Table of Contents

Volume 2,Issue 3

Open Access Original Research

Molecular Cytogenetic Characterization of Two Murine Colorectal Cancer Cell Lines

Received: 30 July 2018;  Published: 19 September 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803037

Abstract

(1) Background: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third most common cancer in human and the fourth leading cause of adult man’s death. Murine tumor cell lines have been established as a model system for CRC, but their cytogenetic properties have so far been only poorly understood. (2) Methods: The two murine colon tumor cell lines CMT-93 and CT26 (also called CT26.WT, CT-26 or CT-26 WT) were investigated in this study by molecular cytogenetic methods, i.e. by multicolor-fluorescence in situ hybridi [...]

Open Access Review

Histone O-GlcNAcylation and Potential Biological Functions

Received: 05 July 2018;  Published: 17 September 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803036

Abstract

Histone modifications play an important role in the control of all DNA-based processes by altering the structure and function of chromatin. An O-linked N-acetylglucosamine (O-GlcNAc) modification is a type of post-translational modification of proteins, and gets attached to serine (Ser)/threonine (Thr) residues under the control of a sole pair of enzymes, i.e. O-GlcNAc transferase (OGT) and O-GlcNAcase (OGA). Recent evidence indicates that histone modifications include the O-GlcNAc modification. [...]

Open Access Case Report

Identification of a Small Supernumerary Marker Chromosome Involving 11p14.1q12.1 in a Prenatal Case: Clinical and Molecular Characterization

Received: 30 May 2018;  Published: 16 September 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803035

Abstract

Background: Small supernumerary marker chromosomes (sSMC) are structurally abnormal chromosomes, and their characterization exclusively by banding cytogenetics is almost impossible. Multicolor fluorescence in situ hybridization approaches for their characterization are effective but expensive and time-consuming. Recently, the application of molecular karyotyping has resulted in improving the characterization of sSMC. Methods: Molecular karyotyping was used for the identification of a sSMC in thi [...]

Open Access Editorial

Introduction to the Special Issue on Next Generation Sequencing: Short General Overview of NGS

Received: 14 August 2018;  Published: 13 September 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803034

Abstract

he publication of the double helix DNA structure in 1953 [1] was the kick-off of numerous efforts to understand and unravel the complexity of the human genome. It took 50 years until the human genome project, based on Sanger sequencing, was completed in 2003 [2]. This was followed by what may be considered a revolution in the field of DNA analysis: the introduction of Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) in 2005 consisting of massively parallel sequencing of DNA fragments which allows the high throu [...]

Open Access Case Report

sSMC Characterization in a Male with Turner Syndrome Stigmata

Received: 23 March 2018;  Published: 07 September 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803033

Abstract

Background: Small supernumerary marker chromosomes (sSMC) are rare cytogenetic findings in general, but especially in Turner syndrome so called sSMCT in a karyotype 46,X,mar are even more scarce. According to the literature sSMCT are derived from one of the Y-chromosome in ~70% of the cases. Thus, to identify potentially present Y-chromosomal material cases is imperative, since these cases have an increased risk of gonadoblastoma deriving from the streak gonads. Methods: A 24-year-old short stat [...]

Open Access Review

Epigenetics of IgA Nephropathy: A Brief Review

Received: 27 May 2018;  Published: 06 September 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803032

Abstract

Immunoglobin A Nephropathy (IgAN) is the most common primary glomerulonephritis worldwide. Its development is characterized by the deposition of immune complexes that consist of abnormally galactozylated IgA1 molecules and IgG or IgA autoantibodies in the mesangium and the subsequent induction of renal injury. Recent research has shed light to many aspects of the pathogenesis of the disease, including the contribution of epigenetic modifications in its onset and progression. This review aims to [...]

Open Access Review

Uniparental Disomy and Imprinting Disorders

Received: 28 June 2018;  Published: 30 August 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803031

Abstract

Uniparental disomy (UPD), the inheritance of both homologues of a chromosome from only one parent, has been reported for nearly all human chromosomes. Depending on its mode of formation and time of occurrence, UPD can be present in all cells of an organism, or restricted to some cell lines as a mosaic UPD. Though its general frequency is unknown, it becomes clinically relevant when it produces homozygosity for recessive pathogenic variations, or is associated with chromosomal imbalances; but it [...]

