Made available in DSpace on 2016-01-26T12:51:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 carlareginamauadpaulaferreira_dissert.pdf: 1381182 bytes, checksum: 451c7414572128b78ae46256c72b0453 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-04-18 / The Asperger Syndrome (AS) is one of the conditions that make up the autism spectrum disorders, which are part of a group of severe psychiatric disorders are common in the general population and complex, called Pervasive Developmental Disorders. This syndrome is characterized by qualitative impairments in social interaction and restricted patterns of interest, however, there is no delay in language acquisition, speech is often pragmatic and memory is prodigious. Although most studied in neurological and behavioral context, the craniofacial phenotype is unclear. The objective of this study was to investigate the cephalometric measurements for Cone Beam Computed Tomography in patients with SA, for investigation of craniofacial changes, even that may influence the masticatory and respiratory functions. Measurements were carried out craniofacial cephalometrics obtained by 3D measurement of head circumference and facial and intraoral photographs of 10 individuals with AS, which were compared with a control group comprising 10 individuals of the same sex and age. The measurements obtained were compared with standard 2D measures already in place. There were no occlusal problems, facial features or specific phenotypic abnormalities in the group with AS. Individuals with AS had more difficulty chewing hard foods. Anatomical changes in the airways, characterized as septal deviations, turbinate hypertrophy and obstruction of the frontal and maxillary sinuses were more frequent in individuals with AS. These findings may be characteristic of AS and justify the difficulty of nasal breathing and chewing reported by the group. / A Síndrome de Asperger (SA) é uma das afecções que compõem as Doenças do Espectro Autístico, que fazem parte de um grupo de doenças psiquiátricas graves, comuns na população em geral e complexas, denominado Transtornos Invasivos do Desenvolvimento. Tal síndrome se caracteriza por prejuízos qualitativos na interação social e padrões restritos de interesses, porém, não há atraso na aquisição da linguagem, a fala é pragmática e a memória muitas vezes é prodigiosa. Embora seja mais estudada no contexto neurológico e comportamental, o fenótipo crâniofacial não está esclarecido. O objetivo deste estudo foi investigar medidas cefalométricas por Tomografia Computadorizada por Feixe Cônico, em pacientes com SA, para investigação de alterações craniofaciais, inclusive, que possam influenciar as funções mastigatórias e respiratórias. Foram realizadas medidas crâniofaciais obtidas por cefalometria 3D, medida do perímetro cefálico e fotografias de face e intraorais, de 10 indivíduos com SA, que foram comparadas com as um grupo controle composto de 10 indivíduos de mesmo sexo e idade. As medidas obtidas foram comparadas com medidas padrões 2D já estabelecidas. Não foram observados problemas oclusais, características ou anormalidades fenotípicas faciais específicas do grupo com SA. Os indivíduos com SA apresentaram mais dificuldade de mastigação de alimentos duros. Alterações anatômicas nas vias aéreas, caracterizadas como desvios de septo, conchas nasais hipertrofiadas e obstrução de seios maxilares e frontais, foram mais frequentes em indivíduos com SA. Estes achados podem ser característicos de SA e justificar a dificuldade de respiração nasal e de mastigação relatadas pelo grupo estudado.

