Browsing by Author "Mikati, Mohamad A"
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Item Open Access Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood: gastrointestinal manifestations and correlation with neurological impairments.(Orphanet journal of rare diseases, 2020-09-03) Pratt, Milton; Uchitel, Julie; McGreal, Nancy; Gordon, Kelly; Prange, Lyndsey; McLean, Melissa; Noel, Richard J; Rikard, Blaire; Rogers Boruta, Mary K; Mikati, Mohamad ABackground
Alternating Hemiplegia of Childhood (AHC) is caused by mutations of the ATP1A3 gene which is expressed in brain areas that include structures controling autonomic, gastrointestinal, gut motility and GABAergic functions. We aimed to investigate, in a cohort of 44 consecutive AHC patients, two hypotheses: 1) AHC patients frequently manifest gastrointestinal, particularly motility, problems. 2) These problems are often severe and their severity correlates with neurological impairments.Results
41/44 (93%) exhibited gastrointestinal symptoms requiring medical attention. For these 41 patients, symptoms included constipation (66%), swallowing problems (63%), vomiting (63%), anorexia (46%), diarrhea (44%), nausea (37%), and abdominal pain (22%). Symptoms indicative of dysmotility occurred in 33 (80%). The most common diagnoses were oropharyngeal dysphagia (63%) and gastroesophageal reflux (63%). 16 (39%) required gastrostomy and two fundoplication. Severity of gastrointestinal symptoms correlated with non-paroxysmal neurological disability index, Gross Motor Function Classification System scores, and with the presence/absence of non-gastrointestinal autonomic dysfunction (p = 0.031, 0.043, Spearman correlations and 0.0166 Cramer's V, respectively) but not with the paroxysmal disability index (p = 0.408).Conclusions
Most AHC patients have gastrointestinal problems. These are usually severe, most commonly are indicative of dysmotility, often require surgical therapies, and their severity correlates with that of non-paroxysmal CNS manifestations. Our findings should help in management-anticipatory guidance of AHC patients. Furthermore, they are consistent with current understandings of the pathophysiology of AHC and of gastrointestinal dysmotility, both of which involve autonomic and GABAergic dysfunction.Item Open Access Brain structural connectivity increases concurrent with functional improvement: evidence from diffusion tensor MRI in children with cerebral palsy during therapy.(NeuroImage. Clinical, 2015-01-09) Englander, Zoë A; Sun, Jessica; Laura Case; Mikati, Mohamad A; Kurtzberg, Joanne; Song, Allen WCerebral Palsy (CP) refers to a heterogeneous group of permanent but non-progressive movement disorders caused by injury to the developing fetal or infant brain (Bax et al., 2005). Because of its serious long-term consequences, effective interventions that can help improve motor function, independence, and quality of life are critically needed. Our ongoing longitudinal clinical trial to treat children with CP is specifically designed to meet this challenge. To maximize the potential for functional improvement, all children in this trial received autologous cord blood transfusions (with order randomized with a placebo administration over 2 years) in conjunction with more standard physical and occupational therapies. As a part of this trial, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is used to improve our understanding of how these interventions affect brain development, and to develop biomarkers of treatment efficacy. In this report, diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) and subsequent brain connectome analyses were performed in a subset of children enrolled in the clinical trial (n = 17), who all exhibited positive but varying degrees of functional improvement over the first 2-year period of the study. Strong correlations between increases in white matter (WM) connectivity and functional improvement were demonstrated; however no significant relationships between either of these factors with the age of the child at time of enrollment were identified. Thus, our data indicate that increases in brain connectivity reflect improved functional abilities in children with CP. In future work, this potential biomarker can be used to help differentiate the underlying mechanisms of functional improvement, as well as to identify treatments that can best facilitate functional improvement upon un-blinding of the timing of autologous cord blood transfusions at the completion of this study.Item Open Access Cardiac phenotype in ATP1A3-related syndromes: A multicenter cohort study.