Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UMLS:C0025362 (mental retardation)
 15,878 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Cardio-facio-cutaneous (CFC) syndrome is characterized by a distinctive facial appearance, heart defects and mental retardation. It phenotypically overlaps with Noonan and Costello syndrome, which are caused by mutations in PTPN11 and HRAS, respectively. In 43 individuals with CFC, we identified two heterozygous KRAS mutations in three individuals and eight BRAF mutations in 16 individuals, suggesting that dysregulation of the RAS-RAF-ERK pathway is a common molecular basis for the three related disorders.
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PMID:Germline KRAS and BRAF mutations in cardio-facio-cutaneous syndrome. 1647 4

Cardio-facio-cutaneous (CFC) syndrome is a multiple congenital anomaly/mental retardation syndrome characterized by heart defects, a distinctive facial appearance, ectodermal abnormalities and mental retardation. Clinically, it overlaps with both Noonan syndrome and Costello syndrome, which are caused by mutations in two genes, PTPN11 and HRAS, respectively. Recently, we identified mutations in KRAS and BRAF in 19 of 43 individuals with CFC syndrome, suggesting that dysregulation of the RAS/RAF/MEK/ERK pathway is a molecular basis for CFC syndrome. The purpose of this study was to perform comprehensive mutation analysis in 56 patients with CFC syndrome and to investigate genotype-phenotype correlation. We analyzed KRAS, BRAF, and MAP2K1/2 (MEK1/2) in 13 new CFC patients and identified five BRAF and one MAP2K1 mutations in nine patients. We detected one MAP2K1 mutation in three patients and four new MAP2K2 mutations in four patients out of 24 patients without KRAS or BRAF mutations in the previous study [Niihori et al., 2006]. No mutations were identified in MAPK3/1 (ERK1/2) in 21 patients without any mutations. In total, 35 of 56 (62.5%) patients with CFC syndrome had mutations (3 in KRAS, 24 in BRAF, and 8 in MAP2K1/2). No significant differences in clinical manifestations were found among 3 KRAS-positive patients, 16 BRAF-positive patients, and 6 MAP2K1/2-positive patients. Wrinkled palms and soles, hyperpigmentation and joint hyperextension, which have been commonly reported in Costello syndrome but not in CFC syndrome, were observed in 30-40% of the mutation-positive CFC patients, suggesting a significant clinical overlap between these two syndromes.
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PMID:Molecular and clinical characterization of cardio-facio-cutaneous (CFC) syndrome: overlapping clinical manifestations with Costello syndrome. 1736 77

Cardio-facio-cutaneous (CFC) syndrome is a sporadic developmental disorder characterized by distinctive craniofacial features, heart defects, mental retardation and ectodermal abnormalities. We recently reported missense germline mutations in the genes MEK1 and MEK2 in patients with CFC. These mutations, including F53S and Y130C MEK1, and F57C MEK2, are the first naturally occurring mutations to be identified in these genes. This study reports data concerning the biochemical functions of the novel mutants, as well as the roles of these MEK genes in the MAPK signaling cascade. Our CFC MEK variants cannot induce ERK unless they are phosphorylated by RAF at two key serine residues in the regulatory loop. When we replaced the serine residues with alanines, ERK phosphorylation was significantly reduced in the presence of RAF. We did find that F57C MEK2 activation was less dependent on RAF signaling than the other mutants. This difference results in F57C MEK2 being resistant to the selective RAF inhibitor SB-590885. All three mutants are sensitive to the MEK inhibitor U0126. The majority of CFC cases result from mutations in B-RAF. A recent report indicates the possibility that cancer cells with activated B-RAF have enhanced, selective sensitivity to MEK inhibitors. Thus, regardless of mutations identified in an individual with CFC, MEK inhibition is a potential therapeutic approach for this population.
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PMID:Germline mutations of MEK in cardio-facio-cutaneous syndrome are sensitive to MEK and RAF inhibition: implications for therapeutic options. 1798 15