Introduction: Les troubles respiratoires du sommeil (TRS), qui représentent une préoccupation croissante pour la santé, ont des effets significatifs sur la santé, le comportement et la performance académique chez l’enfant. Les malformations craniofaciales, l’hypertrophie adéno-amygdalienne et l'obésité, représentent des facteurs de risque importants dans le développement de cette condition. Les symptômes des TRS ont été étudiés dans une étude prospective chez les enfants et adolescents durant leur traitement orthodontique dans un milieu universitaire. Cette étude a cherché à décrire la prévalence et les facteurs de risque principaux des TRS, ainsi que l'impact des différentes interventions orthodontiques sur les symptômes TRS. Matériel et méthodes: dans une étude cohorte prospective, un groupe de 168 sujets âgés de 12 à 21 ans ont été soumis, quatre ans après la prise de données initiale, à un examen craniofacial en plus d'être administré des questionnaires qui ont recueilli des données sur la situation socio-démographique, le bruxisme et les troubles d’ATM, le sommeil et le comportement diurne, et les facteurs neuropsychologiques. Résultats: l'indice de masse corporelle a été augmenté mais est demeurée dans la même catégorie aux deux moments de l'enquête. Il ya eu une augmentation du serrement des dents et des symptômes de l'ATM, une diminution de la taille des amygdales, et une augmentation de la somnolence diurne. La prévalence des TRS n'a pas changé entre l’étude initiale et l’étude de suivi. Aucune intervention orthodontique s'est avérée avoir un effet cliniquement significatif sur les voies aériennes supérieures. Conclusions: la prévalence des symptômes TRS était constante par rapport aux valeurs de base pour la population étudiée, mais a augmenté si rapportée à la population générale. Les traitements orthodontiques ne montrent aucun effet sur les TRS. Mots-clés : apnée du sommeil, craniofacial, prévalence, ronflement, traitement orthodontique, voies aériennes supérieures / Introduction: Sleep-disordered breathing (SDB), a growing health concern, has significant effects on a child’s health, behaviour, and scholastic performance. Craniofacial malformations, along with adenotonsillar hypertrophy and obesity, represent important risk factors in the development of this condition. SDB symptoms in children and adolescents followed for orthodontic treatment in a university setting have been investigated in this prospective study. The aims of this study were to describe the prevalence and main risk factors of SDB and the impact of different orthodontic interventions on the SDB symptoms. Materials and methods: in a prospective cohort study, four years following an initial evaluation, a group of 168 subjects aged 12-21 years underwent a craniofacial examination in addition to being administered self-completed questionnaires that collected information on socio-demographic and psychosocial factors, bruxism and temporo-mandibular joint (TMJ) disorders, sleep and daytime behaviour, and neuropsychological factors. Results: Body mass index (BMI) was slightly increased but remained in the same category at the two time points of investigation. There was an increase in tooth clenching and TMJ symptoms, a decrease in tonsils’ size, and an increase in daytime sleepiness. Prevalence of SDB did not change between baseline and follow-up studies. No orthodontic treatment intervention proved to have any clinically significant impact on the upper airway. Conclusions: SDB symptoms prevalence was constant when compared to the baseline values for the studied population, but increased if reported to the general population. Regular orthodontic treatment didn’t show any effect on SDB symptoms. Keywords : craniofacial, orthodontic treatment, prevalence, sleep apnea, snoring, upper airway

Made available in DSpace on 2016-08-03T16:31:08Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Aline Castro.pdf: 688978 bytes, checksum: 51213829edfce7dd0bb946f4c3cf012c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2006-03-07 / The variation in the sizes of the naso and oropharnyx space occurs due to genetic and/or enviromental factors. The reduction in the size of the nasopharnyx space, caused by the hipertrophy of the pharyngeal tonsil, have been associated to alterations in the facial growth pattern and to harmful effects in the occlusion. The objective of the present study is to evaluate if there is variation in the size of the naso and oropharnyx space in agreement with facial growth pattern, evaluate the agreement with the VERT index and a possible sexual dimorphism. In the measurement of the spaces, were used lateral roentgenography of 90 patients, divided in three groups according to facial craniofacial growth, determined by the VERT index. The patients of the sample, with ages between 9 and 16, had nasal respiratory mode, without any kind of nasal obstruction. It was not observed variation statistically significant in the size of naso and oropharnyx, when compared the three facial growth pattern. Besides, it was not found correlation between the size of the spaces and the VERT index and a sexual dimorphism was not observed. / A variação nos tamanhos dos espaços aéreos naso e bucofaríngeo ocorre devido a fatores genéticos e/ou ambientais. A diminuição no tamanho do espaço aéreo nasofaríngeo, causada pela hipertrofia da tonsila faríngea, tem sido associada a alterações no padrão normal de crescimento