(Neurology, 2020-11) Balestrini, Simona; Mikati, Mohamad A; Álvarez-García-Rovés, Reyes; Carboni, Michael; Hunanyan, Arsen S; Kherallah, Bassil; McLean, Melissa; Prange, Lyndsey; De Grandis, Elisa; Gagliardi, Alessandra; Pisciotta, Livia; Stagnaro, Michela; Veneselli, Edvige; Campistol, Jaume; Fons, Carmen; Pias-Peleteiro, Leticia; Brashear, Allison; Miller, Charlotte; Samões, Raquel; Brankovic, Vesna; Padiath, Quasar S; Potic, Ana; Pilch, Jacek; Vezyroglou, Aikaterini; Bye, Ann ME; Davis, Andrew M; Ryan, Monique M; Semsarian, Christopher; Hollingsworth, Georgina; Scheffer, Ingrid E; Granata, Tiziana; Nardocci, Nardo; Ragona, Francesca; Arzimanoglou, Alexis; Panagiotakaki, Eleni; Carrilho, Inês; Zucca, Claudio; Novy, Jan; Dzieżyc, Karolina; Parowicz, Marek; Mazurkiewicz-Bełdzińska, Maria; Weckhuysen, Sarah; Pons, Roser; Groppa, Sergiu; Sinden, Daniel S; Pitt, Geoffrey S; Tinker, Andrew; Ashworth, Michael; Michalak, Zuzanna; Thom, Maria; Cross, J Helen; Vavassori, Rosaria; Kaski, Juan P; Sisodiya, Sanjay MObjective
To define the risks and consequences of cardiac abnormalities in ATP1A3-related syndromes.Methods
Patients meeting clinical diagnostic criteria for rapid-onset dystonia-parkinsonism (RDP), alternating hemiplegia of childhood (AHC), and cerebellar ataxia, areflexia, pes cavus, optic atrophy, and sensorineural hearing loss (CAPOS) with ATP1A3 genetic analysis and at least 1 cardiac assessment were included. We evaluated the cardiac phenotype in an Atp1a3 knock-in mouse (Mashl+/-) to determine the sequence of events in seizure-related cardiac death.Results
Ninety-eight patients with AHC, 9 with RDP, and 3 with CAPOS (63 female, mean age 17 years) were included. Resting ECG abnormalities were found in 52 of 87 (60%) with AHC, 2 of 3 (67%) with CAPOS, and 6 of 9 (67%) with RDP. Serial ECGs showed dynamic changes in 10 of 18 patients with AHC. The first Holter ECG was abnormal in 24 of 65 (37%) cases with AHC and RDP with either repolarization or conduction abnormalities. Echocardiography was normal. Cardiac intervention was required in 3 of 98 (≈3%) patients with AHC. In the mouse model, resting ECGs showed intracardiac conduction delay; during induced seizures, heart block or complete sinus arrest led to death.Conclusions
We found increased prevalence of ECG dynamic abnormalities in all ATP1A3-related syndromes, with a risk of life-threatening cardiac rhythm abnormalities equivalent to that in established cardiac channelopathies (≈3%). Sudden cardiac death due to conduction abnormality emerged as a seizure-related outcome in murine Atp1a3-related disease. ATP1A3-related syndromes are cardiac diseases and neurologic diseases. We provide guidance to identify patients potentially at higher risk of sudden cardiac death who may benefit from insertion of a pacemaker or implantable cardioverter-defibrillator.Item Open Access D-DEMØ, a distinct phenotype caused by ATP1A3 mutations.(Neurology. Genetics, 2020-10) Prange, Lyndsey; Pratt, Milton; Herman, Kristin; Schiffmann, Raphael; Mueller, David M; McLean, Melissa; Mendez, Mary Moya; Walley, Nicole; Heinzen, Erin L; Goldstein, David; Shashi, Vandana; Hunanyan, Arsen; Pagadala, Vijay; Mikati, Mohamad AObjective:To describe a phenotype caused by ATP1A3 mutations, which manifests as dystonia, dysmorphism of the face, encephalopathy with developmental delay, brain MRI abnormalities always including cerebellar hypoplasia, no hemiplegia (Ø) (D-DEMØ), and neonatal onset. Methods:Review and analysis of clinical and genetic data. Results:Patients shared the above traits and had whole-exome sequencing that showed de novo variants of the ATP1A3 gene, predicted to be disease causing and occurring in regions of the protein critical for pump function. Patient 1 (c.1079C>G, p.Thr360Arg), an 8-year-old girl, presented on day 1 of life with episodic dystonia, complex partial seizures, and facial dysmorphism. MRI of the brain revealed cerebellar hypoplasia. Patient 2 (c.420G>T, p.Gln140His), an 18-year-old man, presented on day 1 of life with hypotonia, tremor, and facial dysmorphism. He later developed dystonia. MRI of the brain revealed cerebellar hypoplasia and, later, further cerebellar volume loss (atrophy). Patient 3 (c.974G>A, Gly325Asp), a 13-year-old girl, presented on day 1 of life with tremor, episodic dystonia, and facial dysmorphism. MRI of the brain showed severe cerebellar hypoplasia. Patient 4 (c.971A>G, p.Glu324Gly), a 14-year-old boy, presented on day 1 of life with tremor, hypotonia, dystonia, nystagmus, facial dysmorphism, and later seizures. MRI of the brain revealed moderate cerebellar hypoplasia. Conclusions:D-DEMØ represents an ATP1A3-related phenotype, the observation of which should trigger investigation for ATP1A3 mutations. Our findings, and the presence of multiple distinct ATP1A3-related phenotypes, support the possibility that there are differences in the underlying mechanisms.Item Open Access Diffuse reduction of white matter connectivity in cerebral palsy with specific vulnerability of long range fiber tracts.