2(I), indicating that this measure of molecular stability may be of limited use in explaining the pathogenesis of osteogenesis imperfecta.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

The effects of different cysteine for glycine substitutions within alpha 2(I) chains. Evidence of distinct structural domains within the type I collagen triple helix.

Affected individuals from two apparently distinct, mild osteogenesis imperfecta families were heterozygous for a G to T transition in the COL1A2 gene that resulted in cysteine for glycine substitutions at position 646 in the alpha 2(I) chain of type I collagen. A child with a moderately severe form of osteogenesis imperfecta was heterozygous for a G to T transition that resulted in a substitution of cysteine for glycine at position 259 in the COL1A2 gene. Type I collagen molecules containing an alpha 2(I) chain with cysteine at position 259 denaturated at a lower temperature than molecules containing an alpha 2(I) chain with cysteine at position 646. In contrast to cysteine for glycine substitutions in the alpha 1(I) chain, the severity of the osteogenesis imperfecta phenotype is not directly proportional to the distance of the mutation from the amino-terminal end of the triple helix. These findings could be explained if the type I collagen triple helix contains discontinuous domains that differ in their contributions to maintaining helix stability.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1991

Cysteine in the triple helical domain of the pro alpha 2(I) chain of type-I collagen in nonlethal forms of osteogenesis imperfecta.

To determine if some individuals with deforming varieties of osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) carry point mutations in the COL1A2 gene of type-I collagen, we examined collagens synthesized by cell strains from affected individuals for the presence of cysteine in the triple helical domain of the alpha 2 (I) chain, a domain from which it is normally excluded. We identified 4 individuals out of 60 whose cells synthesized a population of alpha 2(I) chains with a cysteine residue in the triple helix. The clinical differences among the affected individuals and the heterogeneity in the locations of the cysteine residues suggest that the position of the substitution within the chain is important in determining the clinical phenotype. These data confirm that individuals with nonlethal OI may commonly harbor defects in the COL1A2 gene, and suggest that many of the defects are substitutions for glycine residues in the alpha 2(I) triple helical domain.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Osteogenesis imperfecta due to recurrent point mutations at CpG dinucleotides in the COL1A1 gene of type I collagen.

Most individuals with osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) are heterozygous for dominant mutations in one of the genes that encode the chains of type I collagen. Each of the more than 30 mutations characterized to date has been unique to the affected member(s) of the family. We have determined that two individuals with a progressive deforming variety of OI, OI type III, have the same new dominant mutation [alpha 1(I)gly154 to arg] and that two unrelated infants with perinatal lethal OI, OI type II, share a second new dominant mutation [alpha 1(I)gly1003 to ser]. These mutations occurred at CpG dinucleotides, in a manner consistent with deamination of a methylated cytosine residue, and raise the possibility that CpG dinucleotides are common sites of recurrent mutations in collagen genes. Further, these findings confirm that the OI type-III phenotype, previously thought to be inherited in an autosomal recessive manner, can result from new dominant mutations in the COL1A1 gene of type-I collagen.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Tandem duplication within a type II collagen gene (COL2A1) exon in an individual with spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia.

We have characterized a mutation in the type II collagen gene (COL2A1) that produces a form of spondyloepiphyseal dysplasia. The mutation is an internal tandem duplication of 45 base pairs within exon 48 and results in the addition of 15 amino acids to the triple-helical domain of the alpha 1 chains of type II collagen derived from the abnormal allele. Although the repeating (Gly-Xaa-Yaa)n motif that characterizes the triple-helical domain is preserved, type II collagen derived from cartilage of the affected individual contains a population with excessive posttranslational modification, consistent with a disruption in triple-helix structure. The mutation is not carried by either parent, indicating that the phenotype in the affected individual is due to a new dominant mutation. DNA sequence homology in the area of the duplication suggests that the mutation may have arisen by unequal crossover between related sequences, a proposed mechanism in the evolution and diversification of the collagen gene family.