craniofacial e a efeitos deletérios na oclusão. O objetivo do presente trabalho é avaliar se há variação nos tamanhos dos espaços aéreos naso e bucofaríngeo de acordo com o padrão de crescimento craniofacial, assim como avaliar a correlação entre os tamanhos dos espaços e o índice VERT, além de verificar um possível dimorfismo sexual. Na mensuração dos espaços, utilizou-se telerradiografias laterais de 90 pacientes, divididos em três grupos de acordo com o padrão de crescimento craniofacial, determinado por meio do índice VERT de Ricketts. Os pacientes da amostra, com idades entre 9 e 16 anos, apresentavam padrão respiratório nasal, sem qualquer tipo de obstrução. Não foi observada variação estatisticamente significante nos tamanhos dos espaços aéreos naso e bucofaríngeo, quando comparados os três tipos faciais. Também não foi encontrada correlação entre os tamanhos dos espaços aéreos e os valores do índice VERT de Ricketts dos pacientes e não foi observado dimorfismo sexual. XII

Introdução: As síndromes de Apert (SA) e Crouzon (SC) estão relacionadas a mutações do gene FGFR2. O desenvolvimento cognitivo é variável e está associado à presença de alterações do sistema nervoso central (SNC), idade da descompressão cirúrgica do crânio, estimulação e convivência social, escolarização, institucionalização dos individuos assim como aos aspectos sociais, econômicos, educacionais e a qualidade de vida da família. A influência do tipo de mutação do FGFR2 no desempenho cognitivo é mais um elemento a ser esclarecido para o melhor entendimento do desenvolvimento global dos indivíduos. Objetivo: Identificar, por estudo molecular, as mutações conhecidas do gene FGFR2 e apresentar esses dados de forma comparativa com o quociente de inteligência (QI) e alterações do SNC. Casuística e Método: A casuística foi composta por oito casos de SA e seis casos de SC, com diagnóstico genético clínico confirmado, que apresentavam avaliação cognitiva baseada no teste do QI e estudo anatômico do SNC por ressonância magnética (RM), ambos realizados previamente. Todos os casos foram submetidos à sequenciamento direto dos exons IIIa e IIIc do FGFR2. Os resultados foram comparados aos do QI e às alterações do SNC. Resultados: Seis casos apresentaram a mutação típica p.Ser252Trp e quociente de inteligência total (QIT) de 47 a 78 (média de 67.2). Um caso apresentou a mutação típica p.Pro253Arg, alterações do SNC (ventriculomegalia, hipoplasia do corpo caloso e do septo pelúcido) e QIT de 108. Um caso apresentou a mutação atípica c.940-2A>G splicing, QIT de 104 e ausência de alteraçoes encefálicas. Nos seis casos de SC foram identificadas diversas mutações do FGFR2, exceto em dois irmãos, que apresentaram a mesma mutação (p.Tyr328Cys). Esses indivíduos apresentaram QIT de 82 a 102 (média de 93.5). Conclusão: A análise da presente casuística evidenciou uma relação de mutação típica p.Ser252Trp a resultados de QI inferiores aos dos indivíduos com síndrome de Apert causada por outras mutações. A mutação p.Pro253Arg e a mutação atípica c.940-2A>G splicing apresentaram um resultado de QI acima da média para a SA, independentemente das alterações encefálicas identificadas por RM. Não houve correlação, na síndrome de Crouzon, do tipo de mutação identificada com o resultado do QI e as alterações encefálicas. / Introduction: Apert syndrome (AS) and Crouzon syndrome (CS) are related to mutations of the FGFR2 gene. Cognitive development is variable and usually related abnormalities of the central nervous system (CNS), age of surgical decompression of the skull, stimulation and social interaction, education, institutionalization of individuals as well as the social, economic, educational and quality of life family. The influence of mutation of FGFR2 in cognitive performance on the SA and SC would be a further element to be clarified for better understanding of the overall development of these individuals. Objective: Identified by molecular analysis of gene mutations known FGFR2 and present these data in comparison with the alterations found in the CNS and the intelligence quotient (IQ). Method: The sample included eight cases of AS and six cases of CS with clinical genetic diagnosis confirmed, who exhibited cognitive assessment based on IQ tests, and study of the CNS by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), both previously. All cases were subjected by direct sequencing analysis of FGFR2 exons IIIa / IIIc and the results were compared to IQ and changes in the CNS. Results: Six patient showed the typical mutation of the FGFR2 p.Ser252Trp and TIQ (total intelligence quotient) from 47 to 78 (67.2). One case showed the typical mutation p.Pro253Arg, CNS changes (ventriculomegaly, hypoplasia of the corpus callosum and septum pellucidum) and TIQ 108. One patient had atypical mutation c.940-2A>G splicing, no changes in the brain and TIQ 104. In the six cases with CS identified several mutations in FGFR2, except for two brothers who had the same mutation (p.Tyr328Cys). These patients had TIQ 82 to 102 (93.5). Conclusion: The analysis of this series showed a relationship between the typical mutation p.Ser252Trp to IQ scores of less than individuals with other mutations and AS. The mutation p.Pro253Arg and atypical mutation c.940-2A>G splicing had an IQ score above average for AS, regardless of changes in the brain MRI identified. There was no correlation in the CS of these mutations with the results of IQ and brain changes.