(NeuroImage. Clinical, 2013-01) Englander, Zoë A; Pizoli, Carolyn E; Batrachenko, Anastasiya; Sun, Jessica; Worley, Gordon; Mikati, Mohamad A; Kurtzberg, Joanne; Song, Allen WCerebral palsy (CP) is a heterogeneous group of non-progressive motor disorders caused by injury to the developing fetal or infant brain. Although the defining feature of CP is motor impairment, numerous other neurodevelopmental disabilities are associated with CP and contribute greatly to its morbidity. The relationship between brain structure and neurodevelopmental outcomes in CP is complex, and current evidence suggests that motor and developmental outcomes are related to the spatial pattern and extent of brain injury. Given that multiple disabilities are frequently associated with CP, and that there is increasing burden of neurodevelopmental disability with increasing motor severity, global white matter (WM) connectivity was examined in a cohort of 17 children with bilateral CP to test the hypothesis that increased global WM damage will be seen in the group of severely affected (Gross Motor Function Classification Scale (GMFCS) level of IV) as compared to moderately affected (GMFCS of II or III) individuals. Diffusion tensor tractography was performed and the resulting fibers between anatomically defined brain regions were quantified and analyzed in relation to GMFCS levels. Overall, a reduction in total WM connectivity throughout the brain in severe versus moderate CP was observed, including but not limited to regions associated with the sensorimotor system. Our results also show a diffuse and significant reduction in global inter-regional connectivity between severity groups, represented by inter-regional fiber count, throughout the brain. Furthermore, it was also observed that there is a significant difference (p = 0.02) in long-range connectivity in patients with severe CP as compared to those with moderate CP, whereas short-range connectivity was similar between groups. This new finding, which has not been previously reported in the CP literature, demonstrates that CP may involve distributed, network-level structural disruptions.Item Open Access Early onset severe ATP1A2 epileptic encephalopathy: Clinical characteristics and underlying mutations.(Epilepsy & behavior : E&B, 2021-01-22) Moya-Mendez, Mary E; Mueller, David M; Pratt, Milton; Bonner, Melanie; Elliott, Courtney; Hunanyan, Arsen; Kucera, Gary; Bock, Cheryl; Prange, Lyndsey; Jasien, Joan; Keough, Karen; Shashi, Vandana; McDonald, Marie; Mikati, Mohamad ABackground
ATP1A2 mutations cause hemiplegic migraine with or without epilepsy or acute reversible encephalopathy. Typical onset is in adulthood or older childhood without subsequent severe long-term developmental impairments.Aim
We aimed to describe the manifestations of early onset severe ATP1A2-related epileptic encephalopathy and its underlying mutations in a cohort of seven patients.Methods
A retrospective chart review of a cohort of seven patients was conducted. Response to open-label memantine therapy, used off-label due to its NMDA receptor antagonist effects, was assessed by the Global Rating Scale of Change (GRSC) and Clinical Global Impression Scale of Improvement (CGI-I) methodologies. Molecular modeling was performed using PyMol program.Results
Patients (age 2.5-20 years) had symptom onset at an early age (6 days-1 year). Seizures were either focal or generalized. Common features were: drug resistance, recurrent status epilepticus, etc., severe developmental delay with episodes of acute severe encephalopathy often with headaches, dystonias, hemiplegias, seizures, and developmental regression. All had variants predicted to be disease causing (p.Ile293Met, p.Glu1000Lys, c.1017+5G>A, p.Leu809Arg, and 3 patients with p.Met813Lys). Modeling revealed that mutations interfered with ATP1A2 ion binding and translocation sites. Memantine, given to five, was tolerated in all (mean treatment: 2.3 years, range 6 weeks-4.8 years) with some improvements reported in all five.Conclusions
