Study of Inherited Retinal Disease (IRD)

A special issue of Genes (ISSN 2073-4425). This special issue belongs to the section "Human Genomics and Genetic Diseases".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (5 January 2024) | Viewed by 4981

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Professor of Department of Ophthalmology, Seoul National University Bundang Hospital, 173-82 Gumi-ro, Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do 13620, Republic of Korea
Interests: inherited retinal diseases; retinal artery occlusion; age-related macular degeneration; biosimilars; diabetic retinopathy; ocular drug delivery
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Inherited retinal disease (IRD) is a major cause of bilateral visual decline and blindness worldwide. To date, there is no definitive treatment option for this condition. Recently, there have been advances in the field of genetic diagnosis and treatment methods, including gene therapy and genome editing. Since the approval of gene therapy for RPE65-related IRD, the future of treatment of IRD appears bright, and more patients with IRD may be saved from blindness as technology develops. To reach a better visual outcome for IRD patients, a greater understanding of IRD, including genetics, mechanism, clinical features, and preclinical and clinical trial results, is needed for physicians, researchers, and patients, as well as pharmaceutical companies and governments.

In this Special Issue, we welcome reviews and original articles on the study of IRD. These include but are not limited to genetics and molecular mechanisms of IRD, diagnosis, clinical features and imaging of IRD cases, epidemiology, ethnic variability, preclinical research, and clinical trials of new treatments.

We look forward to your contributions. Thank you.

Prof. Dr. Se Joon Woo
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • inherited retinal diseases

  • retinitis pigmentosa
  • macular dystrophy
  • cone dystrophy
  • genotype
  • gene therapy
  • clinical trial
  • imaging
  • genetic mechanism
  • genome editing
  • phenotype

Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

15 pages, 3812 KiB  
Article
Genotypic Profile and Clinical Characteristics of CRX-Associated Retinopathy in Koreans
by Dong Geun Kim, Kwangsic Joo, Jinu Han, Mihyun Choi, Seong-Woo Kim, Kyu Hyung Park, Sang Jun Park, Christopher Seungkyu Lee, Suk Ho Byeon and Se Joon Woo
Genes 2023, 14(5), 1057; https://doi.org/10.3390/genes14051057 - 8 May 2023
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1395
Abstract
This study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics of Korean patients with retinal dystrophy associated with pathogenic variants of cone rod homeobox-containing gene (CRX). We retrospectively enrolled Korean patients with CRX-associated retinal dystrophy (CRX-RD) who visited two tertiary referral hospitals. Pathogenic variants were [...] Read more.
This study aimed to investigate the clinical characteristics of Korean patients with retinal dystrophy associated with pathogenic variants of cone rod homeobox-containing gene (CRX). We retrospectively enrolled Korean patients with CRX-associated retinal dystrophy (CRX-RD) who visited two tertiary referral hospitals. Pathogenic variants were identified using targeted panel sequencing or whole-exome sequencing. We analyzed clinical features and phenotypic spectra according to genotype. Eleven patients with CRX-RD were included in this study. Six patients with cone-rod dystrophy (CORD), two with macular dystrophy (MD), two with Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), and one with retinitis pigmentosa (RP) were included. One patient (9.1%) had autosomal recessive inheritance, and the other ten patients (90.9%) had autosomal dominant inheritance. Six patients (54.5%) were male, and the mean age of symptom onset was 27.0 ± 17.9 years. At the first presentation, the mean age was 39.4 ± 20.6 years, and best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) (logMAR) was 0.76 ± 0.90 in the better eye. Negative electroretinography (ERG) was observed in seven (63.6%) patients. Nine pathogenic variants were identified, including two novel variants, c.101-1G>A and c.898T>C:p.(*300Glnext*118). Taken together with the variants reported in prior studies, all variants within the homeodomain are missense variants, whereas most variants downstream of the homeodomain are truncating variants (88%). The clinical features of pathogenic variants within the homeodomain are either CORD or MD with bull’s eye maculopathy, whereas variants downstream of the homeodomain cause more diverse phenotypes, with CORD and MD in 36%, LCA in 40%, and RP in 24%. This is the first case series in Korea to investigate the CRX-RD genotype–phenotype correlation. Pathogenic variants downstream of the homeodomain of the CRX gene are present as RP, LCA, and CORD, whereas pathogenic variants within the homeodomain are mainly present as CORD or MD with bull’s eye maculopathy. This trend was similar to previous genotype–phenotype analyses of CRX-RD. Further molecular biologic research on this correlation is required. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Study of Inherited Retinal Disease (IRD))
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14 pages, 2361 KiB  
Article
Clinical and Genetic Features of Korean Patients with Achromatopsia
by Yong Je Choi, Kwangsic Joo, Hyun Taek Lim, Sung Soo Kim, Jinu Han and Se Joon Woo
Genes 2023, 14(2), 519; https://doi.org/10.3390/genes14020519 - 18 Feb 2023
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1473
Abstract
This multicenter study aimed to characterize Korean patients with achromatopsia. The patients’ genotypes and phenotypes were retrospectively evaluated. Twenty-one patients (with a mean age at the baseline of 10.9 years) were enrolled and followed up for a mean of 7.3 years. A targeted [...] Read more.
This multicenter study aimed to characterize Korean patients with achromatopsia. The patients’ genotypes and phenotypes were retrospectively evaluated. Twenty-one patients (with a mean age at the baseline of 10.9 years) were enrolled and followed up for a mean of 7.3 years. A targeted gene panel or exome sequencing was performed. The pathogenic variants of the four genes and their frequencies were identified. CNGA3 and PDE6C were equally the most prevalent genes: CNGA3 (N = 8, 38.1%), PDE6C (N = 8, 38.1%), CNGB3 (N = 3, 14.3%), and GNAT2 (N = 2, 9.5%). The degree of functional and structural defects varied among the patients. The patients’ age exhibited no significant correlation with structural defects. During the follow-up, the visual acuity and retinal thickness did not change significantly. In CNGA3-achromatopsia patients, a proportion of patients with a normal foveal ellipsoid zone on the OCT was significantly higher than that of patients with other causative genes (62.5% vs. 16.7%; p = 0.023). In PDE6C-achromatopsia patients, the same proportion was significantly lower than that of patients with other causative genes (0% vs. 58.3%; p = 0.003). Korean patients with achromatopsia showed similar clinical features but a higher prevalence of PDE6C variants than those of other ethnic groups. The retinal phenotypes of the PDE6C variants were more likely to be worse than those of other genes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Study of Inherited Retinal Disease (IRD))
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15 pages, 1756 KiB  
Article
The Presence of Hyperreflective Foci Reflects Vascular, Morphologic and Metabolic Alterations in Retinitis Pigmentosa
by Clemens Diem, Cengiz Türksever and Margarita G. Todorova
Genes 2022, 13(11), 2034; https://doi.org/10.3390/genes13112034 - 4 Nov 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 1372
Abstract
Background: The presence of hyperreflective foci (HRF) in retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a potentially new finding. We investigated the presence of HRF in SD-OCT images in eyes with RP and its relation to vascular, morphologic and metabolic findings in RP. Methods: The study [...] Read more.
Background: The presence of hyperreflective foci (HRF) in retinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a potentially new finding. We investigated the presence of HRF in SD-OCT images in eyes with RP and its relation to vascular, morphologic and metabolic findings in RP. Methods: The study was performed on 42 RP patients and 24 controls. Using SD-OCT, we calculated the amount of HRF within the entire retina (HRF-ER) and the outer nuclear layer (HRF-ONL). Retinal vessel diameters (μm) and oxygen saturation (%) values were measured using Oxymap T1. We evaluated the mean diameter in retinal arterioles (D-A) and venules (D-V), the corresponding oxygen saturation values (A-SO2, V-SO2) and the oxygen saturation difference (A-V SO2). Results: RP differed from controls by HRF-ER, HRF-ON and EZ-length (p < 0.001). D-A and D-V were narrower and A-SO2 and V-SO2 were higher in RP (p ≤ 0.001). Within RP, significant interactions were found between the HRF-ER* group and: BCVA, EZ length, D-A, A-SO2 and A-V SO2 (p ≤ 0.018). The HRF-ONL* group interactions were significant for: BCVA, EZ length, D-A, A-SO2 and A-V SO2 (p ≤ 0.014). Conclusion: The present study highlights the presence of HRF to reflect the vascular, morphologic and metabolic alterations in RP. These biomarkers seem to be associated with remodeling and apoptosis that occur with the progression of degeneration. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Study of Inherited Retinal Disease (IRD))
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