Open Access Review

Prospects for Cure in Wilson Disease

Received: 18 July 2018;  Published: 22 August 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803030

Abstract

Wilson Disease is a monogenetic disorder of copper metabolism affecting the ATP7B gene. Treatment is lifelong and focuses on removal of copper to arrest disease progression and improve the clinical manifestations of copper toxicity. Currently the only cure is replacement of ATP7B in hepatocytes by liver transplantation, however, lifelong monitoring and immunosuppressive medications are still needed. The possibility of introducing functional ATP7B gene through gene therapy provides an exciting p [...]

Open Access Original Research

New Insights into the Epigenetic Activities of Natural Compounds

Received: 30 May 2018;  Published: 16 August 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803029

Abstract

Background: With their varied pharmacophores, natural products are interesting tools to open the drug discovery pipeline. Several plant secondary metabolites belong to our diet and have conflictual documented epigenetic activities which need clarification. Methods: Seventy-one different natural products plus 17 controls were assembled for screening. First localized DNA methylation (DNAm) was studied on a stretch of the Retinoic Acid Receptor geneRAR followed then by a wider measure of al [...]

Open Access Opinion

Runs of Homozygosity and Epigenetic Deregulation of Genomic Imprinting

Received: 29 May 2018;  Published: 15 August 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803028

Abstract

Runs of homozygosity (ROH) are uninterrupted continuous regions within the genome exhibiting allelic homozygosity (identical alleles are inherited from each parent). Genome-wide analyses consistently evidence that megabase-scale ROH are ubiquitous in humans reflecting individual demographic history. The number and length of ROH increasingly correlate with degree of consanguinity and are likely to be associated with genetic diseases both in inbred and outbred individuals. It is noteworthy that th [...]

Open Access Original Research

Newborn Screening Programs: Next Generation Ethical and Social Issues

Received: 19 October 2017;  Published: 14 August 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803027

Abstract

Although newborn screening programs are among the ten most important public health achievements, a number of ethical, legal and social issues have emerged. Notably, the number of diseases screened; consent and notification processes; sample, retention; and potentially secondary use of residual blood spots are now contested. In addition, newborn screening programs are also facing one of the biggest challenges, the arrival of next-generation sequencing technologies, such as whole genome sequencing [...]

Open Access Original Research

Epigenetic Symmetry of DLGAP2: Pre-Implantation Maternal Methylation Switches to a Random Monoallelic Profile in Somatic Tissues

Received: 29 May 2018;  Published: 29 July 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803026

Abstract

- Background Symmetric DNA methylation profiles of autosomal genes is associated with equal expression from both alleles. Genes with an allelic imbalance or monoallelic expression are associated with discrete intervals of allele-specific methylation (ASM), as highlighted by genomic imprinting, X-chromosome inactivation and genotype-driven ASM. However, a more complex pattern has been described in which random monoallelic methylation provides cells a unique mechanism for modulating allelic dosage [...]

Open Access Review

Experimental DNA- or RNA-Directed Therapies for Trinucleotide Repeat Disease

Received: 17 April 2018;  Published: 27 July 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803025

Abstract

Dynamic mutations involve expansion of the number of repeat units consisting of three or more nucleotides in tandem (i.e., adjacent to one another), present in a gene or in its neighborhood. Depending on expansion size, unaffected individuals can be carriers of a pre-mutation. Instability of triplet repeats can lead to gradual expansion through generations and accumulation of a certain number of repeats can lead to the consequent development of disease. The increase in the number of triplet repe [...]

Open Access Review

To Opt or Not to Opt for Preimplantation and/or Prenatal Genetic Testing?

Received: 05 June 2018;  Published: 23 July 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803024

Abstract

Both preimplantation genetic testing and prenatal testing are powerful tools to tackle the transmission of inherited disorders in families carrying the diseases from generation to generation. This article presents an overview of the current landscape of both methods and identifies the pros and cons of each of these reproductive options.

Open Access Review

Unusual Ways to Lose a Y Chromosome and Survive with Changed Autosomes: a Story of Mole Voles Ellobius (Mammalia, Rodentia)

Received: 16 May 2018;  Published: 22 July 2018;  doi: 10.21926/obm.genet.1803023

Abstract

When does reproduction start? An old question of the chicken and the egg is even more complicated in relation to mole voles Ellobius. First, ‘chicken’ should be a female, and males are obviously involved in reproduction too because zygote is a result of sperm and oocyte fusion. But nobody knows how males appear in Ellobius lacking the Y chromosome and key testis-determining Sry gene (X0♂/X0♀ or XX♂/XX♀). Second, it is unclear, how balanced gametes form in complex heterozygous hybrids, whose pare [...]

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