Our observations describe a distinctive clinical profile of seven unrelated probands with early onset severe ATP1A2-related epileptic encephalopathy, provide insights into structure-function relationships of ATP1A2 mutations, and support further studies of NMDAR antagonist therapy in ATP1A2-encephalopathy.Item Open Access Effect of Autologous Cord Blood Infusion on Motor Function and Brain Connectivity in Young Children with Cerebral Palsy: A Randomized, Placebo-Controlled Trial.(Stem cells translational medicine, 2017-12) Sun, Jessica M; Song, Allen W; Case, Laura E; Mikati, Mohamad A; Gustafson, Kathryn E; Simmons, Ryan; Goldstein, Ricki; Petry, Jodi; McLaughlin, Colleen; Waters-Pick, Barbara; Chen, Lyon W; Wease, Stephen; Blackwell, Beth; Worley, Gordon; Troy, Jesse; Kurtzberg, JoanneCerebral palsy (CP) is a condition affecting young children that causes lifelong disabilities. Umbilical cord blood cells improve motor function in experimental systems via paracrine signaling. After demonstrating safety, we conducted a phase II trial of autologous cord blood (ACB) infusion in children with CP to test whether ACB could improve function (ClinicalTrials.gov, NCT01147653; IND 14360). In this double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study of a single intravenous infusion of 1-5 × 107 total nucleated cells per kilogram of ACB, children ages 1 to 6 years with CP were randomly assigned to receive ACB or placebo at baseline, followed by the alternate infusion 1 year later. Motor function and magnetic resonance imaging brain connectivity studies were performed at baseline, 1, and 2 years post-treatment. The primary endpoint was change in motor function 1 year after baseline infusion. Additional analyses were performed at 2 years. Sixty-three children (median age 2.1 years) were randomized to treatment (n = 32) or placebo (n = 31) at baseline. Although there was no difference in mean change in Gross Motor Function Measure-66 (GMFM-66) scores at 1 year between placebo and treated groups, a dosing effect was identified. In an analysis 1 year post-ACB treatment, those who received doses ≥2 × 107 /kg demonstrated significantly greater increases in GMFM-66 scores above those predicted by age and severity, as well as in Peabody Developmental Motor Scales-2 Gross Motor Quotient scores and normalized brain connectivity. Results of this study suggest that appropriately dosed ACB infusion improves brain connectivity and gross motor function in young children with CP. Stem Cells Translational Medicine 2017;6:2071-2078.Item Open Access ATP1A3-Encoded Sodium-Potassium ATPase Subunit Alpha 3 D801N Variant Is Associated With Shortened QT Interval and Predisposition to Ventricular Fibrillation Preceded by Bradycardia.(Journal of the American Heart Association, 2021-09) Moya-Mendez, Mary E; Ogbonna, Chiagoziem; Ezekian, Jordan E; Rosamilia, Michael B; Prange, Lyndsey; de la Uz, Caridad; Kim, Jeffrey J; Howard, Taylor; Garcia, John; Nussbaum, Robert; Truty, Rebecca; Callis, Thomas E; Funk, Emily; Heyes, Matthew; Dear, Guy de Lisle; Carboni, Michael P; Idriss, Salim F; Mikati, Mohamad A; Landstrom, Andrew PBackground Pathogenic variation in the ATP1A3-encoded sodium-potassium ATPase, ATP1A3, is responsible for alternating hemiplegia of childhood (AHC). Although these patients experience a high rate of sudden unexpected death in epilepsy, the pathophysiologic basis for this risk remains unknown. The objective was to determine the role of ATP1A3 genetic variants on cardiac outcomes as determined by QT and corrected QT (QTc) measurements. Methods and Results We analyzed 12-lead ECG recordings from 62 patients (male subjects=31, female subjects=31) referred for AHC evaluation. Patients were grouped according to AHC presentation (typical versus atypical), ATP1A3 variant status (positive versus negative), and ATP1A3 variant (D801N versus other variants). Manual remeasurements of QT intervals and QTc calculations were performed by 2 pediatric electrophysiologists. QTc measurements were significantly shorter in patients with positive ATP1A3 variant status (P<0.001) than in patients with genotype-negative status, and significantly shorter in patients with the ATP1A3-D801N variant than patients with other variants (P<0.001). The mean QTc for ATP1A3-D801N was 344.9 milliseconds, which varied little with age, and remained <370 milliseconds throughout adulthood. ATP1A3 genotype status was significantly associated with