• Clinical and Experimental Pediatrics
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• v.55 no.12
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• pp.487-490
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• 2012

We report a case of isodicentric chromosome 15 (idic(15) chromosome), the presence of which resulted in uncontrolled seizures, including epileptic spasms, tonic seizures, and global developmental delay. A 10-month-old female infant was referred to our pediatric neurology clinic because of uncontrolled seizures and global developmental delay. She had generalized tonic-clonic seizures since 7 months of age. At referral, she could not control her head and presented with generalized hypotonia. Her brain magnetic resonance imaging scans and metabolic evaluation results were normal. Routine karyotyping indicated the presence of a supernumerary marker chromosome of unknown origin (47, XX +mar). An array-comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) analysis revealed amplification from 15q11.1 to 15q13.1. Subsequent fluorescence in situ hybridization analysis confirmed a idic(15) chromosome. Array-CGH analysis has the advantage in determining the unknown origin of a supernumerary marker chromosome, and could be a useful method for the genetic diagnosis of epilepsy syndromes associated with various chromosomal aberrations.

• Tuberculosis and Respiratory Diseases
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• v.44 no.6
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• pp.1419-1425
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• 1997

Primary mediastinal nonseminomatous germ cell tumor associated with Klinefelter's syndrome is a rare disorder. We experienced a case of recurred primary mediastinal nonseminomatous germ cell tumor developed in a 24-year-old patient with Klinefelter's syndrome. The patient had been treated with surgery and combination chemotherapy under the diagnosis of primary mediastinal nonseminomatous germ cell tumor before. A round mass was found on the right lower lung field in the chest X-ray during follow up. The patient was diagnosed as recurred primary nonseminomatous genu cell tumor and Klinefelter's syndrome through tumor markers, peripheral blood karyotyping, and other tests including hormonal assay and was treated with combination chemotherapy and surgery again. When the patient is diagnosed as primary mediastinal nonseminomatous germ cell tumor, Klinefelter's syndrome and hematologic malignancies should be considered to be associated diseases and vice versa.

• Journal of Microbiology
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• v.42 no.2
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• pp.80-86
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• 2004

Pulsed-field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) typing was applied to the epidemiological investigation of 21 Candida tropicalis isolates collected from urine specimens of 11 patients and one healthcare worker, in an intensive care unit (ICU) over a 4-month period. Seventeen epidemiologically unrelated strains from 14 patients were also tested to determine the discriminatory power of PFGE. PFGE typing consisted of electrophoretic karyotyping (EK) and restriction endonuclease analysis of genomic DNA (REAG), using two restriction enzymes (BssHII and SfiI). The EK pattern was the same in all 38 isolates, while REAG using SfiI separated the isolates into nine types. However, 16 different PFGE types were iden-tified by REAG with BssHII, and the same results were obtained when the results of both REAG tests were combined. In serial urinary isolates from 10 patients, all strains from each patient had the same PFGE pattern. While the epidemiologically unrelated strains from 14 patients consisted of 13 different PFGE types, the 20 isolates from the 11 ICU patients fell into only two PFGE types (types Cl and C2), and these apparently originated from the two different outbreaks. All strains of type Cl (n = 12) were isolated from six patients, between November 1999 and January 2000, and all of the type C2 strains (n=8) were isolated from five patients, during January and February 2000. This study shows two con-secutive clusters of C. tropicalis candiduria in an ICU, defined by PFGE typing, and also demonstrates that a PFGE typing method using BssHII is perhaps the most useful method for investigating C. tropi-calis candiduria.

• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.7 no.1
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• pp.78-81
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• 2010

Pericentric inversion is not rare in humans and is usually benign. However, pericentric inversion can lead to production of an unbalanced recombinant and might be a cause of repetitive pregnancy loss. Pericentric inversion of chromosome 22 is rare and only a few cases have been reported. We report a case of inv(22)(p13q12) carrier who had history of repetitive pregnancy loss including three spontaneous abortions and one fetal hydrops in which the chromosomal complement was rec(22)dup(22q) inv(22)(p13q12)mat. The maternal inv(22) and fetal rec(22) were confirmed by fluorescence in situ hybridization using region-specific probes (TUPLE1 on 22q11.2 and ARSA on 22q13). Because the identification of inv(22) or rec(22) in conventional karyotyping might be easily overlooked, great attention and additional molecular tests are required for accurate diagnosis of inv(22) and rec(22).

