Preimplantation genetic diagnosis for couples at high risk of Down syndrome pregnancy owing to parental translocation or mosaicism

The population risk for trisomy 21 is 1 in 700 births but some couples are at a much higher risk owing to parental translocation or mosaicism. We report on the first attempt to carry out preimplantation genetic diagnosis for two such couples using cleavage stage embryo biopsy and dual colour FISH analysis. Each couple underwent two treatment cycles. Couple 1 (suspected gonadal mosaicism for trisomy 21) had two embryos normal for chromosome 21 transferred, but no pregnancy resulted; 64% (7/11) unfertilised oocytes/embryos showed chromosome 21 aneuploidy. Couple 2 (46,XX,t(6;21)(q13;q22.3)) had a single embryo transferred resulting in a biochemical pregnancy; 91% (10/11) oocytes/embryos showed chromosome 21 imbalance, most resulting from 3:1 segregation of this translocation at gametogenesis. The opportunity to test embryos before implantation enables the outcome of female meiosis to be studied for the first time and the recurrence risk for a Down syndrome pregnancy to be assessed.


Keywords: preimplantation genetic diagnosis; Down syndrome; reciprocal translocation; gonadal mosaicism     

Two cases of Robertsonian translocations in oligozoospermic males and their consequences for pregnancies induced by intracytoplasmic sperm injection

Two case histories are presented documenting structural chromosome abnormalities in infertile males. The abnormalities were detected only after application of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) was repeatedly unsuccessful or resulted in an abnormal pregnancy. A mosaic Robertsonian translocation 45,XY,der(13;13)(q10; q10)/46,XY,t(13;13)(p10;p10), der(13p;13p) incompatible with normal offspring was found in a male with extreme oligozoospermia after three subsequent ICSI treatments were unsuccessful and one had resulted in a spontaneous abortion. A second case involved a Robertsonian translocation 45,XY,der(13;14)(q10;q10) which was detected in a male with extreme oligozoospermia after ultrasound abnormalities were found in an ICSI-induced twin pregnancy. Amniocentesis showed an unbalanced 46,XY,+13,der(13;14)(q10;q10) karyotype in one twin and a Robertsonian 45,XX,der(13;14)(q10;q10) karyotype in the other twin. Chromosome analysis of males with abnormal sperm characteristics is advised prior to ICSI.      

Trisomy 18q: 46, XX,13q+,t(13;18)(q32;q11) in a newborn associated with multiple congenital anomalies due to paternal reciprocal translocation, 46, XY,-13,+der(13)/t(13;18)(q32;q11)

A 20-day-old female neonate presented with multiple congenital anomalies, convulsions and failure to thrive. Karyotype analysis of the proposita revealed an unbalanced translocation, 46, XX,13q+,t(13;18)(q32;qll)pat resulting in partial trisomy 18q. Her father and a 5-year-old sister were phenotypically normal, balanced translocation carriers, 46, XY, -13, + der(13),t(13;18)(q32;qll) and 46, XX,-13,+der(13),t(13;18)(q32;qll), respectively. The case presented here is the second liveborn reported with trisomy 18q and is of interest from the point of view of the structural chromosomal aberration resulting in the manifestations of most features of trisomy 18 and some of 13q monosomy. The infant died due to convulsions at the age of 2 months.     

全染色体涂抹探针在女性罗伯逊易位携带者植入前遗传学诊断中的临床应用

目的应用全染色体涂抹探针（whole chromosome painting probe，WCP）对女性罗伯逊易位携带者进行卵母细胞第一极体的植入前遗传学诊断（preimplantation genetic diagnosis，PGD）。方法应用全染色体涂抹探针进行第一极体荧光原位杂交，对4例女方罗伯逊易位携带者进行了4个周期的PGD。患者染色体核型均为45，XX，der（13；14），（q10；q10）。所有周期取卵后6h内通过活检取出第一极体，采用WCP探针进行荧光原位杂交，受精后第3天选择染色体组成正常或平衡的胚胎进行宫腔内移植。结果4个周期共获卵61个，其中54个成熟可进行活检，活检成功率92．6％（50／54），固定成功率90．O％（45／50）。40个获得明确诊断，总体诊断率为74．1％（40／54）。卵胞浆内单精子注射后受精率64．8％（35／54），优质胚胎率为65．7％（23／35）。获得2例临床妊娠。其中1例于孕9周胚胎停止发育，绒毛染色体分析核型为45，X；另1例产前诊断证实核型为46，XX。2006年6月足月分娩一正常活女婴。结论全染色体涂抹探针可准确区分正常、平衡以及异常卵子，从而可有效应用于女性染色体易位携带者的PGD。     