shortened QTc by multivariant regression analysis. Two patients with the ATP1A3-D801N variant experienced ventricular fibrillation, resulting in death in 1 patient. Rare variants in ATP1A3 were identified in a large cohort of genotype-negative patients referred for arrhythmia and sudden unexplained death. Conclusions Patients with AHC who carry the ATP1A3-D801N variant have significantly shorter QTc intervals and an increased likelihood of experiencing bradycardia associated with life-threatening arrhythmias. ATP1A3 variants may represent an independent cause of sudden unexplained death. Patients with AHC should be evaluated to identify risk of sudden death.Item Open Access Motor function and safety after allogeneic cord blood and cord tissue-derived mesenchymal stromal cells in cerebral palsy: An open-label, randomized trial.(Developmental medicine and child neurology, 2022-07-10) Sun, Jessica M; Case, Laura E; McLaughlin, Colleen; Burgess, Alicia; Skergan, Natalie; Crane, Sydney; Jasien, Joan M; Mikati, Mohamad A; Troy, Jesse; Kurtzberg, JoanneAim
To evaluate safety and motor function after treatment with allogeneic umbilical cord blood (AlloCB) or umbilical cord tissue-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (hCT-MSC) in children with cerebral palsy (CP).Method
Ninety-one children (52 males, 39 females; median age 3 years 7 months [range 2-5 years]) with CP due to hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, stroke, or periventricular leukomalacia were randomized to three arms: (1) the AlloCB group received 10 × 107 AlloCB total nucleated cells (TNC) per kilogram at baseline (n = 31); (2) the hCT-MSC group received 2 × 106 hCT-MSC at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months (n = 28); (3) the natural history control group received 10 × 107 AlloCB TNC per kilogram at 12 months (n = 31). Motor function was assessed with the Gross Motor Function Measure-66 (GMFM-66) and Peabody Developmental Motor Scale, Second Edition.Results
Infusions (n = 143) were well tolerated, with eight infusion reactions (three in the AlloCB group, five in hCT-MSC) and no other safety concerns. At 12 months, the mean differences (95% confidence intervals [CI]) between actual and expected changes in GMFM-66 score were AlloCB 5.8 points (3.4-8.2), hCT-MSC 4.3 (2.2-6.4), and natural history 3.1 (1.4-5.0). In exploratory, post hoc analysis, the mean GMFM-66 score (95% CI) of the hCT-MSC group was 1.4 points higher than natural history (-1.1 to 4.0; p = 0.27), and the AlloCB group was 3.3 points higher than natural history (0.59-5.93; p = 0.02) after adjustment for baseline Gross Motor Function Classification System level, GMFM-66 score, and etiology.Interpretation
High-dose AlloCB is a potential cell therapy for CP and should be further tested in a randomized, blinded, placebo-controlled trial.Item Open Access Reorganization and stability for motor and language areas using cortical stimulation: case example and review of the literature.(Brain sciences, 2013-11) Serafini, Sandra; Komisarow, Jordan M; Gallentine, William; Mikati, Mohamad A; Bonner, Melanie J; Kranz, Peter G; Haglund, Michael M; Grant, GeraldThe cerebral organization of language in epilepsy patients has been studied with invasive procedures such as Wada testing and electrical cortical stimulation mapping and more recently with noninvasive neuroimaging techniques, such as functional MRI. In the setting of a chronic seizure disorder, clinical variables have been shown to contribute to cerebral language reorganization underscoring the need for language lateralization and localization procedures. We present a 14-year-old pediatric patient with a refractory epilepsy disorder who underwent two neurosurgical resections of a left frontal epileptic focus separated by a year. He was mapped extraoperatively through a subdural grid using cortical stimulation to preserve motor and language functions. The clinical history and extensive workup prior to surgery is discussed as well as the opportunity to compare the cortical maps for language, motor, and sensory function before each resection. Reorganization in cortical tongue sensory areas was seen concomitant with a new zone of ictal and interictal activity in the previous tongue sensory area. Detailed neuropsychological data is presented before and after any surgical intervention to hypothesize about the extent of reorganization between epochs. We conclude that intrahemispheric cortical plasticity does occur following frontal lobe resective surgery in a teenager with medically refractory seizures.Item Open Access Role of Pediatricians, Pediatric Associations, and Academic Departments in Ensuring Optimal Early Childhood Development Globally: Position Paper of the International Pediatric Association.(Journal of developmental and behavioral pediatrics : JDBP, 2022-08-16) Uchitel, Julie; Alden, Errol; Bhutta, Zulfiqar A; Cavallera, Vanessa; Lucas, Jane; Oberklaid, Frank; Patterson, Janna; Raghavan, Chemba; Richter, Linda; Rikard, Blaire; Russell, Robert Ross; Mikati, Mohamad AAbstract
