Biomedical subjects

Debora Bogani

Publications and source records attributed to Debora Bogani.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed2007

Endogenous retroviral insertion in Cryge in the mouse No3 cataract mutant.

No3 (nuclear opacity 3) is a novel congenital nuclear cataract in mice. Microsatellite mapping placed the No3 locus on chromosome 1 between D1Mit480 (32cM) and D1Mit7 (41cM), a region containing seven crystallin genes; Cryba2 and the Cryga-Crygf cluster. Although polymorphic variants were observed, no candidate mutations were found for six of the genes. However, DNA walking identified a murine endogenous retrovirus (IAPLTR1: ERVK) insertion in exon 3 of Cryge, disrupting the coding sequence for gammaE-crystallin. Recombinant protein for the mutant gammaE was completely insoluble. The No3 cataract is mild compared with the effects of similar mutations of gammaE. Quantitative RT-PCR showed that gammaE/F mRNA levels are reduced in No3, suggesting that the relatively mild phenotype results from suppression of gammaE levels due to ERVK insertion. However, the severity of cataract is also strain dependent suggesting that genetic background modifiers also play a role in the development of opacity.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

Asymmetric localization of Vangl2 and Fz3 indicate novel mechanisms for planar cell polarity in mammals.

Planar cell polarity (PCP) is a process in which cells develop with uniform orientation within the plane of an epithelium. To begin to elucidate the mechanisms of PCP in vertebrates, the localization of the protein Vangl2 (Van Gogh-like) was determined during the development of the mammalian cochlea. Results indicate that Vangl2 becomes asymmetrically localized to specific cell-cell boundaries along the axis of polarization and that this asymmetry is lost in PCP mutants. In addition, PDZ2 (postsynaptic density/Discs large/zona occludens 1), PDZ3, and PDZ4 of the PCP protein Scrb1 (Scribble) are shown to bind to the C-terminal PDZ binding domain of Vangl2, suggesting that Scrb1 plays a direct role in asymmetric targeting of Vangl2. Finally, Fz3 (Frizzled), a newly demonstrated mediator of PCP, is also asymmetrically localized in a pattern that matches that of Vangl2. The presence and asymmetry of Fz3 at the membrane is shown to be dependent on Vangl2. This result suggests a role for Vangl2 in the targeting or anchoring of Fz3, a hypothesis strengthened by the existence of a physical interaction between the two proteins. Together, our data support the idea that protein asymmetry plays an important role in the development of PCP, but the colocalization and interaction of Fz3 and Vangl2 suggests that novel PCP mechanisms exist in vertebrates.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

Sexually dimorphic expression of secreted frizzled-related (SFRP) genes in the developing mouse Müllerian duct.

In developing male embryos, the female reproductive tract primordia (Müllerian ducts) regress due to the production of testicular anti-Müllerian hormone (AMH). Because of the association between secreted frizzled-related proteins (SFRPs) and apoptosis, their reported developmental expression patterns and the role of WNT signaling in female reproductive tract development, we examined expression of Sfrp2 and Sfrp5 during development of the Müllerian duct in male (XY) and female (XX) mouse embryos. We show that expression of both Sfrp2 and Sfrp5 is dynamic and sexually dimorphic. In addition, the male-specific expression observed for both genes prior to the onset of regression is absent in mutant male embryos that fail to undergo Müllerian duct regression. We identified ENU-induced point mutations in Sfrp5 and Sfrp2 that are predicted to severely disrupt the function of these genes. Male embryos and adults homozygous for these mutations, both individually and in combination, are viable and apparently fertile with no overt abnormalities of reproductive tract development.

Adaptor Proteins, Signal Transducing↗

PubMed2005

Dissecting the genetic complexity of human 6p deletion syndromes by using a region-specific, phenotype-driven mouse screen.

Monosomy of the human chromosome 6p terminal region results in a variety of congenital malformations that include brain, craniofacial, and organogenesis abnormalities. To examine the genetic basis of these phenotypes, we have carried out an unbiased functional analysis of the syntenic region of the mouse genome (proximal Mmu13). A genetic screen for recessive mutations in this region recovered thirteen lines with phenotypes relevant to a variety of clinical conditions. These include two loci that cause holoprosencephaly, two that underlie anophthalmia, one of which also contributes to other craniofacial abnormalities such as microcephaly, agnathia, and palatogenesis defects, and one locus responsible for developmental heart and kidney defects. Analysis of heterozygous carriers of these mutations shows that a high proportion of these loci manifest with behavioral activity and sensorimotor deficits in the heterozygous state. This finding argues for the systematic, reciprocal phenotypic assessment of dominant and recessive mouse mutants. In addition to providing a resource of single gene mutants that model 6p-associated disorders, the work reveals unsuspected genetic complexity at this region. In particular, many of the phenotypes associated with 6p deletions can be elicited by mutation in one of a number of genes. This finding implies that phenotypes associated with contiguous gene deletion syndromes can result not only from dosage sensitivity of one gene in the region but also from the combined effect of monosomy for multiple genes that function within the same biological process.