Alleles↗
PubMed1990

Frameshift mutation near the 3' end of the COL1A1 gene of type I collagen predicts an elongated Pro alpha 1(I) chain and results in osteogenesis imperfecta type I.

Osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) is a heterogeneous disorder of type I collagen of which OI type I, an autosomal dominant condition, is the mildest and most common form. Affected individuals have blue sclerae, normal stature, bone fragility without significant deformity and osteopenia. Fibroblasts from most affected individuals produce about half the expected amount of structurally normal type I collagen as a result of decreased synthesis of one of its constituent chains, pro alpha 1(I), but the nature of the mutations which result in OI type I are unknown. We describe a three generation family with OI type I in which all affected members have one normal COL1A1 allele and another from which the intragenic Eco RI restriction site near the 3' end of the gene is missing. Amplification by polymerase chain reaction and sequence determination of the normal allele and of the mutant allele in the domain that normally contains the Eco RI site demonstrated a 5-bp deletion from the mutant allele. The deletion changes the translational reading-frame beginning at the Eco RI site and predicts the synthesis of a pro alpha 1(I) chain that extends 84 amino acids beyond the normal termination. Although the mutant pro alpha 1(I) chain is synthesized in an in vitro translation system, we are unable to detect its presence in intact cells, suggesting that it is unstable and rapidly destroyed in one of the cell's degradative pathways. Our analysis of individuals with OI type I from 20 families indicates that this is a unique mutation and suggests that the phenotype can result from multiple mechanisms that decrease the synthesis of normal type I procollagen molecules, including those that alter protein stability.

Adult↗
PubMed1990

Clinical screening for collagen defects in connective tissue diseases.

The defects in type I collagen structure or synthesis that produce all four types of osteogenesis imperfecta (OI) and Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) type VII and the defects in type III collagen structure in EDS type IV can be detected by analysis of collagens produced by fibroblastic cells cultured from affected individuals. Quantitative defects in synthesis of type I collagen are seen in OI type I and qualitative defects of type I collagen characterize OI type II, OI type III, and OI type IV and EDS type VII. EDS type IV results from qualitative type III collagen defects. All of the disorders are inherited typically in an autosomal dominant fashion so that recurrence among offspring of normal parents usually results from germline mosaicism for the mutation in one parent. Analysis of type I and type III collagen synthesized by cultured chorionic villus cells is used for prenatal diagnosis of these disorders.

Collagen↗
PubMed1990

Recurrence of lethal osteogenesis imperfecta due to parental mosaicism for a dominant mutation in a human type I collagen gene (COL1A1).

We have determined that two infants with perinatal lethal osteogenesis imperfecta in one family had the same new dominant point mutation. Although not detected in his dermal fibroblast DNA, the mutation was detected in somatic DNA from the father's hair root bulbs and lymphocytes. The mutation was also detected in the father's sperm, demonstrating that mosaicism in the father's germ line explains recurrence. The presence of both germ-line and somatic mosaicism indicates that the mutation occurred prior to segregation of the germ-line and somatic cell progenitors. About one in eight sperm carry the mutation, which implies that at least four progenitor cells populate the germ line in human males. The observation that the mosaic individual is clinically normal suggests that genetic diseases can have both qualitative and quantitative components.

Base Sequence↗
PubMed1988

Substitution of cysteine for glycine within the carboxyl-terminal telopeptide of the alpha 1 chain of type I collagen produces mild osteogenesis imperfecta.