Cytogenetics of recurrent abortions

G-banded chromosome complements were analysed from both partners of 150 couples who had had two or more spontaneous abortions. Two women and four men were found to be balanced translocation carriers, as follows: 46, XX, t(2;10), 46, XX, t(6;II), 46, XY, t(6;10), 45, XY, t(13;14), 45, XY, t(13;14). 45, XY, t(14;21). Another woman had an abnormal karotype 46, XX/47, XXX and a man had a pericentric inversion of chromosome 1; six other men and two women had pericentric inversions of chromosome 9.     

Reproductive risk in mating between two translocation carriers: Case report and review of the literature

We conducted a study to determine the reproductive risk in a couple who were translocation carriers. This couple, who carried balanced reciprocal translocations, experienced habitual abortions. The wife had a karyotype of 46,XX,t(7;13)(p15.3;q12.3) and the husband of 46,XY,t(1;7)(p11.1;p11.1). Chromosome study of their fourth abortus demonstrated a chimera consisting of two cell lines with a 46,XY and a 46,XX,t(1;7)(p11.1;p11.1)pat, ?13, +der(7)t(7;13)(15.3;q12.3)mat, karyotype. A review of the literature indicates that the risk of having unbalanced live offspring or of spontaneous abortion/stillborns is similar in couples in whom both were translocation carriers and in couples in whom one individual was a translocation carrier. The apparent lack of increased reproductive failure may result from the selective disadvantage of aneusomic gametes at fertilization or very early spontaneous abortions of unbalanced conceptuses. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Preimplantation genetic diagnosis for an insertional translocation carrier

BACKGROUND: While preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) is well established for carriers of reciprocal terminal translocations, reports on PGD for insertional translocation carriers are lacking. Here, we report on the PGD of an insertional translocation carrier with karyotype 46,XX,ins(14;2)(q21;q31q35). Due to the possibility of crossovers within the inserted region, rather than a single probe, four probes are required for proper embryo selection. METHODS: Probes were generated for PGD using fluorescence in situ hybridization and two PGD cycles. RESULTS: Analysis of 10 embryos revealed four embryos to be normal diploid. Two embryos were consistent with 3:1 segregation of the theoretical quadrivalent and one was consistent with 2:2 or 1:1 segregation. Furthermore, one embryo was mosaic abnormal and one remained without diagnosis. CONCLUSIONS: With increased acceptance of PGD, it is likely that more carriers of complex translocations will enter PGD programmes. The present results suggest that a careful genetic work-up of complex translocations is essential for proper embryo selection. While theoretical modelling may predict that quadrivalents will form during the meiosis of insertional translocations, experimental proof for the occurrence of quadrivalents is still lacking and more research on the meiotic process of both female and male insertional translocation carriers is warranted.     

自然流产夫妇中新发现的四例世界首报核型

目的　分析自然流产与染色体异常的关系。方法　运用外周血淋巴细胞培养法检测自然流产夫妇双方的染色体核型。结果　发现 4种新的平衡易位的人类染色体异常核型 ,分别为 46 ,XX ,t(1 ;6) (q31 ;p2 5) ;46 ,XX ,t(4;5) (q2 5 ;p1 3) ;46 ,XY ,t(5 ;1 5) (p1 3 ;q1 5) ;46 ,XY ,t(1 0 ;1 1 ) (p1 3 ;q2 1 ) ,经鉴定确定为世界首报核型。结论　染色体异常是导致自然流产的原因。     

Partial trisomy for short and long arm of chromosome no. 5: Two cases of two possible syndromes.

