Mutations in the Cholesterol Transporter Gene ABCA5 Are Associated with Excessive Hair Overgrowth: e1004333

Inherited hypertrichoses are rare syndromes characterized by excessive hair growth that does not result from androgen stimulation, and are often associated with additional congenital abnormalities. In this study, we investigated the genetic defect in a case of autosomal recessive congenital generali...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PLoS genetics 2014-05, Vol.10 (5)
Main Authors: DeStefano, Gina M, Kurban, Mazen, Anyane-Yeboa, Kwame, Paolo, Gilbert Di, Feenstra, Heather, Silverberg, Nanette, Rohena, Luis, López-Cepeda, Larissa D, Jobanputra, Vaidehi, Fantauzzo, Katherine A, Kiuru, Maija, Tadin-Strapps, Marija, Sobrino, Antonio, Vitebsky, Anna, Warburton, Dorothy, Levy, Brynn, Salas-Alanis, Julio C, Christiano, Angela M
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cholesterol
Chromosomes
Cloning
Experiments
Genes
Genomes
Genotype & phenotype
Hair
Mutation
Patients
Skin
Skin diseases
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Summary:Inherited hypertrichoses are rare syndromes characterized by excessive hair growth that does not result from androgen stimulation, and are often associated with additional congenital abnormalities. In this study, we investigated the genetic defect in a case of autosomal recessive congenital generalized hypertrichosis terminalis (CGHT) (OMIM135400) using whole-exome sequencing. We identified a single base pair substitution in the 5' donor splice site of intron 32 in the ABC lipid transporter gene ABCA5 that leads to aberrant splicing of the transcript and a decrease in protein levels throughout patient hair follicles. The homozygous recessive disruption of ABCA5 leads to reduced lysosome function, which results in an accumulation of autophagosomes, autophagosomal cargos as well as increased endolysosomal cholesterol in CGHT keratinocytes. In an unrelated sporadic case of CGHT, we identified a 1.3 Mb cryptic deletion of chr17q24.2-q24.3 encompassing ABCA5 and found that ABCA5 levels are dramatically reduced throughout patient hair follicles. Collectively, our findings support ABCA5 as a gene underlying the CGHT phenotype and suggest a novel, previously unrecognized role for this gene in regulating hair growth.
ISSN:1553-7390
1553-7404
DOI:10.1371/journal.pgen.1004333