1,721,160 research outputs found

    Factor XI deficiency

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    Severe factor XI (FXI) deficiency is an injury-related bleeding disorder, common in Ashkenazi Jews and rare worldwide. In the last 2 decades more than 180 mutations in the FXI gene have been reported in patients with FXI deficiency, 5 of which showing a founder effect (Cys38Arg, Gln88Stop, Cys128Stop, Glu117stop, and Phe283Leu, the last two largely prevalent among Ashkenazi Jews). Inhibitors to FXI were described in patients with mutations resulting in null alleles, following exposure to plasma, FXI concentrates, or Rh immunoglobulin. Treatment with low dose recombinant activated factor VII in these patients seems promising. Survival advantages to patients with severe FXI have been recently reported. Herein, we present new observations related to clinic presentation, genotype-phenotype correlation, and treatment problems in patients with FXI deficiency

    Mutations in disguise

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    The molecular basis of quantitative fibrinogen disorders

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    Hereditary fibrinogen disorders include type I deficiencies (afibrinogenemia and hypofibrinogenemia, i.e. quantitative defects), with low or unmeasurable levels of immunoreactive protein; and type II deficiencies (dysfibrinogenemia and hypodysfibrinogenemia, i.e. qualitative defects), showing normal or altered antigen levels associated with reduced coagulant activity. While dysfibrinogenemias are in most cases autosomal dominant disorders, type I deficiencies are generally inherited as autosomal recessive traits. Patients affected by congenital afibrinogenemia or severe hypofibrinogenemia may experience bleeding manifestations varying from mild to severe. This review focuses on the genetic bases of type I fibrinogen deficiencies, which are invariantly represented by mutations within the three fibrinogen genes (FGA, FGB, and FGG) coding for the three polypeptide chains Aalpha, Bbeta, and gamma. From the inspection of the mutational spectrum of these disorders, some conclusions can be drawn: (i) genetic defects are scattered throughout the three fibrinogen genes, with only few sites appearing to represent relative mutational hot spots; (ii) several different types of genetic lesions and pathogenic mechanisms have been described in affected individuals (including gross deletions, point mutations causing premature termination codons, missense mutations affecting fibrinogen assembly/secretion, and uniparental isodisomy associated with a large deletion); (iii) the possibility to express recombinant fibrinogen mutants in eukaryotic cells is rapidly shedding light into the molecular mechanisms responsible for physiologic and pathologic properties of the molecule; (iv) though mutation analysis of the fibrinogen cluster does not yield precise information for predicting genotype/phenotype correlations, it still provides a valuable tool for diagnosis confirmation, identification of potential carriers, and prenatal diagnosis

    Recessively inherited coagulation disorders

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    Deficiencies of coagulation factors other than factor VIII and factor IX that cause bleeding disorders are inherited as autosomal recessive traits and are rare, with prevalences in the general population varying between 1 in 500 000 and 1 in 2 million for the homozygous forms. As a consequence of the rarity of these deficiencies, the type and severity of bleeding symptoms, the underlying molecular defects, and the actual management of bleeding episodes are not as well established as for hemophilia A and B. We investigated more than 1000 patients with recessively inherited coagulation disorders from Italy and Iran, a country with a high rate of recessive diseases due to the custom of consanguineous marriages. Based upon this experience, this article reviews the genetic basis, prevalent clinical manifestations, and management of these disorders. The steps and actions necessary to improve the condition of these often neglected patients are outlined

    Identificazione di una nuova mutazione X-linked : il ruolo della next generation sequencing nella ricerca dei geni della sordità

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    Nuove strade si aprono per la ricerca dei geni della sordità con la next generation sequencing: identificazione di una nuova mutazione X-linked

    Coagulation factor V

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    The coagulation cascade involves sequential enzymatic activations of serine protease zymogens that converge on the generation of thrombin. Factor V (FV) takes part in this process as a component of the prothrombinase complex. Besides its role as procoagulant factor, it is also involved in the physiologic anticoagulant pathway, by participating in the inactivation of activated factor VIII (FVIIIa). Given the dual role of FV, genetic defects in FV gene may result in opposite hemorrhagic or thrombotic phenotypes. This review focuses on the structure, function (procoagulant and anticoagulant), regulation (activation and inactivation) of FV as well as on the genetic defects associated with mutations in the FV gene

    Inherited defects of coagulation factor V : the hemorrhagic side

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    Coagulation factor V (FV) is the protein cofactor required in vivo for the rapid generation of thrombin catalyzed by the prothrombinase complex. It also represents a central regulator in the early phases of blood clot formation, as it contributes to the anticoagulant pathway by participating in the downregulation of factor VIII activity. Conversion of precursor FV to either a procoagulant or anticoagulant cofactor depends on the local concentration of procoagulant and anticoagulant enzymes, so that FV may be regarded as a daring tight-rope walker gently balancing opposite forces. Given this dual role, genetic defects in the FV gene may result in opposite phenotypes (hemorrhagic or thrombotic). Besides a concise description on the structural, procoagulant and anticoagulant properties of FV, this review will focus on bleeding disorders associated with altered levels of this molecule. Particular attention will be paid to the mutational spectrum of type I FV deficiency, which is characterized by a remarkable genetic heterogeneity and by an uneven distribution of mutations throughout the FV gene

    Molecular genetics of quantitative fibrinogen disorders

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    Fibrinogen is a complex glycoprotein involved in the final step of the coagulation cascade as the precursor of fibrin monomers that participate in the formation of the haemostatic plug. Three genes (FGA, FGB, and FGG) clustered on chromosome 4q31.3-4q32.1 encode the three polypeptide chains (Aalpha, Bbeta, and gamma), which in a pairwise fashion form the hexameric circulating molecule. Among congenital fibrinogen deficiencies, quantitative defects (also called type I deficiencies; i.e. congenital afibrino-genemia [CAF] and hypofibrinogenemia) are characterized by the concomitant absence or reduction of coagulant activity and immunoreactive protein, while qualitative defects (type II deficiencies; i.e. dysfibrinogenemia and hypodysfibrino-genemia) show low clotting protein in contrast with normal or moderately reduced antigen. Patients affected by CAF (Mendelian Inheritance in Man, [MIM] #202400) or severe hypofibrinogenemia (MIM+134820, *134830, and *134850) may experience bleeding manifestations varying from mild to catastrophic. Although many cases of fibrinogen deficiencies have been described from a clinical point of view, only in a minority of cases the causal mutation was identified. The genetic defects so far described, most unique for any analyzed family, are invariantly located in the fibrinogen cluster; for only few of them the pathogenic role either at the protein or at the mRNA level has been investigated. This review, besides providing a concise description of the main structural and functional properties of fibrinogen and giving an overview of the clinical manifestations, the laboratory diagnosis and therapeutic approches, will be focused on the present knowledge on the genetic basis of quantitative fibrinogen deficiencies. Our systematic analysis of the available clinical and genetic data on these disorders evidences their high allelic heterogeneity, the existence of different pathogenic mechanisms, and the absence of strong genotype/phenotype correlations
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