We report 2 patients from different families with malformation-retardation syndromes caused by a partial trisomy of the long and of the short arm of chromosome 5, respectively (case 1: 46,XX,der(3),t(3;5)(p27;p13)mat; case 2: 46,XY,der(22),t(5;22)(q33;q13)pat). Several members of these families were balanced translocation carriers. Our cases are compared with those cited in the literature. The possibility of delineating a 5p- and a 5q-partial-trisomy syndrome is discussed.     

A balanced whole arm reciprocal translocation resulting in three different adverse pregnancy outcomes.

A family with a whole arm translocation t(13;18)(13p18p;13q18q) was ascertained through a stillbirth with clinical features suggestive of trisomy 18. Two subsequent pregnancies both spontaneously aborted; one was found to have a 69,XXX,t(13;18)mat chromosome constitution while the other had a 45,XY,-13,-18, + der(18)t(13;18)mat chromosome constitution.     

PGD for a complex chromosomal rearrangement by array comparative genomic hybridization

Patients carrying a chromosomal rearrangement (CR) have an increased risk for chromosomally unbalanced conceptions. Preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) may avoid the transfer of embryos carrying unbalanced rearrangements, therefore increasing the chance of pregnancy. Only 7-12 loci can be screened by fluorescence in situ hybridization whereas microarray technology can detect genome-wide imbalances at the single cell level. We performed PGD for a CR carrier with karyotype 46,XY,ins(3;2)(p23;q23q14.2),t(6;14)(p12.2;q13) using array comparative genomic hybridization. Selection of embryos for transfer was only based on copy number status of the chromosomes involved in both rearrangements. In two ICSI-PGD cycles, nine and seven embryos were analysed by array, leaving three and one embryo(s) suitable for transfer, respectively. The sensitivity and specificity of single cell arrays was 100 and 88.8%, respectively. In both cycles a single embryo was transferred, resulting in pregnancy following the second cycle. The embryo giving rise to the pregnancy was normal/balanced for the insertion and translocation but carried a trisomy 8 and nullisomy 9 in one of the two biopsied blastomeres. After 7 weeks of pregnancy the couple miscarried. Genetic analysis following hystero-embryoscopy showed a diploid (90%)/tetraploid (10%) mosaic chorion, while the gestational sac was empty. No chromosome 8 aneuploidy was detected in the chorion, while 8% of the cells carried a monosomy for chromosome 9. In summary, we demonstrate the feasibility and determine the accuracy of single cell array technology to test against transmission of the unbalanced meiotic products that can derive from CRs. Our findings also demonstrate that the genomic constitution of extra-embryonic tissue cannot necessarily be predicted from the copy number status of a single blastomere.     

一例罗伯逊易位携带者的胚胎植入前遗传学诊断

目的　探讨植入前遗传学诊断 (preimplantation genetic diagnosis,PGD)用于筛选罗伯逊易位携带者无遗传缺陷后代的可行性及风险。方法　 1对因男方携带易位 (13;14 )染色体并伴少、弱精的原发不孕夫妇 ,经激素超促排卵和单精子卵胞浆内注射 (intracytoplasmic sperm injection,ICSI)进行体外受精(in vitro fertilization,IVF) ,当胚胎发育到 6～ 8细胞阶段 (受精后第 3天 )时 ,用酸化法活检 ,从每个胚胎中取出单个分裂球 ,用 L SI 13q和 Tel 14 q探针进行荧光原位杂交 (fluorescence in situ hybridization,FISH)检测 ,继续培养活检后的胚胎到第 2天 ,并选择正常胚胎移植 ,获临床妊娠后 ,于妊娠中期行羊水细胞染色体检查。结果　活检 10个胚胎 ,获得 8个 FISH诊断结果 :5 0 % (4/8)正常或平衡的胚胎 ,37.5 % (3/8)不平衡的胚胎 ,12 .5 % (1/8)不确定。将诊断正常或平衡的胚胎 3枚于活检第 2天移植入母体宫腔 ,获临床单胎妊娠 ,产前诊断证实胎儿核型为 4 6 ,XY,完全正常 ,现分娩一正常男婴。结论　需行辅助生殖技术治疗的患者 ,当携带有罗伯逊易位时 ,PGD用于筛除异常胚胎 ,解决患者的生育障碍、预防严重遗传病胎儿的产生具有重要价值。     

