Anti-SMC1 polyclonal antibody [Agarose]

Background: Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CdLS) is a rare congenital syndrome with no racial difference. The objective of this study is to report the clinical characteristics and genetic study of 20 CdLS cases from China. Methods: This is an observational study. Suspected patients were referred for further confirmation, clinical treatment, and genetic testing under voluntary condition. Demographic data and family history, data of clinical manifestations including facial dysmorphism and developmental delay of each patient were collected. Chromosomal analysis and NIPBL/SMC1A/SMC3 gene mutational analysis were carried out by PCR, reverse transcription PCR direct sequencing in the probands, and SNP array to detect the genome-wide copy number variations. Results: Twenty CdLS cases from China were included in this study. Facial dysmorphisms, feeding difficulties, and developmental delay were the major clinical manifestations. Seven patients underwent gene mutation tests. Both the SMC1A and SMC3 gene mutation tests were negative in all. A heterozygous mutation in exon 20 of the NIPBL gene in proband 2, and a heterozygous mutation in intron 38 of the NIPBL gene in proband 3 were found in 1 patient, and RT-PCR revealed a splicing mutation in exon 38, generating both normal transcript and an aberrant alternatively spliced transcript with exon 38 deletion. Conclusions: Clinical manifestations of CdLS patients from China are similar to those in the other countries. Heterozygous mutations of NIPBL gene were found.

Cornelia de Lange syndrome (CdLS) is a rare, genetically heterogeneous multisystem developmental disorder with a high degree of variability in its clinical presentation. Approximately 65% of probands harbor mutations in genes that encode core components (SMC1A, SMC3, and RAD21) or regulators (NIPBL, HDAC8) of the cohesin complex, of which mutations in NIPBL are the most common. Cohesin plays a canonical role in sister chromatid cohesion during cell division and non-canonical roles in DNA repair, stem cell maintenance and differentiation, and regulation of gene expression. Disruption of the latter role seems to be the major contributor to the underlying molecular pathogenesis of CdLS. NIPBL is required for loading and unloading the cohesin complex onto chromosomes. The expression levels of NIPBL itself appear to be tightly regulated and highly evolutionarily conserved. Droplet digital PCR was used to quantify NIPBL mRNA expression levels with high precision from a cohort of 37 samples (NIPBL, SMC1A, SMC3, and HDAC8 mutation positive probands and negative control). Probands with severe forms of CdLS or severe mutation types were found to have lower levels of NIPBL in comparison to phenotypically milder patients and controls. Levels of NIPBL also correlated with the presence of mutations in different CdLS-causing genes. The data suggests that NIPBL levels are closely correlated with the severity of CdLS and with specific causative genes and types of mutations. ddPCR may provide a tool to assist in diagnostic approaches to CdLS, for genetic counseling and prognosis, and for monitoring potential therapeutic modalities in the future. (C) 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.