Biomedical subjects

M Chorney

Publications and source records attributed to M Chorney.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

PubMed1997

Studies of the 6.7 family of dispersed genomic fragments within the MHC class I Region.

Searches for MHC-encoded disease susceptibility genes have led to considerable knowledge of the content of the class I region. In an effort to further understand the nature of the five 6.7 family members previously mapped to this region of the genome, we have further analyzed the cross-reactive members of the family and have observed additional genomic instability within the HLA-A subregion. Such genomic variation may underscore the slower evolutionary rates of the HLA-A allelic family and the extended linkage disequilibrium of markers distal to this locus. Moreover, one of the largest genes associated with a member of the 6.7 family, the 3.8-1 gene found proximal to HLA-B, was found to demonstrate limited, composite similarity to RAG2 and complement C4a gene sequences. A pancreas-specific transcript embedded in a 6.7 cross-reactive fragment was found distal to HLA-H and suggests that the fragments have remained linked to transcriptionally active chromatin comprised of both a major class I gene and a second novel coding sequence since the time of their dispersal. The absence of a 6.7 fragment in the HLA-B subregions of higher nonhuman primates lends credence to the possibility that the great apes have suffered a recent deletion event within this region following the emergence of Homo sapiens.

Animals↗

PubMed1996

Mutation analysis in hereditary hemochromatosis.

The DNA of 147 patients of European origin clinically diagnosed with idiopathic hemochromatosis and 193 controls was examined for mutations of the HLA-H gene at nt 845 and nt 187. One hundred twenty-one (82.3%) of the hemochromatosis patients were homozygous and 10 (6.8%) heterozygous for the 845A (C282Y) mutation. All of the homozygous patients were also homozygous for nt 187C, and all 845A heterozygotes had at least one copy of 187C. Thus, the nt 845 and nt 187 mutations were in complete linkage disequilibrium; nt 187 was a C on all chromosomes with the 845A mutation. Eight of the 10 heterozygotes for 845A were heterozygous for 187G(H63D). The excess of heterozygotes at both nt 187 and nt 845 suggested either the presence of as yet undiscovered mutations existing in trans with 845A and in linkage disequilibrium with 187G, or that the 187G itself is a deleterious mutation, which in concert with the 845A can give rise to hemochromatosis. None of the 193 normal controls were homozygous for 845A and 29/193 (15%) were heterozygous for 845A. Although 47/193 (24.3%) of normal controls were heterozygous for the 187G mutation only two of these carried the 845A mutation. If the 187G mutation complemented the 845A mutation with high penetrance in causing hemochromatosis, then the population frequency of the two genes would require that a high proportion of patients with hemochromatosis be heterozygous for 845A and 187G. Instead, the frequency of homozygotes for the 845A mutation was much higher than that of the 845A/187G genotype. Based on our data, the penetrance of the 845A/187G genotype is only 1.5% and based on the data of Feder et al. only 0.5%. In contrast, the penetrance of the homozygous 845A/845A genotype seems to be very high. Thus, screening for this genotype should be very useful.

Alleles↗

PubMed1996

Precise localisation of 3p25 breakpoints in four patients with the 3p-syndrome.

In patients with the 3p-syndrome, hemizygous deletion of 3p25-pter is associated with profound growth failure, characteristic facial features, and mental retardation. We performed a molecular genetic analysis of 3p25 breakpoints in four patients with the 3p- syndrome, and a fifth patient with a more complex abnormality, 46,XY,der(3)t(3;?)(p25.3;?). EBV transformed lymphoblasts from each of the patients were initially characterised using fluorescent in situ hybridisation (FISH) and polymorphic microsatellite analyses. The 3p-chromosome from each patient was isolated from the normal chromosome 3 in somatic cell hybrid lines and subsequently analysed with polymorphic and monomorphic PCR amplifiable markers from 3p25. The analysis clearly shows that all five breakpoints are distinct. Furthermore, we have identified yeast artificial chromosomes that cross the 3p25 breakpoints of all four 3p-patients. Two of the patients were deleted for the von Hippel-Lindau (VHL) tumour suppressor gene, although neither has yet developed evidence of VHL disease. The patient with the most centromeric breakpoint, between D3S1585 and D3S1263, had the most severe clinical phenotype including an endocardial cushion defect that was not observed in any of the four patients who had more telomeric breakpoints. This study should provide useful insights into critical regions within 3p25 that are involved in normal human growth and development.

