Fasting glucose and insulin are intermediate traits for type 2 diabetes. Here we explore the role of coding variation on these traits by analysis of variants on the HumanExome BeadChip in 60,564 non-diabetic individuals and in 16,491 T2D cases and 81,877 controls. We identify a novel association of a low-frequency nonsynonymous SNV in GLP1R (A316T; rs10305492; MAF=1.4%) with lower FG (β=−0.09±0.01 mmol l⁻¹, P=3.4 × 10⁻¹²), T2D risk (OR[95%CI]=0.86[0.76–0.96], P=0.010), early insulin secretion (β=−0.07±0.035 pmol_insulin mmol_glucose⁻¹, P=0.048), but higher 2-h glucose (β=0.16±0.05 mmol l⁻¹, P=4.3 × 10⁻⁴). We identify a gene-based association with FG at G6PC2 (p_SKAT=6.8 × 10⁻⁶) driven by four rare protein-coding SNVs (H177Y, Y207S, R283X and S324P). We identify rs651007 (MAF=20%) in the first intron of ABO at the putative promoter of an antisense lncRNA, associating with higher FG (β=0.02±0.004 mmol l⁻¹, P=1.3 × 10⁻⁸). Our approach identifies novel coding variant associations and extends the allelic spectrum of variation underlying diabetes-related quantitative traits and T2D susceptibility.

In order to identify a possible hereditary predisposition to the development of obstructive pulmonary disease of unknown origin, we have looked for the presence of Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Regu lator (CFTR) gene mutations in unrelated patients with no signs of Cystic Fibrosis (CF). We screened for 70 common mutations, and also for rare mutations by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis analysis. In this search, different CFTR gene mutations (R75Q, ΔF508, R1066C, M1137V and 3667ins4) were found in five out of 16 adult Italian patients with disseminated bronchiectasis, a significant increase over the expected frequency of carriers. Moreover, three rare CFTR gene DNA polymorphisms (G576A, R668C, and 2736 A→G), not deemed to be the cause of CF, were found in two patients, one of which was a compound heterozygote with R1066C. These results indicate that CFTR gene mutations, and perhaps also DNA polymorphisms, may be involved in the etiopatho genesis of at least some cases of bronchiectasis.

Tau microtubule-associated proteins, encoded by the MAPT gene, are mainly expressed in neurons participating in axonal transport and synaptic plasticity. Six major isoforms differentially expressed during cell development and differentiation are translated by alternative splicing of MAPT transcripts. Alterations in the expression of human Tau isoforms and their aggregation have been linked to several neurodegenerative diseases called tauopathies, including Alzheimer’s disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, Pick’s disease, and frontotemporal dementia with parkinsonism linked to chromosome 17. Great efforts have been dedicated in recent years to shed light on the complex regulatory mechanism of Tau splicing, with a perspective to developing new RNA-based therapies. This review summarizes the most recent contributions to the knowledge of Tau isoform expression and experimental models, highlighting the role of cis-elements and ribonucleoproteins that regulate the alternative splicing of Tau exons.

Cystic fibrosis (CF) is characterized by remarkable variability in severity, rate of disease progression, and organ involvement. In spite of the considerable amount of data collected on the relationship between genotype and phenotype in CF, this is still a challenging matter of debate. Barriers to the interpretation of this connection are the large number of mutations in the CF transmembrane regulator (CFTR) gene, the difficulties in attributing several of them to a specific mode of dysfunction, and a limited number of the almost 2,000 mutations so far detected, which have been clinically annotated. In addition to that, the heterogeneity of clinical manifestations in individuals with the same CFTR genotypes indicates that disease severity is modulated by other genes and by environmental factors, of which the most relevant is possibly treatment in its aspects of appropriateness, early start in life, and adherence. The phenotype variability extends to conditions, named CFTR-related disorders, which are connected with CFTR dysfunction, but do not satisfy diagnostic criteria for CF. The current level of knowledge does not allow use of the CFTR genotype to predict individual outcome and cannot be used as an indicator of CF prognosis. This might change with the development of treatments targeting specific mutations and possibly capable of changing the natural history of the disease.