title: A novel nonsense mutation of the KAL gene in two brothers with Kallmann syndrome.
abstract: Kallmann syndrome (KS), defined by the association of hypogonadotropic hypogonadism and anosmia or hyposmia, can be caused by mutations in the KAL gene on Xp 22.3. This gene encodes an extracellular matrix glycoprotein called anosmin-1, which belongs to the class of cell adhesion molecules. In the absence of a functional KAL protein, migration of both olfactory and gonadotropin-releasing hormone neurons is arrested. A defective anosmin-1 molecule may also play a role in the development of synkinesia and renal agenesis, which are exclusively seen in the X-linked form of KS. We describe the clinical presentation and molecular diagnosis of the defect in two brothers with KS. An X-linked mode of transmission was assumed on the basis of synkinesia and the presence of oligomenorrhoea in the mother. A novel nonsense mutation was found in exon 13 of the KAL gene, encoding the region of the fourth fibronectin type III repeat of anosmin-1, which results in an apparently nonfunctional truncated protein.
authors.affiliation: Department of Paediatric Endocrinology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Jansen
authors.forename: B I
authors.initials: BI
authors.lastname: Hendriks-Stegeman
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Jansen
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D018389:Codon, Nonsense; D005091:Exons; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins; D008040:Genetic Linkage; D006801:Humans; D017436:Kallmann Syndrome / Q000235:genetics*; D008297:Male; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D018807:Polymorphism, Single-Stranded Conformational; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014960:X Chromosome
chemical_list: C076266:ANOS1 protein, human; D018389:Codon, Nonsense; D016326:Extracellular Matrix Proteins; D009419:Nerve Tissue Proteins