Identification of CRYM as a candidate responsible for nonsyndromic deafness, through cDNA microarray analysis of human cochlear and vestibular tissues.
Through cDNA microarray analysis of gene expression in human cochlea and vestibule, we detected strong expression of mu-crystallin (CRYM; also known as "NADP-regulated thyroid hormone-binding protein") only in these inner-ear tissues. In a subsequent search for mutations of CRYM, among 192 patients with nonsyndromic deafness, we identified two mutations at the C-terminus; one was a de novo change (X315Y) in a patient with unaffected parents, and the other was a missense mutation (K314T) that segregated dominantly in the proband's family. When the mutated proteins were expressed in COS-7 cells, their subcellular localizations were different from that of the normal protein: the X315Y mutant showed vacuolated distribution in the cytoplasm, and the K314T mutant localized in perinuclear areas, whereas normal protein was distributed homogeneously in the cytoplasm. Aberrant intracellular localization of the mutated proteins might cause dysfunction of the CRYM product and result in hearing impairment. In situ hybridization analysis using mouse tissues indicated its expression in the lateral region of the spiral ligament and the fibrocytes of the spiral limbus, implying its possible involvement in the potassium-ion recycling system. Our results strongly implicate CRYM in normal auditory function and identify it as one of the genes that can be responsible for nonsyndromic deafness.
Abe
Satoko
S
Laboratory of Molecular Medicine, Human Genome Center, Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
Katagiri
Toyomasa
T
Saito-Hisaminato
Akihiko
A
Usami
Shin-ichi
S
Inoue
Yasuhiro
Y
Tsunoda
Tatsuhiko
T
Nakamura
Yusuke
Y
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D019556:COS Cells; D003051:Cochlea / Q000378:metabolism*; D003459:Crystallins / Q000235:genetics*; D003593:Cytoplasm / Q000378:metabolism; D004252:DNA Mutational Analysis; D003638:Deafness / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D006801:Humans; D017403:In Situ Hybridization; D008297:Male; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation / Q000235:genetics; D020411:Oligonucleotide Array Sequence Analysis; D010375:Pedigree; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D014722:Vestibule, Labyrinth / Q000378:metabolism*; D000090803:mu-Crystallins
C000716469:CRYM protein, human; C000716470:Crym protein, mouse; D003459:Crystallins; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D000090803:mu-Crystallins