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Defects in DNA repair and RNA metabolism associated with human neurological disorders
Cihlářová, Zuzana ; Hanzlíková, Hana (advisor) ; Čermák, Lukáš (referee) ; Roithová, Adriana (referee)
The human genome is constantly under the attack by various damaging agents, leading to the breakage of one or both strands of DNA that might interfere with RNA processing. Importantly, our cells have evolved diverse mechanisms to rapidly repair various DNA lesions, highlighting the importance of genetic integrity. Defects in DNA repair and/or RNA metabolism can lead to a variety of human hereditary diseases, with pathologies including growth and developmental defects, immunodeficiency, predisposition to cancer, and neurodegeneration. Mutations in the BRAT1 (BRCA1-associated ATM activator-1) protein have been associated with neurological disorders characterized by heterogenous phenotypes with varying levels of clinical severity ranging from microcephaly, hypertonia, epilepsy, seizures, and early death in the first two years of life to mild cerebellar atrophy and ataxia. Previously, BRAT1 protein has been implicated in the cellular response to DNA double-strand breaks and ATM signalling. However, the exact mechanism/s by which mutations in BRAT1 gene trigger neurological disorders are largely unknown. Recently, we have identified a homozygous missense c.185T>A (p.Val62Glu) variant in BRAT1 that markedly reduced the level of BRAT1 protein in patient-derived cell lines. Surprisingly, our data show that...
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