MedGen

Meckel syndrome, also known as Meckel-Gruber syndrome, is a severe pleiotropic autosomal recessive developmental disorder caused by dysfunction of primary cilia during early embryogenesis. There is extensive clinical variability and controversy as to the minimum diagnostic criteria. Early reports, including that of Opitz and Howe (1969) and Wright et al. (1994), stated that the classic triad of Meckel syndrome comprises (1) cystic renal disease; (2) a central nervous system malformation, most commonly occipital encephalocele; and (3) polydactyly, most often postaxial. However, based on a study of 67 patients, Salonen (1984) concluded that the minimum diagnostic criteria are (1) cystic renal disease; (2) CNS malformation, and (3) hepatic abnormalities, including portal fibrosis or ductal proliferation. In a review of Meckel syndrome, Logan et al. (2011) stated that the classic triad first described by Meckel (1822) included occipital encephalocele, cystic kidneys, and fibrotic changes to the liver. Genetic Heterogeneity of Meckel Syndrome See also MKS2 (603194), caused by mutation in the TMEM216 gene (613277) on chromosome 11q12; MKS3 (607361), caused by mutation in the TMEM67 gene (609884) on chromosome 8q; MKS4 (611134), caused by mutation in the CEP290 gene (610142) on chromosome 12q; MKS5 (611561), caused by mutation in the RPGRIP1L gene (610937) on chromosome 16q12; MKS6 (612284), caused by mutation in the CC2D2A gene (612013) on chromosome 4p15; MKS7 (267010), caused by mutation in the NPHP3 (608002) gene on chromosome 3q22; MKS8 (613885), caused by mutation in the TCTN2 gene (613846) on chromosome 12q24; MKS9 (614209), caused by mutation in the B9D1 gene (614144) on chromosome 17p11; MKS10 (614175), caused by mutation in the B9D2 gene (611951) on chromosome 19q13; MKS11 (615397), caused by mutation in the TMEM231 gene (614949) on chromosome 16q23; MKS12 (616258), caused by mutation in the KIF14 gene (611279) on chromosome 1q32; MKS13 (617562), caused by mutation in the TMEM107 gene (616183) on chromosome 17p13; and MKS14 (619879), caused by mutation in the TXNDC15 gene (617778) on chromosome 5q31. [from OMIM]

The first identified CACNA1C-related disorder, referred to as Timothy syndrome, consists of the combination of prolonged QT interval, autism, and cardiovascular malformation with syndactyly of the fingers and toes. Infrequent findings also include developmental and speech delay, seizures, and recurrent infections. With increased availability of molecular genetic testing, a wider spectrum of pathogenic variants and clinical findings associated with CACNA1C-related disorders has been recognized. Because CACNA1C is associated with calcium channel function, all individuals with a pathogenic variant in this gene are at risk for cardiac arrhythmia of a specific type. The clinical manifestations of a CACNA1C-related disorder include three phenotypes: Timothy syndrome with or without syndactyly. QT prolongation (QTc >480 ms) and arrhythmias in the absence of other syndromic features. Short QT syndrome (QTc <350 ms) or Brugada syndrome with short QT interval. These three phenotypes can be separated into two broad categories on the basis of the functional consequences of the pathogenic variants in CACNA1C: QT prolongation with or without a Timothy syndrome-associated phenotype associated with pathogenic variants inducing a gain of function at the cellular level (i.e., increased calcium current). Short QT interval with or without Brugada syndrome EKG pattern associated with pathogenic variants causing loss of function (i.e., reduced calcium current). [from GeneReviews]

Fanconi anemia (FA) is characterized by physical abnormalities, bone marrow failure, and increased risk for malignancy. Physical abnormalities, present in approximately 75% of affected individuals, include one or more of the following: short stature, abnormal skin pigmentation, skeletal malformations of the upper and/or lower limbs, microcephaly, and ophthalmic and genitourinary tract anomalies. Progressive bone marrow failure with pancytopenia typically presents in the first decade, often initially with thrombocytopenia or leukopenia. The incidence of acute myeloid leukemia is 13% by age 50 years. Solid tumors – particularly of the head and neck, skin, and genitourinary tract – are more common in individuals with FA. [from GeneReviews]

Fanconi anemia (FA) is characterized by physical abnormalities, bone marrow failure, and increased risk for malignancy. Physical abnormalities, present in approximately 75% of affected individuals, include one or more of the following: short stature, abnormal skin pigmentation, skeletal malformations of the upper and/or lower limbs, microcephaly, and ophthalmic and genitourinary tract anomalies. Progressive bone marrow failure with pancytopenia typically presents in the first decade, often initially with thrombocytopenia or leukopenia. The incidence of acute myeloid leukemia is 13% by age 50 years. Solid tumors – particularly of the head and neck, skin, and genitourinary tract – are more common in individuals with FA. [from GeneReviews]