Craniofacial development is a tightly regulated event that requires expression of many genes at a precise space-temporal specificity. Interference in the regulation of such genes and their pathways is known to lead to abnormal phenotypes affecting the face and cranium. In this manner, regulation of these pathways is further complicated by interaction between genetic and environmental factors such that disturbance to either may result in craniofacial malformation, as orofacial clefts. Despite several at-risk loci have been identified, they do not completely explain the high heritability observed for the orofacial clefts and many questions remain open. For example, concerning the orofacial clefts transcriptome, the gene pathways which may be dysregulated and the affected cellular processes are still poorly understood. Further, if there is gene expression dysregulation in orofacial clefts, the causes leading to that need to be elucidated, such as the investigation of epigenetic factors. Also, since the multifactorial contribution makes environment relevant to this malformation, epigenetic and epigenomic differences in orofacial clefts should clarified. At last, rare syndromic forms of orofacial clefts with still unknown molecular cause and mechanisms should be elucidated in order to better understand craniofacial development and their impact in non-syndromic forms. Therefore, the main objective of this study was to investigate the molecular mechanisms involved in the aetiology of orofacial clefts, which was focused in gene expression and epigenetic analysis in non-syndromic cleft lip and/or palate (NSCL/P) as well as genetic, gene expression, animal modelling and epigenetics in Richieri-Costa-Pereira Syndrome (RCPS), a rare autosomal recessive syndromic form of orofacial cleft. We found significant transcriptome differences in NSCL/P in comparison to controls, revealing the BRCA1-dependent DNA damage repair pathway as compromised in NSCL/P cells leading to DNA damage accumulation. Next, we studied the potential of DNA methylation in those cells and found a slight but significant increase of BRCA1 promoter DNA methylation in NSCL/P cells and a distinct DNA methylation distribution, point to a possible epigenetic contribution in this phenomenon. We also evaluated the contribution of DNA methylation in 8q24.21 region, one of the most replicated regions in NSCL/P Genome-wide association studies and found no significant differences in our sample. Attempting to investigate DNA methylation in NSCL/P in an epigenomic level, we analysed methylomes and found 578 methylation variable positions in NSCL/P, highly enriched in regulatory regions and in relevant gene pathways for craniofacial development as Epithelial-Mesenchymal Transition pathway. We also studied effect of DNA methylation in familial NSCL/P displaying incomplete penentrance and found a significant increase of CDH1 promoter hypermethylation in penetrant cases in comparison to non-penetrants. Finally, by the use of different sequencing strategies and identity-by-descent analysis we mapped the mutation region of RCPS to EIF4A3 5\'UTR/promoter and found a complex structure of expanded repeats in RCPS patients leading to EIF4A3 downregulation. We were also able to validate the phenotypes using an animal modelling strategy in zebrafish. Because those repeats are CG rich, we investigated whether they were submitted to DNA hypermethylation in RCPS patients as a cause for EIF4A3 hypomorphism, however we found no evidence of methylation increase in RCPS. In conclusion, we were able to associate dysregulated pathways to NSCL/P susceptibility and DNA methylation differences to both non-familial and familial NSCLP. Besides, we were able to identify the genetic cause of RCPS, which now can be molecularly diagnosed. Altogether, our results add to the understanding of craniofacial development and the aetiology of orofacial clefts / O desenvolvimento craniofacial é um evento finamente regulado que requer a expressão de muitos genes em uma precisão espaço-temporal específica. A interferência na regulação de tais genes e suas respectivas vias é sabidamente causadora de fenótipos que afetam a face e o crânio. Neste sentido, a regulação destas vias é decorrente da interação entre fatores genéticos e ambientais, de tal forma que a perturbação de quaisquer destes fatores pode resultar em malformações craniofaciais, como as fissuras orofaciais. Apesar dos muitos loci de risco já identificados, estes não explicam completamente a alta herdabilidade observadas nas fissuras orofaciais e muitas questões permanecem em aberto. Por exemplo, em relação ao transcriptoma em fissuras orofaciais, as vias genéticas que podem estar desreguladas, assim como processos celulares afetados em decorrência, são ainda pouco