Stephen R F Twigg, Jennifer Forecki, Jacqueline A C Goos, Ivy C A Richardson, A Jeannette M Hoogeboom, Ans M W van den Ouweland, Sigrid M A Swagemakers, Maarten H Lequin, Daniel Van Antwerp, Simon J McGowan, Isabelle Westbury, Kerry A Miller, Steven A Wall, Peter J van der Spek, Irene M J Mathijssen, Erwin Pauws, Christa S Merzdorf, Andrew O M Wilkie
Human ZIC1 (zinc finger protein of cerebellum 1), one of five homologs of the Drosophila pair-rule gene odd-paired, encodes a transcription factor previously implicated in vertebrate brain development. Heterozygous deletions of ZIC1 and its nearby paralog ZIC4 on chromosome 3q25.1 are associated with Dandy-Walker malformation of the cerebellum, and loss of the orthologous Zic1 gene in the mouse causes cerebellar hypoplasia and vertebral defects. We describe individuals from five families with heterozygous mutations located in the final (third) exon of ZIC1 (encoding four nonsense and one missense change) who have a distinct phenotype in which severe craniosynostosis, specifically involving the coronal sutures, and variable learning disability are the most characteristic features...
September 3, 2015: American Journal of Human Genetics