Hermansky-Pudlak syndrome (HPS) is characterized by oculocutaneous albinism, a bleeding diathesis, and, in some individuals, pulmonary fibrosis, granulomatous colitis, or immunodeficiency. Ocular findings include reduced iris pigment with iris transillumination, reduced retinal pigment, foveal hypoplasia with significant reduction in visual acuity (usually in the range of 20/50 to 20/400), nystagmus, and increased crossing of the optic nerve fibers. Hair color ranges from white to brown; skin color ranges from white to olive and is usually a shade lighter than that of other family members. The bleeding diathesis can result in variable bruising, epistaxis, gingival bleeding, postpartum hemorrhage, colonic bleeding, and prolonged bleeding with menses or after tooth extraction, circumcision, and other surgeries. Pulmonary fibrosis, a restrictive lung disease, typically causes symptoms in the early thirties and can progress to death within a decade. Granulomatous colitis is severe in about 15% of affected individuals. Neutropenia and/or immune defects occur primarily in individuals with pathogenic variants in AP3B1 and AP3D1. [from GeneReviews]

Noonan syndrome (NS) is characterized by characteristic facies, short stature, congenital heart defect, and developmental delay of variable degree. Other findings can include broad or webbed neck, unusual chest shape with superior pectus carinatum and inferior pectus excavatum, cryptorchidism, varied coagulation defects, lymphatic dysplasias, and ocular abnormalities. Although birth length is usually normal, final adult height approaches the lower limit of normal. Congenital heart disease occurs in 50%-80% of individuals. Pulmonary valve stenosis, often with dysplasia, is the most common heart defect and is found in 20%-50% of individuals. Hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, found in 20%-30% of individuals, may be present at birth or develop in infancy or childhood. Other structural defects include atrial and ventricular septal defects, branch pulmonary artery stenosis, and tetralogy of Fallot. Up to one fourth of affected individuals have mild intellectual disability, and language impairments in general are more common in NS than in the general population. [from GeneReviews]

Congenital alveolar capillary dysplasia with misalignment of pulmonary veins (ACDMPV) is characterized histologically by failure of formation and ingrowth of alveolar capillaries that then do not make contact with alveolar epithelium, medial muscular thickening of small pulmonary arterioles with muscularization of the intraacinar arterioles, thickened alveolar walls, and anomalously situated pulmonary veins running alongside pulmonary arterioles and sharing the same adventitial sheath. Less common features include a reduced number of alveoli and a patchy distribution of the histopathologic changes. The disorder is associated with persistent pulmonary hypertension of the neonate and shows varying degrees of lability and severity (Boggs et al., 1994). Affected infants present with respiratory distress resulting from pulmonary hypertension in the early postnatal period, and the disease is uniformly fatal within the newborn period (Vassal et al., 1998). Additional features of ACDMPV include multiple congenital anomalies affecting the cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, and musculoskeletal systems, as well as disruption of the normal right-left asymmetry of intrathoracic or intraabdominal organs (Sen et al., 2004). [from OMIM]

Any familial isolated dilated cardiomyopathy in which the cause of the disease is a mutation in the MYH7 gene. [from MONDO]

WT1 disorder is characterized by congenital/infantile or childhood onset of steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome (SRNS), a progressive glomerulopathy that does not respond to standard steroid therapy. Additional common findings can include disorders of testicular development (with or without abnormalities of the external genitalia and/or müllerian structures) and Wilms tumor. Less common findings are congenital anomalies of the kidney and urinary tract (CAKUT) and gonadoblastoma. While various combinations of renal and other findings associated with a WT1 pathogenic variant were designated as certain syndromes in the past, those designations are now recognized to be part of a phenotypic continuum and are no longer clinically helpful. [from GeneReviews]

Cytochrome P450 oxidoreductase deficiency (PORD) is a disorder of steroidogenesis with a broad phenotypic spectrum including cortisol deficiency, altered sex steroid synthesis, disorders of sex development (DSD), and skeletal malformations of the Antley-Bixler syndrome (ABS) phenotype. Cortisol deficiency is usually partial, with some baseline cortisol production but failure to mount an adequate cortisol response in stress. Mild mineralocorticoid excess can be present and causes arterial hypertension, usually presenting in young adulthood. Manifestations of altered sex steroid synthesis include ambiguous genitalia/DSD in both males and females, large ovarian cysts in females, poor masculinization and delayed puberty in males, and maternal virilization during pregnancy with an affected fetus. Skeletal malformations can manifest as craniosynostosis, mid-face retrusion with proptosis and choanal stenosis or atresia, low-set dysplastic ears with stenotic external auditory canals, hydrocephalus, radiohumeral synostosis, neonatal fractures, congenital bowing of the long bones, joint contractures, arachnodactyly, and clubfeet; other anomalies observed include urinary tract anomalies (renal pelvic dilatation, vesicoureteral reflux). Cognitive impairment is of minor concern and likely associated with the severity of malformations; studies of developmental outcomes are lacking. [from GeneReviews]