Familial reciprocal translocation, t(2;10)(p24;q26), resulting in duplication 2p and deletion 10q

We describe a familial reciprocal translocation between the distal part of the short arm of chromosome 2 and the long arm of chromosome 10. Five individuals in two generations had multiple congenital anomalies. Their karyotypes were 46, XX or XY,−10, + der(10), t(2;10)(p24;q26). Seven persons were balanced translocation carriers whose karyotypes were 46, XX or XY, t(2;10)(p24;q26). Common manifestations included mental retardation, strabismus, narrow high-arched palate, wide alveolar ridges, other facial abnormalities, genital abnormalities and mutism. The phenotype of the unbalanced individuals is compared to that of previously published cases of the syndrome of partial duplication 2p and to reported patients with partial deletion of 10q.     

Pure trisomy 10p involving an isochromosome 10p

We report a child with trisomy 10p due to a translocation of the long arm of chromosome 10 to the short arm of chromosome 14 and isochromosome formation of 10p [46,XX,i(10)(p10),der(14)t(10;14)(q10;p10)]. Most reported cases of trisomy 10p involve double segmental imbalance. In contrast, the clinical features described in the current case represent pure trisomy 10p and, thus, delineate the 10p trisomy syndrome phenotype. Mechanisms of the chromosomal rearrangements in this case are suggested.     

Molecular cytogenetic studies of Xq critical regions in premature ovarian failure patients

BACKGROUND: Premature ovarian failure (POF) is defined as amenorrhoea for more than 6 months, occurring before the age of 40, with an FSH serum level higher than 40 mIU/ml. Cytogenetically visible rearrangements of the X chromosome are associated with POF. Our hypothesis was that cryptic Xq chromosomal rearrangements could be an important etiological contributor of POF. METHODS: Ninety POF women were recruited and compared to 20 control women. Peripheral blood samples were collected and metaphase chromosomes were prepared using standard cytogenetic methods. To detect Xq chromosomal micro-rearrangements, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis was performed using a selection of 30 bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) and P1 artificial chromosome clones, spanning Xq13-q27. We further localized the translocation breakpoints by FISH with additional BAC clones. RESULTS: Chromosomal abnormalities were identified in 8.8% of our 90 patients [one triple X, three large Xq deletions 46,X,del(X)(q22.3), 46,X,del(X)(q21.2) and 46,X,del(X)(q21.32), two balanced X;autosome translocations 46,X,t(X;1) (q21.1;q32) and 46,X,t(X;9)(q21.31;q21.2) and two Robertsonian translocations 45,XX,der(15;22)(q10;q10) and 45,XX,der(14;21)(q10;q10)]. The two Xq translocation breakpoints were among a cluster of repetitive elements without any known genes. FISH analysis did not reveal any Xq chromosomal micro-rearrangement. CONCLUSIONS: Karyotyping is definitely helpful in the evaluation of POF patients. No submicroscopic chromosomal rearrangements affecting Xq region were identified. Further analysis using DNA microarrays should help delineate Xq regions involved in POF.     

Familial translocation with partial trisomy of 13 and 22: evidence that specific regions of chromosomes 13 and 22 are responsible for the phenotype of each trisomy.

A newborn infant with clinical and pathological findings typical trisomy 13 and 22 syndromes had an extra chromosome which was a derivative chromosome from maternal balanced translocation affecting Nos. 13 and 22; 47,XY,+der(22),t(13:22)(q22:q12)Mat. The presence of extra specific euchromatic regions of No. 13(13q22 and/or 13q34) and No. 22 (22q11) seem to be responsible for the trisomy 13 and 22 syndromes.     