Animals↗

PubMed2004

Activating calcium-sensing receptor mutation in the mouse is associated with cataracts and ectopic calcification.

The extracellular calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) plays a pivotal role in the regulation of extracellular calcium such that abnormalities, which result in a loss or gain of function, lead to hypercalcemia or hypocalcemia, respectively, in patients. Mice carrying CaSR knockout alleles develop hypercalcemia that mimics the disorders observed in humans. To date, there is no mouse model for an activating CaSR mutation. Here, we describe such a mouse model, named Nuf, originally identified for having opaque flecks in the nucleus of the lens in a screen for eye mutants. Nuf mice also display ectopic calcification, hypocalcemia, hyperphosphatemia, and inappropriately reduced levels of plasma parathyroid hormone. These features are similar to those observed in patients with autosomal dominant hypocalcemia. Inheritance studies of Nuf mice revealed that the trait was transmitted in an autosomal-dominant manner, and mapping studies located the locus to chromosome 16, in the vicinity of the CaSR gene (Mouse Genome Database symbol Gprc2a). DNA sequence analysis revealed the presence of a Gprc2a missense mutation, Leu723Gln. Transient expression of wild-type and mutant CaSRs in human embryonic kidney 293 cells demonstrated that the mutation resulted in a gain of function of the CaSR, which had a significantly lower EC(50). Thus, our results have identified a mouse model for an activating CaSR mutation, and the development of ectopic calcification and cataract formation, which tended to be milder in the heterozygote Nuf mice, indicates that an evaluation for such abnormalities in autosomal dominant hypocalcemia patients who have activating CaSR mutations is required.

Amino Acid Sequence↗

PubMed2004

New semidominant mutations that affect mouse development.

Dominantly acting mutations that produce visible phenotypes are frequently recovered, either during routine maintenance of colonies or from mutagenesis experiments. We have studied 12 dominant mouse mutations that cause a tail dysmorphology, a coat spotting phenotype, or a combination of these. The majority of these mutations act in a semidominant manner with the homozygous state associated with embryonic lethality and a visible phenotype at or before midgestation. The homozygous phenotypes include axis truncation and neural crest cell defects, as may be expected from the heterozygous phenotypes. The majority of mutations, however, also produced other phenotypes that include neural tube closure defects and aberrant heart looping. In one coat spotting mutant the homozygous condition is lethal before neural crest cell production commences. The mutated genes often function in processes additional to those alluded to by the heterozygous phenotype.

Alkylating Agents↗

PubMed2004

Overlapping and distinct expression domains of Zic2 and Zic3 during mouse gastrulation.

The Zic genes are the vertebrate homologues of the Drosophila Odd-paired gene. Mutations in two of these genes are associated with human congenital genetic disorders. Mutation of human and mouse Zic2 is associated with holoprosencephaly which is caused by a defect of ventral forebrain development and mutation of human and mouse Zic3 is associated with a X-linked heterotaxy syndrome that results from a failure of left-right axis formation. The embryological role of the Zic genes in these disorders is not well understood. Here we show that both of these genes are expressed prior to and throughout gastrulation. The genes show some broad similarities in their expression domains. Both genes however are also uniquely expressed in some tissues and these unique domains correlate with regions that potentially play a role in the aetiology of the respective genetic disorders. During primitive streak stages Zic2 is expressed transiently and uniquely in the node and the head process mesendoderm. The head process is known to be required for the establishment or maintenance of the ventral forebrain, which is the region disrupted in holoprosencephaly. Zic3 is not expressed in the node during primitive streak stages but is expressed in and around the node beginning from the head fold stages of development. This expression of Zic3 correlates well with the first steps in the establishment of the left-right axis. We also examined the expression of the closely related gene, Zic1, and did not detect any transcripts in gastrulation stage embryos.

Animals↗