compreendidos. Além disso, se há desregulação na expressão de genes em fissuras orofaciais, as causas que levam a essas diferenças necessitam ser elucidadas, como, por exemplo, por meio da investigação de fatores epigenéticos. Também, uma vez que o componente multifatorial torna a influência do ambiente relevante para esta malformação, diferenças epigenéticas e epigenômicas nas fissuras orofaciais devem ser melhor compreendidas. Por fim, formas raras e sindrômicas de fissuras orofaciais sem elucidação de causa moleculares devem ser estudadas para que melhor se compreenda o desenvolvimento craniofacial e o impacto destes mecanismos moleculares em formas não-sindrômicas. Portanto, nosso objetivo principal neste estudo foi investigar os mecanismos moleculares envolvidos na etiologia das fissuras orofaciais, com o foco na análise de expressão gênica e epigenètica em fissuras de lábio-palatinas não-sindrômicas (FL/P NS) e também o estudo genético, de expressão gênica, modelagem animal e epigenética na Síndrome de Richieri-Costa-Pereira (RCPS), uma forma sindrômica e autossômica recessiva de fissura orofacial. Nós encontramos diferenças significantes no transcriptoma de FL/P NS em comparação com controles, que revelaram o comprometimento da via do BRCA1 no reparo ao dano de DNA e o acúmulo de dano de DNA em células FL/P NS. Em seguida, nós estudamos o potencial da metilação de DNA nestas células e encontramos um pequeno, porém significante, aumento de metilação de DNA no promotor do BRCA1 e uma distribuição diferente de metilação, apontando para uma possível contribuição epigenética na desregulação do gene. Nós também avaliamos a contribuição da metilação de DNA na região 8q24.21, uma das mais associadas às FL/P NS por meio de Genome-wide association studies, porém não encontramos diferenças significantes na nossa amostra. Com o intuito de investigar a metilação de DNA em FL/P NS em uma escala epigenômica, nós analisamos o perfil de metilomas e encontramos 578 sítios diferencialmente metilados nas FL/P NS, altamente enriquecidos em regiões regulatórias e em vias relevantes para o desenvolvimento craniofacial como a via de Transição Epitélio-Mesenquimal. Nós também estudamos o efeito da metilação de DNA em casos famílias de FL/P NS com penetrância incompleta e encontramos um aumento significativo de metilação do promotor do CDH1 nos casos penetrantes em comparação aos não-penetrantes. Por último, por meio de diferentes estratégias de sequenciamento e análise de segregação de haplótipos nós mapeamos a mutação de RCPS na região 5\'UTR/promotor do EIF4A3 e encontramos uma estrutura complexa de expansão de repetições nos pacientes RCPS, ocasionando a diminuição da expressão do EIF4A3. Nós também reproduzimos fenótipos comparáveis aos da RCPS por meio de modelo animal em zebrafish. Uma vez que tais repetições são ricas em CG, nós investigamos se estas poderiam ser submetidas à metilação de DNA em pacientes RCPS como uma causa para a redução dos transcritos do EIF4A3, porém não encontramos evidências de aumento de metilação em RCPS. Em conclusão, nós conseguimos associar vias gênicas desreguladas à susceptibilidade para as FL/P NS e diferenças de metilação de DNA tanto em casos familiais como não-familiais de FL/P NS. Além disso, identificamos a causa genética de RCPS, sendo que a síndrome pode ser agora diagnosticada molecularmente. Em conjunto, nossos resultados adicionam ao conhecimento do desenvolvimento craniofacial e na etiologia das fissuras orofaciais

<p>Ancestry is a complex and layered concept, but it must be operationalized for its objective use in genetic studies. Critical decisions in research analyses, clinical practice, and forensic investigations are based on genetic ancestry inference. For example, in genetic association studies for clinical and applied research, investigators may need to isolate one population of interest from a worldwide dataset to avoid false positive results, or in human identification, ancestry inferences can help reveal the identity of unknown DNA evidence by narrowing down a suspect list. Many studies seek to improve ancestry inference for these reasons. The research presented here offers valuable resources for exploring and improving genetic ancestry inference and intelligence toward identity. </p> <p>First, analyses with ‘big data’ in genomics is a resource-intensive task that requires optimization. Therefore, this research introduces a suite of automated Snakemake workflows, <em>Iliad</em>, that was developed to give the research community an easy-to-learn, hands-off computational tool for genomic data processing of multiple data formats. <em>Iliad</em> can be installed and run on a Google Cloud Platform remote server instance in less than 20 minutes when using the provided installation code