Abnormal chromosome 9 in a neonate program. Report of three cases

We describe three cases with abnormal chromosome 9. Patient 1 shows translocation in a homologous chromosome, with a karyotype of 46,XX,t(9;9)(9pter----cen----9pter; 9qter----cen::9q13----9qter), 1qh+. This case has a variety of anomalies, including brain anomalies. Patient 2 shows a partial trisomy 9p with a karyotype of 47,XY,+del(9)(pter----q11:). The patient has the typical clinical features of 9p trisomy syndrome. Patient 3 is unique because of partial 9p tetrasomy mosaicism without phenotypic abnormalities; the karyotype is mos 46,XY/47,XY,+dic(9)(pter----cen----q21::q21----cen----pter).     

Cytogenetic characteristics of T-lymphoid cell strains ofPapio hamadryas

A detailed cytogenetic study of three T-lymphoid strains ofPapio hamadryas cells was carried out. Two strains, LNPH-5(T) and SPH-7(T), had normal karyotype 42,XX at the 43rd and 56th passages. After long culturing the initial SPH-7(T) cells were completely replaced by the 87th passage by cells with a pseudodiploid karyotype 42,XX,der(1), der(2), der(13), der(14), der(X). SPH-8(T) strain (36th passage) contained two cell clones, with predominant normal (42,XY) and pseudodiploid 42,XY, der(7)t(7;X) (qter;pter), del(13)(q21),del(14)(q16) karyotype. The patterns of karyotypic variability of simian and human T-lymphoid cell strains are similar. Translated fromByulleten' Eksperimental'noi Biologii i Meditsiny, Vol. 126, No. 10, pp. 444–447, October, 1998     

Preimplantation genetic diagnosis for a known cryptic translocation: follow-up clinical report and implication of segregation products

This report describes preimplantation genetic diagnosis (PGD) of a couple with a known paternally-derived balanced cryptic translocation 46,XY.ish t(2q;17q)(210E14-,B37c1+;B37c1-,210E14+) in embryos from a couple who previously had a child with severe mental retardation and was previously described in this journal [Bacino et al., 2000]. This child inherited the unbalanced product of translocation from her father: 46,XX.ish der(2)t(2q;17q)pat(210E14-,B37c1+). The couple desired a normal offspring and sought PGD to avoid clinical pregnancy termination. They were treated three times with in vitro fertilization followed by PGD. Two sequential FISH hybridizations were performed. In the first hybridization, telomeric probes to 2q and 17q and a chromosome 17 centromere probe were employed. The second hybridization screened for maternal age-related aneuploidy (X,Y,13,18,21). Of the 18 informative embryos, only 4 (22%) were normal. The remaining 12 (67%) were abnormal; most with unbalanced products (10/12) from the paternally-derived rearrangement. The most frequent mode of segregation observed for this cryptic translocation was adjacent-1 (7/18, 39%). This suggests cryptic translocations are amenable to PGD and, as are traditional translocations, demonstrate higher frequencies of unbalanced segregants than the empiric risk of 10-15% observed at amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling. Thus, cryptic translocations presumably behave like overt translocations, in that PGD must be performed on a relatively large number of embryos to assure even 2-3 transferable embryos.     

Cytogenetic subtype involving chromosome 13 in lipoma. Report of three cases

We report three lipomas with rearrangements of chromosome 13. The karyotype of the tumors studied were 45,XX,-8,+der(8)t(8;13)(q22;q12),del(10)(p12),-13; 46,XY,del(13)(q12q22), and 46,XY,t(11;12)(q23;q13),del(13)(q12q22), respectively, revealing common involvement of band 13q12 in the rearrangement. Three other lipomas with aberrations of bands 13q12-q13 have been reported, suggesting that such tumors with abnormalities of chromosome 13 could represent a subgroup of lipoma in addition to those already reported with abnormalities of chromosomes 12q and 6p. The rearrangements of #13 in all these cases also involved loss of the band 13q14 to which the antioncogene associated with retinoblastoma and osteosarcoma is localized. Detailed clinical, histopathologic, and molecular studies should help to further characterize the various cytogenetically defined subgroups of lipoma.