Domain-specific mutations in TGFB1 result in Camurati-Engelmann disease

Camurati-Engelmann disease (CED, MIM 131300) is an autosomal dominant, progressive diaphyseal dysplasia characterized by hyperosteosis and sclerosis of the diaphyses of long bones. We recently assigned the CED locus to an interval between D19S422 and D19S606 at chromosome 19q13.1-q13.3, which two other groups confirmed. As the human transforming growth factor-1 gene (TGFB1) is located within this interval, we considered it a candidate gene for CED.     

Meta-analysis identifies 29 additional ulcerative colitis risk loci, increasing the number of confirmed associations to 47

Genome-wide association studies and candidate gene studies in ulcerative colitis have identified 18 susceptibility loci. We conducted a meta-analysis of six ulcerative colitis genome-wide association study datasets, comprising 6,687 cases and 19,718 controls, and followed up the top association signals in 9,628 cases and 12,917 controls. We identified 29 additional risk loci (P < 5 × 10(-8)), increasing the number of ulcerative colitis-associated loci to 47. After annotating associated regions using GRAIL, expression quantitative trait loci data and correlations with non-synonymous SNPs, we identified many candidate genes that provide potentially important insights into disease pathogenesis, including IL1R2, IL8RA-IL8RB, IL7R, IL12B, DAP, PRDM1, JAK2, IRF5, GNA12 and LSP1. The total number of confirmed inflammatory bowel disease risk loci is now 99, including a minimum of 28 shared association signals between Crohn's disease and ulcerative colitis.     

Common variants near MBNL1 and NKX2-5 are associated with infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis

Infantile hypertrophic pyloric stenosis (IHPS) is a severe condition characterized by hypertrophy of the pyloric sphincter muscle. We conducted a genome-wide association study (GWAS) on 1,001 surgery-confirmed cases and 2,401 controls from Denmark. The six most strongly associated loci were tested in a replication set of 796 cases and 876 controls. Three SNPs reached genome-wide significance. One of these SNPs, rs11712066 (odds ratio (OR) = 1.61; P = 1.5 × 10(-17)) at 3p25.1, is located 150 kb upstream of MBNL1, which encodes a factor that regulates splicing transitions occurring shortly after birth. The second SNP, rs573872 (OR = 1.41; P = 4.3 × 10(-12)), maps to an intergenic region at 3p25.2 approximately 1.3 Mb downstream of MBNL1. The third SNP, rs29784 (OR = 1.42; P = 1.5 × 10(-15)) at 5q35.2, is 64 kb downstream of NKX2-5, which is involved in development of cardiac muscle tissue and embryonic gut development.     

Genome-wide meta-analyses of nonsyndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate identify six new risk loci

We have conducted the first meta-analyses for nonsyndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate (NSCL/P) using data from the two largest genome-wide association studies published to date. We confirmed associations with all previously identified loci and identified six additional susceptibility regions (1p36, 2p21, 3p11.1, 8q21.3, 13q31.1 and 15q22). Analysis of phenotypic variability identified the first specific genetic risk factor for NSCLP (nonsyndromic cleft lip plus palate) (rs8001641; P(NSCLP) = 6.51 × 10(-11); homozygote relative risk = 2.41, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.84-3.16).     

Genome-wide meta-analysis increases to 71 the number of confirmed Crohn's disease susceptibility loci

We undertook a meta-analysis of six Crohn's disease genome-wide association studies (GWAS) comprising 6,333 affected individuals (cases) and 15,056 controls and followed up the top association signals in 15,694 cases, 14,026 controls and 414 parent-offspring trios. We identified 30 new susceptibility loci meeting genome-wide significance (P < 5 × 10??). A series of in silico analyses highlighted particular genes within these loci and, together with manual curation, implicated functionally interesting candidate genes including SMAD3, ERAP2, IL10, IL2RA, TYK2, FUT2, DNMT3A, DENND1B, BACH2 and TAGAP. Combined with previously confirmed loci, these results identify 71 distinct loci with genome-wide significant evidence for association with Crohn's disease.     

Colour and size reveal hidden diversity of Necturus (Caudata: Proteidae) from the Gulf Coastal Plain of the United States

ABSTRACT

Recent data from the mitochondrial genome reveal six lineages of Gulf Coast Waterdogs traditionally classified as Necturus beyeri. Here, we use patterns of colour and body size, along with previously published data, to reveal a large, heavily spotted phenotype with an unstriped larva possessing numerous white spots; we re-describe N. beyeri to correspond to this phenotype. We also reveal a small, weakly spotted phenotype possessing an unstriped larva lacking numerous white spots. This phenotype characterises the Apalachicola and Escambia lineages, which current evidence suggests are paraphyletic. We reject taxonomies that place these two lineages in N. lodingi because the type specimen of this species appears to be a melanistic member of N. beyeri. Therefore, we describe the Apalachicola and Escambia lineages as independent new species.

http://ww.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:C8508CCB-F54F-4DC8-B61D-56966A3F1CC8

http://www.zoobank.org/urn:lsid:zoobank.org:act:F044B2CC-55F0-4FFA-A312-9CAD9E73CD69     

Structural diversity in binary nanoparticle superlattices

Assembly of small building blocks such as atoms, molecules and nanoparticles into macroscopic structures--that is, 'bottom up' assembly--is a theme that runs through chemistry, biology and material science. Bacteria, macromolecules and nanoparticles can self-assemble, generating ordered structures with a precision that challenges current lithographic techniques. The assembly of nanoparticles of two different materials into a binary nanoparticle superlattice (BNSL) can provide a general and inexpensive path to a large variety of materials (metamaterials) with precisely controlled chemical composition and tight placement of the components. Maximization of the nanoparticle packing density has been proposed as the driving force for BNSL formation, and only a few BNSL structures have been predicted to be thermodynamically stable. Recently, colloidal crystals with micrometre-scale lattice spacings have been grown from oppositely charged polymethyl methacrylate spheres. Here we demonstrate formation of more than 15 different BNSL structures, using combinations of semiconducting, metallic and magnetic nanoparticle building blocks. At least ten of these colloidal crystalline structures have not been reported previously. We demonstrate that electrical charges on sterically stabilized nanoparticles determine BNSL stoichiometry; additional contributions from entropic, van der Waals, steric and dipolar forces stabilize the variety of BNSL structures.     

Co-adjuvant effects of retinoic acid and IL-15 induce inflammatory immunity to dietary antigens

Under physiological conditions the gut-associated lymphoid tissues not only prevent the induction of a local inflammatory immune response, but also induce systemic tolerance to fed antigens. A notable exception is coeliac disease, where genetically susceptible individuals expressing human leukocyte antigen (HLA) HLA-DQ2 or HLA-DQ8 molecules develop inflammatory T-cell and antibody responses against dietary gluten, a protein present in wheat. The mechanisms underlying this dysregulated mucosal immune response to a soluble antigen have not been identified. Retinoic acid, a metabolite of vitamin A, has been shown to have a critical role in the induction of intestinal regulatory responses. Here we find in mice that in conjunction with IL-15, a cytokine greatly upregulated in the gut of coeliac disease patients, retinoic acid rapidly activates dendritic cells to induce JNK (also known as MAPK8) phosphorylation and release the proinflammatory cytokines IL-12p70 and IL-23. As a result, in a stressed intestinal environment, retinoic acid acted as an adjuvant that promoted rather than prevented inflammatory cellular and humoral responses to fed antigen. Altogether, these findings reveal an unexpected role for retinoic acid and IL-15 in the abrogation of tolerance to dietary antigens.