in the ReadTheDocs documentation. The workflows support raw data processing from various genetic data types including microarray, sequence, and compressed alignment data, as well as performing micro-workflows on variant call format (VCF) files to merge data or lift over variant positions. When compared to a similar workflow, <em>Iliad </em>completed processing one sample’s raw paired-end sequence reads to a human-legible VCF file in 7.6 hours which was three-times faster than the other workflow. This suite of workflows is paramount towards building reference population panels from human whole-genome sequence (WGS) data which is useful in many research studies including imputation, ancestry estimation, and ancestry informative marker (AIM) discovery.</p> <p>Second, there are persistent challenges in ancestry inference for individuals of the Middle East, especially with the use of AIMs. This research demonstrates a population genomics study pertaining to the Middle East, novel population data from Lebanon (n=190), and an unsupervised genetic clustering approach with WGS data from the 1000 Genomes Project and Human Genome Diversity Project. These efforts for AIM discovery identified two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) based on their high allelic frequency differences between the Middle East and populations in Eurasia, namely Europe and South/Central Asia. These candidate AIMs were evaluated with the most current and comprehensive AIM panel to date, the VISAGE Enhanced Tool (ET), using an external validation set of Middle Eastern WGS data (n=137). Instead of relying on pre-defined biogeographic ancestry labels to confirm the accuracy of validation sample ancestry inference, this research produced a deep, unsupervised ADMIXTURE analysis on 3,469 worldwide WGS samples with nearly 2 million independent SNPs (r2 < 0.1) which provided a genetic “ground truth”. This resulted in 136/137 validation samples as Middle East and provided valuable insights toward reference samples with varying co-ancestries that ultimately affects the classification of admixed individuals. Novel deep learning methods, specifically variational autoencoders, were introduced for visualizing one hundred percent of the genetic variance found using these AIMS in an alternative method to PCA and presents distinct population clusters in a robust ancestry space that remains static for the projection of unknown samples to aid in ancestry inference and human identification. </p> <p>Third, this research delves into a craniofacial study that makes improvements toward key intelligence information about physical identity by exploring the relationship between dentition and facial morphology with an advanced phenotyping approach paired with robust dental parameters used in clinical practice. Cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT) imagery was used to analyze the hard and soft tissue of the face at the same time. Low-to-moderate partial correlations were observed in several comparisons of dentition and soft tissue segments. These results included partial correlations of: i) inter-molar width and soft tissue segments nearest the nasal aperture, the lower maxillary sinuses, and a portion of the upper cheek, and ii) of lower incisor inclination and soft tissue segments overlapping the mentolabial fold. These results indicate that helpful intelligence information, potentially leading towards identity in forensic investigations, may be present where hard tissue structures are manifested in an observable way as a soft tissue phenotype. This research was a valuable preliminary study that paves the way towards the addition of facial hard tissue structures in combination with external soft tissue phenotypes to advance fundamental facial genetic research. Thus, CBCT scans greatly add to the current facial imagery landscape available for craniofacial research and provide hard and soft tissue data, each with measurable morphological variation among individuals. When paired with genetic association studies and functional biological experiments, this will ultimately lead to a greater understanding of the intricate coordination that takes place in facial morphogenesis, and in turn, guide clinical orthodontists to better treatment modalities with an emphasis on personalized medicine. Lastly, it aids intelligence methodologies when applied within the field of forensic anthropology.</p>