Early childhood (birth-8 years), particularly the first 3 years, is the most critical time in development because of the highly sensitive developing brain. Providing appropriate developmental care (i.e., nurturing care, as defined by the World Health Organization [WHO]) during early childhood is key to ensuring a child's holistic development. Pediatricians are expected to play a critical role in supporting early childhood development (ECD) through providing developmental services such as developmental monitoring, anticipatory guidance, screening, and referral to medical and/or community-based services when delay is identified. Pediatricians are also expected to serve as advocates within their clinics and communities for improved delivery of ECD services, such as advocating for increasing funding for ECD initiatives, increasing insurance coverage of ECD services, and working to increase other pediatricians' awareness of the principles of ECD and how to deliver developmental services. However, this does not always occur. Typically, pediatricians' training and practice emphasizes treating disease rather than enhancing ECD. Pediatricians are further hindered by a lack of uniformity across nations in guidelines for developmental monitoring and screening. In this article, we present the vision of the International Pediatric Association (IPA) of the roles that pediatricians, academic departments, medical training programs, and pediatric associations should fulfill to help support ECD, including raising ECD to higher levels of priority in routine pediatric care. First, we present the challenges that face these goals in supporting ECD. We then propose, with supportive literature, strategies and resources to overcome these challenges in collaboration with local and international stakeholders, including the IPA, the WHO, UNICEF, and the World Bank.Item Open Access Sibling umbilical cord blood infusion is safe in young children with cerebral palsy.(Stem cells translational medicine, 2021-09) Sun, Jessica M; Case, Laura E; Mikati, Mohamad A; M Jasien, Joan; McLaughlin, Colleen; Waters-Pick, Barbara; Worley, Gordon; Troy, Jesse; Kurtzberg, JoannePreclinical and early phase clinical studies suggest that an appropriately dosed umbilical cord blood (CB) infusion has the potential to help improve motor function in young children with cerebral palsy (CP). As many children with CP do not have their own CB available, use of allogeneic cells would extend access to this potentially beneficial therapy to more children. In this phase I, open-label study, 15 children, aged 1 to 6 years, with moderate to severe spastic CP were treated with a single intravenous infusion of allogeneic human leukocyte antigen (HLA) matched or partially matched sibling CB with a cell dose of ≥2.5 × 107 cells/kg based on the pre-cryopreservation count (median infused cell dose, 3.3 × 107 ; range, 1.8-5.2 × 107 ). There were a total of 49 adverse events (AEs) over a 2-year time period, but there were no AEs related to the CB infusions. Specifically, there were no acute infusion reactions and no antibody formation against platelets, red blood cells, or donor-specific HLA antigens. Donor cells were not detected in peripheral blood 6 months later. Six months after infusion, participants were assessed for response and experienced a mean ± SD increase of 4.7 ± 2.5 points on the Gross Motor Function Measure-66 and 1 ± 2.9 points on the Peabody Gross Motor Quotient. Appropriately dosed, allogeneic partially or fully HLA-matched sibling CB infusion is well tolerated and potentially beneficial in young children with CP.Item Open Access Somatic uniparental disomy of Chromosome 16p in hemimegalencephaly.