The RAS proteins and their downstream pathways play pivotal roles in cell proliferation, differentiation, survival and cell death, but their physiological roles in human development had remained unknown. Noonan syndrome, Costello syndrome, and cardio-facio-cutaneous (CFC) syndrome are autosomal dominant multiple congenital anomaly syndromes characterized by a distinctive facial appearance, heart defects, musculocutaneous abnormalities, and mental retardation. A variety of mutations in protein tyrosine phosphatase, non-receptor type 11(PTPN11) has been identified in 50% of Noonan patients. Specific mutations in PTPN11 have been identified in LEOPARD (multiple lentigines, electrocardiographic conduction abnormalities, ocular hypertelorism, pulmonary stenosis, abnormal genitalia, retardation of growth, and sensorineural deafness) syndrome. In 2005, we discovered Harvey-RAS (HRAS) germline mutations in patients with Costello syndrome. This discovery provided a clue to identification of germline mutations in Kirsten-RAS (KRAS), BRAF and mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase 1 and 2 (MAP2K1/MAP2K2) in patients with CFC syndrome. These genes encode molecules in the RAS/RAF/MEK/extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) pathway, leading to a new concept that clinically related disorders, i.e., Noonan, Costello, and CFC syndromes are caused by dysregulation of the RAS/mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. In the present review, we summarize mutations in HRAS, KRAS, BRAF, MAP2K1/2, and PTPN11, the phenotypes of patients with these mutations, the functional properties of mutants and animal models. Finally we suggest that disorders with mutations of molecules in the RAS/MAPK cascade (Noonan, LEOPARD, Costello, and CFC syndromes and neurofibromatosis type I) may be comprehensively termed "the RAS/MAPK syndromes." Details on mutations will be updated in the RAS/MAPK Syndromes Homepage (www.medgen.med.tohoku.ac.jp/RasMapk syndromes.html).
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PMID:The RAS/MAPK syndromes: novel roles of the RAS pathway in human genetic disorders. 1847 Sep 43

Costello syndrome (CS) is a rare congenital disorder characterized by failure to thrive, craniofacial dysmorphisms, cardiac and skin abnormalities, mental retardation, and predisposition to malignancies. CS is caused by heterozygous gain-of-function mutations in HRAS that also occur as somatic alterations in human tumors. HRAS is one of the three classical RAS proteins and cycles between an active, GTP- and an inactive, GDP-bound conformation. We used primary human skin fibroblasts from patients with CS as a model system to study the functional consequences of HRAS mutations on endogenous signaling pathways. The GTP-bound form of HRAS was significantly enriched in CS compared with normal fibroblasts. Active HRAS is known to stimulate both the RAF-MEK-ERK and the PI3K-AKT signaling cascade. Phosphorylation of MEK and ERK was normal in CS fibroblasts under basal conditions and slightly prolonged after epidermal growth factor (EGF) stimulation. Interestingly, basal phosphorylation of AKT was increased yet more in CS fibroblasts. Moreover, AKT phosphorylation was diminished in the early and enhanced in the late phase of EGF stimulation. Taken together, these results document that CS-associated HRAS mutations result in prolonged signal flux in a ligand-dependent manner. Our data suggest that altered cellular response to growth factors rather than constitutive activation of HRAS downstream signaling molecules may contribute to some of the clinical features in patients with CS.
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PMID:Oncogenic HRAS mutations cause prolonged PI3K signaling in response to epidermal growth factor in fibroblasts of patients with Costello syndrome. 1903 62

RASopathies are a class of developmental syndromes that result from congenital mutations in key elements of the RAS/RAF/MEK signaling pathway. A well-recognized RASopathy is the cardio-facio-cutaneous (CFC) syndrome characterized by a distinctive facial appearance, heart defects, and mental retardation. Clinically diagnosed CFC patients carry germ-line mutations in four different genes, B-RAF, MEK1, MEK2, and K-RAS. B-RAF is by far the most commonly mutated locus, displaying mutations that most often result in constitutive activation of the B-RAF kinase. Here, we describe a mouse model for CFC generated by germ-line expression of a B-RafLSLV600E allele. This targeted allele allows low levels of expression of B-RafV600E, a constitutively active B-Raf kinase first identified in human melanoma. B-Raf+/LSLV600E mice are viable and display several of the characteristic features observed in CFC patients, including reduced life span, small size, facial dysmorphism, cardiomegaly, and epileptic seizures. These mice also show up-regulation of specific catecholamines and cataracts, two features detected in a low percentage of CFC patients. In addition, B-Raf+/LSLV600E mice develop neuroendocrine tumors, a pathology not observed in CFC patients. These mice may provide a means of better understanding the pathophysiology of at least some of the clinical features present in CFC patients. Moreover, they may serve as a tool to evaluate the potential therapeutic efficacy of B-RAF inhibitors and establish the precise window at which they could be effective against this congenital syndrome.
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PMID:Constitutive activation of B-Raf in the mouse germ line provides a model for human cardio-facio-cutaneous syndrome. 2138 53