<p>Proper morphogenesis is essential for both form and function of mammalian craniofacial and neural tube development. Craniofacial deformities and neural tube defects are highly prevalent human birth defects. Although studies concerning craniofacial and neural tube development have revealed important genetic and/or environmental factors, understanding the mechanisms underlying proper development and the defects remain incomplete. </p><p>Among many genes that were cloned as the gastrula organizer genes in 1990s, Nog, a secreted BMP antagonist, is expressed in the relevant domains during craniofacial and neural tube development. Previous studies show that Nog null embryos exhibit fully penetrant spina bifida (open spine) and to the lesser extent exencephaly (open brain). Moreover, Nog null mice display deformities in skeletal structures including defects in craniofacial skeleton. As such, Nog is essential for proper neural tube and craniofacial development. However, it is still not clear that which domain(s) of Nog are responsible for proper craniofacial development or neural tube closure. In addition, it is also an important question when, and in what capacity Nog is necessary during development of craniofacial and neural tube.</p> / Dissertation

Across species, the face and more specifically the mouth, serves as an essential facet of everyday life. Amongst humans the mouth serves as a tool for the ingestion of food, a marker for facial recognition and a medium for communication. In order for the mouth to properly form, a series of precise growth and fusion events are needed. In order to insure that these events are orchestrated properly is a wide array of signals, transcription factors and epigenetic regulators. Due to the needed precision of these events, congenital birth defects of the face such as cleft lip and cleft palate are some of the most common worldwide. In order to support existing and identify new developmental processes involved in mouth formation, we have utilized the effective model, Danio to study the molecules and events implicated in orofacial development. This was accomplished by developing a novel confocal imaging technique that allows for visualization of the forward facing zebrafish. Using this imaging technique we were able to establish when the embryonic mouth first forms in zebrafish. Additionally, we recapitulated cleft-palate phenotypes shown in previous literature with the imaging method. Utilizing this technique, we then sought to further establish the role of Ca2+ signaling in proper orofacial morphogenesis and determine if the serine/threonine protein kinase, Ca2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase type-II (CaMK-II), has a role in proper orofacial developmental.

UA Open Access Publishing Fund / Titanium craniofacial hardware has become commonplace for reconstruction and bone flap fixation following craniotomy. Complications of titanium hardware include palpability, visibility, infection, exposure, pain, and hardware malfunction, which can necessitate hardware removal. We describe three patients who underwent craniofacial reconstruction following craniotomies for trauma with post-operative courses complicated by medically intractable facial pain. All three patients subsequently underwent removal of the symptomatic craniofacial titanium hardware and experienced rapid resolution of their painful parasthesias. Symptomatic plates were found in the region of the frontozygomatic suture or MacCarty keyhole, or in close proximity with the supraorbital nerve. Titanium plates, though relatively safe and low profile, can cause local nerve irritation or neuropathy. Surgeons should be cognizant of the potential complications of titanium craniofacial hardware and locations that are at higher risk for becoming symptomatic necessitating a second surgery for removal.

Introduction: Genetic determination of human face is clearly visible in family members. The resemblance between monozygotic twins who are genetically identical is especially remarkable. So far the possibilities of reliable prediction of the complex morphology of facial traits on the basis of genome analysis and the ability to capture the variability of human facial morphology through genotype variability are highly limited. Complete genetic basis of the physiological variability of craniofacial traits remains more or less unknown. This master's thesis was created as a pilot study of the shared project of the Laboratory of 3D Imagining and Analytical Methods and the Laboratory of Molecular Anthropology on Department of Anthropology and Human Genetics. Material and Methods: The specimen collection is composed of DNA samples derived from 30 families (29 with 4 members, 1 with 5 members) who fulfilled required criteria. Nine single nucleotide polymorphisms were chosen based on the available information. Eight of them are linked to normal facial variability and one was chosen based on the assumed function of the gene where the polymorphism is located. There were two methods of genotyping: RFLP method with the use of restriction endonuclease and SNaPshot method. Morphological data were provided by the...