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.38 no.3
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• pp.151-158
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• 2000

Pneumocystis carinii is a major opportunistic pathogen which has been found in the lungs of a wide variety of mammalian host species, and the fact suggests the possibility of intraspecific variation. Until now, P. carinii from different mammalian species are differentiated as subspecies, and the rats are known to be infected by two subspecies. The present study investigated genetic heterogeneity of P. carinii isolates from two strains of rats in Korea and China by molecular karyotyping, RFLP and sequencing analysis. Karyotypes of P. carinii were grouped into three, two from two strains of rats In Korea and one from rats in China. However RFLP of PCR product of ribosomal and MSG gene of the P. carinii isolates showed same pattern. The sequence homology rates of ${\alpha}-tubulin$ DNA of the P. carinii isolates were 96% in Seoul Wistar rats, 93% in Seoul Sprague-Dawley rats, and 85% in Chinese Sprague-Dawley rats. The present finding confirmed that P. carinii from rats in Korea are grouped into two karyotype strains which are different from that of P. carinii from rats in China. The Chinese isolate shows a little different sequences of ${\alpha}-tubulin$ DNA.

• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.16-20
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• 2020

Purpose: Duodenal atresia (DA) and atrioventricular septal defect (AVSD) are well known ultrasonographic findings associated with Down syndrome. The risk of Down syndrome in fetuses with these anomalies has been reported as 30% to 40%. However, on the basis of our clinical experience, the risk of Down syndrome of DA may be lower in Korean population. To clarify this issue, we compared the risk of Down syndrome between cases with DA and AVSD. Materials and Methods: The study population consisted of neonates who were confirmed as DA or AVSD by postnatal diagnosis. Postnatal diagnosis was made by surgery, postnatal echocardiography, or autopsy. Medical record was reviewed retrospectively. Results: A total of 213 neonates with DA or AVSD were included: 67 cases with DA and 146 cases with AVSD. The risk of Down syndrome was 4.5% (3/67) in DA vs. 29.5% (43/146) in AVSD. When confining analysis to those whose karyotyping were not performed during antenatal period, the risk of Down syndrome were 7.9% (3/38) in DA and 35.4% (35/99) in AVSD. Conclusion: The risk of Down syndrome in cases with DA was much lower in Korean population than previously reported risk in the literature. The significance of some antenatal sonographic markers for Down syndrome may be different according to ethnicity.

• Clinical and Experimental Reproductive Medicine
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.199-210
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• 1997

A study has been carried out to elucidate the cytogenetic characteristics of Down's syndrome in Korea. This study includes 877 cases which were diagnosed as Down's syndrome by the chromosomal analyses at the Cytogenetic Laboratory, Institute of Reproductive Medicine and Population, Seoul National University for 13 years from January, 1984 to December, 1996. 1. 83.6% of cases were diagnosed under 1 year of age and 10.9% were between 1 and 4 years old. The overall sex ratio was 3 to 2 (male to female). 2. The most frequent indication for cytogenetic analyses was suspicion of Down's syndrome. The next were growth retardation, congenital heart diseases, congenital anomalies. 3. 88.4% of cases had free trisomy 21. In 6.5%, there was translocation, mostly Robertsonian t(14;21) or t(21;21). 3.9% of cases were mosaics mostly with one normal cell line. 4. Karyotyping was also performed in 204 parents of patients. 6 parents (2.9%) were seen to be translocation carriers of Down's syndrome. We find the unique features of Down's syndrome in Korea that the incidences of free trisomy 21 is relatively lower and that translocation is higher than western countries.

• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.16 no.1
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• pp.10-14
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• 2019

Purpose: The aim of this study was to investigate the clinicopathological features of premature ovarian insufficiency (POI) associated with chromosomal abnormalities. Materials and Methods: This was a retrospective study of POI patients with chromosomal abnormalities diagnosed between January 2009 and December 2017. The definition of POI is based on hypergonadotropinism of 40 or greater in follicle stimulating hormone (FSH) measurements at age 40 years or less. FSH was measured twice at least 4 weeks apart. Karyotyping using peripheral blood for chromosomal testing was conducted in all patients diagnosed with POI. We analyzed the clinical characteristics and genetic causes of patients who were diagnosed with POI. Results: Forty patients were diagnosed with POI including 9 (22.5%) with identified chromosomal abnormalities. The mean age at diagnosis was $23.1{\pm}7.8years$ (ranging between 14 and 39). Three patients did not experience menarche. The presenting complaints were short stature in one case, one case of amenorrhea with ambiguous external genitals, one case of infertility, and six related to menstruation such as oligomenorrhea or irregular rhythm. Turner syndrome was diagnosed in four cases, Xq deletion in one case, trisomy X in two cases, and 46,XY disorder of sexual development in two other patients. Conclusion: Patients diagnosed with POI carrying the same type of chromosomal abnormality manifest different phenotypes. The management protocol also needs to be changed depending on the diagnosis. A karyotype is indicated for accurate diagnosis and proper management of POI in patients, with or without stigmata of chromosomal abnormalities.

• Molecules and Cells
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• v.45 no.7
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• pp.479-494
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• 2022

Human mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are multipotent stem cells that have been intensively studied as therapeutic tools for a variety of disorders. To enhance the efficacy of MSCs, therapeutic genes are introduced using retroviral and lentiviral vectors. However, serious adverse events (SAEs) such as tumorigenesis can be induced by insertional mutagenesis. We generated lentiviral vectors encoding the wild-type herpes simplex virus thymidine kinase (HSV-TK) gene and a gene containing a point mutation that results in an alanine to histidine substitution at residue 168 (TK(A168H)) and transduced expression in MSCs (MSC-TK and MSC-TK(A168H)). Transduction of lentiviral vectors encoding the TK(A168H) mutant did not alter the proliferation capacity, mesodermal differentiation potential, or surface antigenicity of MSCs. The MSC-TK(A168H) cells were genetically stable, as shown by karyotyping. MSC-TK(A168H) responded to ganciclovir (GCV) with an half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC₅₀) value 10-fold less than that of MSC-TK. Because MSC-TK(A168H) cells were found to be non-tumorigenic, a U87-TK(A168H) subcutaneous tumor was used as a SAE-like condition and we evaluated the effect of valganciclovir (vGCV), an oral prodrug for GCV. U87-TK(A168H) tumors were more efficiently ablated by 200 mg/kg vGCV than U87-TK tumors. These results indicate that MSC-TK(A168H) cells appear to be pre-clinically safe for therapeutic use. We propose that genetic modification with HSV-TK(A168H) makes allogeneic MSC-based ex vivo therapy safer by eliminating transplanted cells during SAEs such as uncontrolled cell proliferation.

• Journal of Genetic Medicine
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.14-21
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• 2022

Complex chromosome rearrangements (CCRs) are structural chromosomal rearrangements involving at least three chromosomes and more than two breakpoints. CCR carriers are generally phenotypically normal but related to higher risk of recurrent miscarriage and having abnormal offspring with congenital anomalies. However, most of CCR carriers are not aware of their condition until genetic analysis of either abortus or affected baby or parental karyotyping is performed. Herein, we present the case that CCR carrier patients can be identified by preimplantation genetic testing of preimplantation embryos. An infertile male patient with severe oligoasthenoteratozoospermia was diagnosed balanced reciprocal translocation, 46,XY,t(3;11) (p26;p14) at first. After attempting the first preimplantation genetic testing for structural rearrangement (PGT-SR) cycle, we found the recurrent segmental gain or loss on 21q21.3-q22.3 of five out of nine embryos. As a result of karyotype re-analysis, the patient's karyotype showed a balanced CCR involving chromosomes 3, 11, and 21 with three breakpoints 3p26, 11p14, and 21q21. The patient underwent two PGT-SR cycles, and a pregnancy was established after the transfer of an euploid embryo in the second cycle. Amniocentesis confirmed that the baby carried normal karyotype without mosaicism. At 37 weeks gestation, a healthy girl weighting 3,050 g was born.