We have characterized a mutation that produces mild, dominantly inherited osteogenesis imperfecta. Half of the alpha 1 (I) chains of type I collagen synthesized by cells from an affected individual contain a cysteine residue in the 196-residue carboxyl-terminal cyanogen bromide peptide of the triple-helical domain (Steinmann, B., Nicholls, A., and Pope, F. M. (1986) J. Biol. Chem. 261, 8958-8964). Unexpectedly, sequence determined from a proteolytic fragment of the alpha 1 (I) chain derived from procollagen molecules synthesized in the presence of both [3H]proline and [35S]cysteine indicated that the cysteine is located at the third residue carboxyl-terminal to the triple-helical domain, normally a glycine. The nucleotide sequence of a fragment amplified from genomic DNA confirmed the location of the cysteine residue and showed that the mutation was a single nucleotide change in one COL1A1 allele. This represents a new class of mutations, point mutations outside the triple-helical domain of the chains of type I collagen, that produce the osteogenesis imperfecta phenotype.

Alleles↗
PubMed1988

Heterozygosity for a large deletion in the alpha 2(I) collagen gene has a dramatic effect on type I collagen secretion and produces perinatal lethal osteogenesis imperfecta.

We characterized a de novo 4.5 kilobase pair deletion in the paternally derived alpha 2(I) collagen allele (COL1A2) from a patient with perinatal lethal osteogenesis imperfecta. The intron-to-intron deletion removed the seven exons which encode residues 586-765 of the triple helical domain of the chain. Type I procollagen molecules that contain the mutant pro-alpha 2(I) chain have a lower than normal thermal stability, undergo increased post-translational modification amino-terminal to the deletion junction, and are retained within the rough endoplasmic reticulum. The block to secretion appears to result from improper assembly of the triple helix, apparently a consequence of a disruption of charge-charge interactions between the shortened pro-alpha 2(I) chain and normal pro-alpha 1(I) chains. The lethal effect may be due to decreased secretion of normal collagen and secretion of a small amount of abnormal collagen that disrupts matrix formation.

Alleles↗
PubMed1988

Arginine for glycine substitution in the triple-helical domain of the products of one alpha 2(I) collagen allele (COL1A2) produces the osteogenesis imperfecta type IV phenotype.

Skin fibroblasts from two affected members of a family with an autosomal dominant form of mild-moderate osteogenesis imperfecta produced two populations of type I collagen molecules. One population was normal and the other population contained alpha 2(I) chains which had a basic charge shift localized to a peptide from the carboxyl-terminal end of the triple-helical domain. The alpha chains in the abnormal molecules had increased post-translational modification along the entire triple-helical domain but the thermal stability was normal. We isolated a 28-kb BamHI fragment from the normal and mutant COL1A2 alleles from an affected family member. DNA sequence determination demonstrated that a single nucleotide change resulted in an arginine for glycine substitution at triple-helical position 1012, the last triple-helical glycine. These data demonstrate the stringent requirement for maintenance of the Gly-X-Y triplet sequence in type I collagen and suggest that point mutations which disrupt Gly-X-Y in alpha 2(I) produce milder clinical effects than similar mutations in alpha 1(I).

Alleles↗
PubMed1988

A novel mutation causes a perinatal lethal form of osteogenesis imperfecta. An insertion in one alpha 1(I) collagen allele (COL1A1).

We have identified an infant with the perinatal lethal form of osteogenesis imperfecta (type II) whose cells synthesize in equal amounts two different pro alpha 1(I) chains of type I procollagen: one chain is normal in length, the other contains an insertion of approximately 50-70 amino acid residues within the triple helical domain defined by amino acids 123-220. The structure of the insertion is consistent with duplication of an approximately 600-base pair segment in one allele of the alpha 1(I) gene (COL1A1). These cells synthesize normal type I procollagen molecules as well as molecules that contain one or two mutant chains. Unlike type I procollagen molecules synthesized by cells from most other infants with osteogenesis imperfecta type II which contain increased lysyl hydroxylation and hydroxylysyl glycosylation along the triple helical domain, the abnormal molecules synthesized by these cells are not overmodified. The lethal effect of this mutation may result from secretion of about one-quarter the normal amount of normal type I procollagen and secretion of a large amount of a molecule which has a lowered melting temperature, is extended asymmetrically, and which has altered structure in domains important for cross-link formation and bone mineralization.

Adolescent↗