Positional Cloning of the Gene(s) Responsible for Alagille Syndrome

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

Status: Completed

Conditions: Alagille Syndrome

Study type: Observational

Funder types: NIH

Identifiers

NCT00001642

97-HG-0122

970122

Details and patient eligibility

About

The goal of the project is to identify and clone the gene(s) responsible for the Alagille Syndrome (AGS) by a positional cloning approach. The first step towards this goal is to define the smallest genomic candidate region for AGS at 20p12 and to begin to identify genes within this region which are, by definition, candidate genes for the disease. In a collaborative effort with clinician-investigators studying the Alagille syndrome, metaphase chromosomes and genomic DNA from affected individuals will be studied for subchromosomal deletions and for mutations in the candidate genes. Characterization of genes involved in Alagille syndrome could provide important insight into the pathophysiology of the disease, the development of normal liver and treatment of this disease. Recently, we and others found that mutations in Jagged1, a Notch1 receptor are responsible for Alagille Syndrome.

Full description

The goal of the project is to identify and clone the gene(s) responsible for the Alagille Syndrome (AGS) by a positional cloning approach. The first step towards this goal is to define the smallest genomic candidate region for AGS at 20p12 and to begin to identify genes within this region which are, by definition, candidate genes for the disease. In a collaborative effort with clinician-investigators studying the Alagille syndrome, metaphase chromosomes and genomic DNA from affected individuals will be studied for subchromosomal deletions and for mutations in the candidate genes. Characterization of genes involved in Alagille syndrome could provide important insight into the pathophysiology of the disease, the development of normal liver and treatment of this disease.

Sex: All

Volunteers: No Healthy Volunteers

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

All enrolled affected subjects, whose samples will be analyzed in this study, must meet the criteria for the clinical diagnosis of Alagille Syndrome (Syndromic Bile Duct Paucity) which include liver biopsy findings consistent with Alagille Syndrome and at least 3 of the 5 primary clinical criteria: cholestasis, characteristic face, posterior embryotoxon, "butterfly" vertebrae and cardiac findings.