Abnormalities, Multiple↗

PubMed1994

Anonymous marker loci within 400 kb of HLA-A generate haplotypes in linkage disequilibrium with the hemochromatosis gene (HFE)

The hemochromatosis gene (HFE) maps to 6p21.3 and is less than 1 cM from the HLA class I genes; however, the precise physical location of the gene has remained elusive and controversial. The unambiguous identification of a crossover event within hemochromatosis families is very difficult; it is particularly hampered by the variability of the phenotypic expression as well as by the sex- and age-related penetrance of the disease. For these practical considerations, traditional linkage analysis could prove of limited value in further refining the extrapolated physical position of HFE. We therefore embarked upon a linkage-disequilibrium analysis of HFE and normal chromosomes from the Brittany population. In the present report, 66 hemochromatosis families yielding 151 hemochromatosis chromosomes and 182 normal chromosomes were RFLP-typed with a battery of probes, including two newly derived polymorphic markers from the 6.7 and HLA-F loci located 150 and 250 kb telomeric to HLA-A, respectively. The results suggest a strong peak of existing linkage disequilibrium focused within the i82-to-6.7 interval (approximately 250 kb). The zone of linkage disequilibrium is flanked by the i97 locus, positioned 30 kb proximal to i82, and the HLA-F gene, found 250 kb distal to HLA-A, markers of which display no significant association with HFE. These data support the possibility that HFE resides within the 400-kb expanse of DNA between i97 and HLA-F. Alternatively, the very tight association of HLA-A3 and allele 1 of the 6.7 locus, both of which are comprised by the major ancestral or founder HFE haplotype in Brittany, supports the possibility that the disease gene may reside immediately telomeric to the 6.7 locus within the linkage-disequilibrium zone. Additionally, hemochromatosis haplotypes possessing HLA-A11 and the low-frequency HLA-F polymorphism (allele 2) are supportive of a separate founder chromosome containing a second, independently arising mutant allele. Overall, the establishment of a likely "hemochromatosis critical region" centromeric boundary and the identification of a linkage-disequilibrium zone both significantly contribute to a reduction in the amount of DNA required to be searched for novel coding sequences constituting the HFE defect.

Alleles↗

PubMed1992

Familial screening for genetic haemochromatosis by means of DNA markers.

Genetic haemochromatosis (HFE) is a frequent and potentially fatal disease. Early phlebotomies may prevent complications. The recessive gene for HFE is unknown but closely linked to the HLA-A locus. No direct test for homozygosity for HFE is currently available, apart from HLA typing within the family of a patient with confirmed HFE. During a reverse genetic approach to identify the gene, we found three anonymous genomic probes (P3, P5, and I.82) derived from previously cloned YACs and physically mapped in the HLA class I region. P3 and P5 probes recognise 3 loci (P3A, P3B, P5) and I.82 one locus about 100 kb from HLA-A. Using five biallelic polymorphisms (I.82/BglII, P3B/EcoRV, P3B/PstI, P5/HindIII, P3A/PstI), we tested 198 HLA typed subjects from the families of 22 haemochromatosis patients. The information from the five polymorphisms was sufficient to identify unequivocally extended restriction haplotypes in all families. The restriction haplotypes cosegregate with the HFE allele and enable identification of genotypically identical sibs in all families studied. The linked DNA markers described in this article avoid the disadvantages of HLA serological typing and can be used in genetic counselling of HFE families.

DNA↗

PubMed1991