ObjectiveTo reveal the pathogenic mutation in a three-generation Chinese family with autosomal dominant familial exudative vitreoretinopathy (FEVR). MethodsThree patients and a healthy spouse from the index family with FEVR were recruited. The proband was a 5 years old boy. His mother and grandpa were presented with typical FEVR presentations, while his father with normal ocular fundus. DNA was extracted from peripheral blood samples taken from all four participants. All coding and exon-intron boundary regions of five targeted genes, including NDP, FZD4, LRP5, TSPAN12 and ZNF408 were amplified with polymerase chain reaction and sequenced using direct sequencing. In silico analyses were applied to determine the conservation of the mutation site, pathogenic effect and the potential protein crystal structural changes caused by the mutation. ResultsFZD4 c.478G > A, a susceptible mutation was found after four high frequency mutation sites which MAF values were higher than 0.001 was filtered among 5 single nucleotide variations detected in four participants, leading to the residue 160 changing from glutamate to lysine (p.E160K). Co-segregation analysis between genotypes and phenotypes revealed FZD4 p.E160K as the disease-causing mutation for this family. Conservational analysis suggested that this mutation site was highly conserved among all tested species. Functional analysis predicated that this mutation may be a damaging mutation. Crystal structural analysis also indicated that this mutation could lead to the elimination of the hydrogen bond between residue 160 and asparagine at residue 152, thus altering the tertiary structure of the protein and further impairing the protein function. ConclusionOur study demonstrates FZD4 p.E160K as a novel pathogenic mutation for FEVR.
The clinical manifestations of infectious retinal diseases are complicated, especially these result from serious infectious diseases such as acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), tuberculosis and syphilis infections. It is an important issue to differentiate infectious retinal disease from noninfectious intraocular inflammation in the clinic. It is, therefore, highly desirable to follow a proper steps to reach the correct diagnosis. Complete history review and comprehensive ocular examination remains the first step in diagnosing infectious retinal diseases. Although an array of laboratory and serological tests are available to assist in the diagnosis, some situations may require a diagnostic therapy or a tissue biopsy. Identification of the pathogen and histopathologic examination of the ocular specimen remain to be the gold standard of diagnosis. Initiation a specific and appropriate antimicrobial therapy needs multidisciplinary collaborations including ophthalmologists and infectious specialists. Updated knowledge of general medicine and management of infectious diseases, interdisciplinary collaborations and optimization of treatment processes will improve the diagnosis and treatment of retinal infectious diseases in the future.
Objective To observe the retinal manifestations and classification of mitochondrial encephalomyopathy，and explore the relationship between retinopathy and systemic manifestations.Method The clinical data of 88 inpatients with mitochondrial encephalomyopathy were retrospectively analyzed，in whom 12 patients（24 eyes）with retinal manifestations who diagnosed by ophthalmology consultation and complete medical records were collected. There were nine males and three females aged from 14 to 33 years with the mean age of（20.1±7.0）years. The disease duration ranged from 2.5 to 20 years，with the mean of（9.5±6.8）years. All the patients had the eye symptoms of the different degree，such as limbs weakness，hearing decline and central nervous system symptoms. Ophthalmologic examination including best corrected visual acuity，slit lampa microscope，indirect ophthalmoscopy，noncontact Tonometer，ptosis，ocular movement，pupillary reflex and color fundus photography. Among the patients，three，one，two and five patients had undergone fundus fluorescein angiography（FFA），optical coherence tomography（OCT），lectroretinogram（ERG）and visual field examination respectively. Diabetic retinopathy were divided into “salt and pepper”， retinitis pigmentosa（RP），retinal pigment epithelium（RPE），choroidal capillary atrophy and simplex optic atrophy according to the inspection results.Results All the patients′ both eyes were involved，the disease degree of bilateral eyes was accordant. The ptosis and（or）eye movement limitation were found in nine patients（75.0%），and decreased visual acuity was in six patients（50.0%）.“Salt and pepper” was found in six patients（12 eyes），presenting retinal granular pigmentation and depigmentation；the visual acuity was 0.4-1.2；no central nervous system symptoms were found in patients，such as hearing decline，twitch，ataxia and hypophrenia. RP was found in one patient（two eyes），presenting retinal cells sample pigmentation，retinal vessel shrink，optic atrophy；the vision were light perception in both eyes；hypophrenia，hearing decline，bilateral lower limbs pain and onset twitch were also found in them. RPE and choroidal capillary atrophy were found in three patients（six eyes），the choroidal great vessels and flake pigment accumulation surrounding the retina were observed；the visual acuity was hand movement0.7；limbs weakness was found in two patients；hearing decline was found in three patients；barylalia and hypophrenia were found in two patients；somnolence was found in one patient. Simplex optic atrophy was found in two patients（four eyes）；the vision was 0.1-0.7；central nervous system symptoms were found in patients，such as limbs weakness，twitch，hypophrenia and headache.Conclusion Retinopathy types is concerned with visual prognosis and central nervous system symptoms.