Objective: FSH, via its receptor (FSHR), influences bone remodeling and osteoclast proliferation and activity. The aim of this study was to evaluate the influence of two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of theFSHRgene on bone mineral density (BMD) and bone turnover markers (bone alkaline phosphatase and type I collagen C-telopeptides) in postmenopausal women.Methods: Two hundred and eighty-nine unrelated postmenopausal women were genotyped for the SNPs rs1394205 and rs6166. BMD was estimated using dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry and quantitative ultrasound (QUS) methodologies.Results: AA rs6166 women showed a lower BMD (femoral neck and total body), lower stiffness index (calcaneal QUS), and higher serum levels of bone turnover markers compared to GG rs6166 women. The prevalence of osteoporosis was significantly higher in AA rs6166 women compared with GG rs6166 women. These results were not influenced by circulating levels of FSH and estrogens.Conclusion: The SNP rs6166 of theFSHRgene significantly influences BMD in postmenopausal women. In particular, AA rs6166 women are at increased risk of postmenopausal osteoporosis compared with GG rs6166 women, independently of circulating levels of FSH and estrogens. Previous studies have demonstrated that this SNP influences cell and tissue response to hyperstimulation of FSHRin vivoandin vitro. Our study results appear in agreement with these experimental data and with known biological actions of FSH/FSHR system in bone homeostasis.

Allelic deletions, which are suggestive for the presence of tumor suppressor genes, represent a common event in endometrial cancer (EC). Previous loss-of-heterozygosity studies for human chromosome 10q identified a candidate deletion interval at 10q25-q26, which we further narrowed to a 160-kb region at 10q26, bounded by markers D10S1236 and WIAF3299. Using a positional candidate approach, we identified three alternative transcripts of a novel human gene, CASC2 (cancer susceptibility candidate 2; formely C10orf5). One of such transcripts, CASC2a, encodes a short protein of 102 amino acids with no similarity to any other known gene product. Three (7%) CASC2a mutations were identified in tumor DNA from 44 EC patients. While c.−156G>T and c.22C>T (p.Pro8Ser) are sequence variants with unknown functional significance, c.84delA is a mutation with a truncation effect on the predicted protein (p. Asn28fsX50). Expression studies by real-time RT-PCR on several normal and tumor cells revealed that CASC2a mRNA is downregulated in cancer, suggesting that it may act as a potential tumor suppressor gene. The very low mutation rate seems to also indicate that inactivation of CASC2a might probably be due to mechanisms different from genetic alterations. Hum Mutat 23:318–326, 2004

Paget disease of bone (PDB) is a skeletal disorder characterized by focal abnormalities of bone remodeling, which result in enlarged and deformed bones in one or more regions of the skeleton. In some cases, the pagetic tissue undergoes neoplastic transformation, resulting in osteosarcoma and, less frequently, in giant cell tumor of bone (GCT). We performed whole-exome sequencing in a large family with 14 PDB-affected members, four of whom developed GCT at multiple pagetic skeletal sites, and we identified the c.2810C>G (p.Pro937Arg) missense mutation in the zinc finger protein 687 gene (ZNF687). The mutation precisely co-segregated with the clinical phenotype in all affected family members. The sequencing of seven unrelated individuals with GCT associated with PDB (GCT/PDB) identified the same mutation in all individuals, unravelling a founder effect. ZNF687 is highly expressed during osteoclastogenesis and osteoblastogenesis and is dramatically upregulated in the tumor tissue of individuals with GCT/PDB. Interestingly, our preliminary findings showed that ZNF687, indicated as a target gene of the NFkB transcription factor by ChIP-seq analysis, is also upregulated in the peripheral blood of PDB-affected individuals with (n = 5) or without (n = 6) mutations in SQSTM1, encouraging additional studies to investigate its potential role as a biomarker of PDB risk.

Human sex chromosomes, which are morphologically and genetically different, share few regions of homology. Among them, only pseudoautosomal regions (PARs) pair and recombine during meiosis. To better address the complex biology of these regions, we sequenced the telomeric 400 kb of the long arm of the human X chromosome, including 330 kb of the human Xq/YqPAR and the telomere. Sequencing reveals subregions with distinctive regulatory and evolutionary features. The proximal 295 kb contains two genes inactivated on both the inactive X and Y chromosomes [SYBL1 and a novel homologue (HSPRY3) of Drosophilasprouty]. The GC-rich distal 35 kb, added in stages and much later in evolution, contains the X/Y expressed gene IL9R and a novel gene, CXYorf1, only 5 kb from the Xq telomere. These properties make Xq/YqPAR a model for studies of region-specific gene inactivation, telomere evolution, and involvement in sex-limited conditions.

Even though SQSTM1 gene mutations have been identified in a consistent number of patients, the etiology of Paget's disease of bone (PDB) remains in part unknown. In this study we analyzed SQSTM1 mutations in 533 of 608 consecutive PDB patients from several regions, including the high-prevalence area of Campania (also characterized by increased severity of PDB, higher number of familial cases, and peculiar phenotypic characteristics as giant cell tumor). Eleven different mutations (Y383X, P387L, P392L, E396X, M401V, M404V, G411S, D423X, G425E, G425R, and A427D) were observed in 34 of 92 (37%) and 43 of 441 (10%) of familial and sporadic PDB patients, respectively. All five patients with giant cell tumor complicating familial PDB were negative for SQSTM1 mutations. An increased heterogeneity and a different distribution of mutations were observed in southern Italy (showing 9 of the 11 mutations) than in central and northern Italy. Genotype-phenotype analysis showed only a modest reduction in age at diagnosis in patients with truncating versus missense mutations, whereas the number of affected skeletal sites did not differ significantly. Patients from Campania had the highest prevalence of animal contacts (i.e., working or living on a farm or pet ownership) without any difference between patients with or without mutation. However, when familial cases from Campania were considered, animal contacts were observed in 90% of families without mutations. Interestingly, a progressive age-related decrease in the prevalence of animal contacts, as well as a parallel increase in the prevalence of SQSTM1 mutations, was observed in most regions except in the subgroup of patients from Campania. Moreover, patients reporting animal contacts showed an increased number of affected sites (2.54 ± 2.0 versus 2.19 ± 1.9, p < .05) over patients without animal contacts. This difference also was evidenced in the subgroup of patients with SQSTM1 mutations (3.84 ± 2.5 versus 2.76 ± 2.2, p < .05). Overall, these data suggest that animal-related factors may be important in the etiology of PDB and may interact with SQSTM1 mutations in influencing disease severity. © 2010 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research