Teebi hypertelorism syndrome-1 (TBHS1) is an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by hypertelorism with upslanting palpebral fissures, prominent forehead, broad and depressed nasal bridge with short nose, thick eyebrows, and widow's peak. Additional features include small broad hands with mild interdigital webbing and shawl scrotum. Umbilical malformations, cardiac defects, natal teeth, cleft lip/palate, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, and malformations of the central nervous system (ventriculomegaly, abnormal corpus callosum) have also been reported. Development is typically normal, although some patients with developmental delays have been reported (summary by Bhoj et al., 2015). Genetic Heterogeneity of Teebi Hypertelorism Syndrome Teebi hypertelorism syndrome-2 (TBHS2; 619736) is caused by mutation in the CDH11 gene (600023) on chromosome 16q21. [from OMIM]

Ritscher-Schinzel syndrome (RSS) is a clinically recognizable condition that includes the cardinal findings of craniofacial features, cerebellar defects, and cardiovascular malformations resulting in the alternate diagnostic name of 3C syndrome. Dysmorphic facial features may include brachycephaly, hypotonic face with protruding tongue, flat appearance of the face on profile view, short midface, widely spaced eyes, downslanted palpebral fissures, low-set ears with overfolding of the upper helix, smooth or short philtrum, and high or cleft palate. Affected individuals also typically have a characteristic metacarpal phalangeal profile showing a consistent wavy pattern on hand radiographs. RSS is associated with variable degrees of developmental delay and intellectual disability. Eye anomalies and hypercholesterolemia may be variably present. [from GeneReviews]

Silverman-Handmaker dyssegmental dysplasia (DDSH) is a lethal autosomal recessive skeletal dysplasia with anisospondyly and micromelia. Individuals with DDSH also have a flat face, micrognathia, cleft palate and reduced joint mobility, and frequently have an encephalocele. The endochondral growth plate is short, the calcospherites (spherical calcium-phosphorus crystals produced by hypertrophic chondrocytes) are unfused, and there is mucoid degeneration of the resting cartilage (summary by Arikawa-Hirasawa et al., 2001). [from OMIM]

Van Maldergem syndrome is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by intellectual disability, typical craniofacial features, auditory malformations resulting in hearing loss, and skeletal and limb malformations. Some patients have renal hypoplasia. Brain MRI typically shows periventricular nodular heterotopia (summary by Cappello et al., 2013). For a discussion of genetic heterogeneity of Van Maldergem syndrome, see 601390. [from OMIM]

Au-Kline syndrome is characterized by developmental delay and hypotonia with moderate-to-severe intellectual disability, and typical facial features that include long palpebral fissures, ptosis, shallow orbits, large and deeply grooved tongue, broad nose with a wide nasal bridge, and downturned mouth. There is frequently variable autonomic dysfunction (gastrointestinal dysmotility, high pain threshold, heat intolerance, recurrent fevers, abnormal sweating). Congenital heart disease, hydronephrosis, palate abnormalities, and oligodontia are also reported in the majority of affected individuals. Additional complications can include craniosynostosis, feeding difficulty, vision issues, osteopenia, and other skeletal anomalies. [from GeneReviews]

PACS1 neurodevelopmental disorder (PACS1-NDD) is characterized by mild-to-severe neurodevelopmental delays. Language skills are more severely affected than motor skills. Hypotonia is reported in about a third of individuals and is noted to improve over time. Approximately 60% of individuals are ambulatory. Feeding difficulty is common, with 25% requiring gastrostomy tube to maintain appropriate caloric intake. Other common features include constipation, seizures, behavioral issues, congenital heart anomalies, short stature, and microcephaly. Common facial features include hypertelorism, downslanting palpebral fissures, bulbous nasal tip, low-set and simple ears, smooth philtrum, wide mouth with downturned corners, thin upper vermilion, and wide-spaced teeth. To date approximately 35 individuals with PACS1-NDD have been reported. [from GeneReviews]

A rare, syndromic diabetes mellitus characterized by partial pancreatic agenesis, diabetes mellitus, and heart anomalies (including transposition of the great vessels, ventricular or atrial septal defects, pulmonary stenosis, or patent ductus arteriosis). [from ORDO]

Coffin-Siris syndrome (CSS) is classically characterized by aplasia or hypoplasia of the distal phalanx or nail of the fifth and additional digits, developmental or cognitive delay of varying degree, distinctive facial features, hypotonia, hirsutism/hypertrichosis, and sparse scalp hair. Congenital anomalies can include malformations of the cardiac, gastrointestinal, genitourinary, and/or central nervous systems. Other findings commonly include feeding difficulties, slow growth, ophthalmologic abnormalities, and hearing impairment. [from GeneReviews]

Emanuel syndrome is characterized by pre- and postnatal growth deficiency, microcephaly, hypotonia, severe developmental delays, ear anomalies, preauricular tags or pits, cleft or high-arched palate, congenital heart defects, kidney abnormalities, and genital abnormalities in males. [from GeneReviews]

Van den Ende-Gupta syndrome (VDEGS) is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by severe contractual arachnodactyly from birth and distinctive facial dysmorphism, including triangular face, malar hypoplasia, narrow nose, everted lips, and blepharophimosis. Skeletal anomalies include slender ribs, hooked clavicles, and dislocated radial head. There is no neurologic involvement (summary by Patel et al., 2014). [from OMIM]