(Cold Spring Harbor molecular case studies, 2017-09) Griffin, Nicole G; Cronin, Kenneth D; Walley, Nicole M; Hulette, Christine M; Grant, Gerald A; Mikati, Mohamad A; LaBreche, Heather G; Rehder, Catherine W; Allen, Andrew S; Crino, Peter B; Heinzen, Erin LHemimegalencephaly (HME) is a heterogeneous cortical malformation characterized by enlargement of one cerebral hemisphere. Somatic variants in mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) regulatory genes have been implicated in some HME cases; however, ∼70% have no identified genetic etiology. Here, we screened two HME patients to identify disease-causing somatic variants. DNA from leukocytes, buccal swabs, and surgically resected brain tissue from two HME patients were screened for somatic variants using genome-wide genotyping arrays or sequencing of the protein-coding regions of the genome. Functional studies were performed to evaluate the molecular consequences of candidate disease-causing variants. Both HME patients evaluated were found to have likely disease-causing variants in DNA extracted from brain tissue but not in buccal swab or leukocyte DNA, consistent with a somatic mutational mechanism. In the first case, a previously identified disease-causing somatic single nucleotide in MTOR was identified. In the second case, we detected an overrepresentation of the alleles inherited from the mother on Chromosome 16 in brain tissue DNA only, indicative of somatic uniparental disomy (UPD) of the p-arm of Chromosome 16. Using methylation analyses, an imprinted locus on 16p spanning ZNF597 was identified, which results in increased expression of ZNF597 mRNA and protein in the brain tissue of the second case. Enhanced mTOR signaling was observed in tissue specimens from both patients. We speculate that overexpression of maternally expressed ZNF597 led to aberrant hemispheric development in the patient with somatic UPD of Chromosome 16p possibly through modulation of mTOR signaling.Item Open Access The microRNA processor DROSHA is a candidate gene for a severe progressive neurological disorder.(Human molecular genetics, 2022-04-11) Barish, Scott; Senturk, Mumine; Schoch, Kelly; Minogue, Amanda L; Lopergolo, Diego; Fallerini, Chiara; Harland, Jake; Seemann, Jacob H; Stong, Nicholas; Kranz, Peter G; Kansagra, Sujay; Mikati, Mohamad A; Jasien, Joan; El-Dairi, Mays; Galluzzi, Paolo; Undiagnosed Diseases Network; Ariani, Francesca; Renieri, Alessandra; Mari, Francesca; Wangler, Michael F; Arur, Swathi; Jiang, Yong-Hui; Yamamoto, Shinya; Shashi, Vandana; Bellen, Hugo JDROSHA encodes a ribonuclease that is a subunit of the Microprocessor complex and is involved in the first step of microRNA (miRNA) biogenesis. To date, DROSHA has not yet been associated with a Mendelian disease. Here we describe two individuals with profound intellectual disability, epilepsy, white matter atrophy, microcephaly, and dysmorphic features, who carry damaging de novo heterozygous variants in DROSHA. DROSHA is constrained for missense variants and moderately intolerant to loss of function (o/e = 0.24). The loss of the fruit fly ortholog drosha causes developmental arrest and death in third instar larvae, a severe reduction in brain size, and loss of imaginal discs in the larva. Loss of drosha in eye clones causes small and rough eyes in adult flies. One of the identified DROSHA variants (p.Asp1219Gly) behaves as a strong loss-of-function allele in flies, while another variant (p.Arg1342Trp) is less damaging in our assays. In worms, a knock-in that mimics the p.Asp1219Gly variant at a worm equivalent residue causes loss of miRNA expression and heterochronicity, a phenotype characteristic of the loss of miRNA. Together, our data show that the DROSHA variants found in the individuals presented here are damaging based on functional studies in model organisms and likely underlie the severe phenotype involving the nervous system.Item Open Access Visual hallucinations: A novel complication after hemispherectomy.(Epilepsy & behavior case reports, 2018-01) Vanags, Jonas; Sachdev, Monisha; Grant, Gerald; Mikati, Mohamad ATwo patients at our center experienced florid visual hallucinations following hemispherectomy. The first patient had drug-resistant left hemispheric focal seizures at 20 months of age from a previous stroke. Following functional hemispherectomy at age 3, he experienced frightening hallucinations 1 month post-operatively lasting 3.5 months. Our second patient underwent subtotal hemispherectomy at age 6 for drug-resistant focal seizures from right hemispheric cortical dysplasia. Eighteen months later he developed scary visual hallucinations during which he would shout and throw things. Hallucinations recurred for 6 months. In our experience in these patients, even though symptoms were florid, they were transient and subsided 3-6 months later.