Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a group of inherited disorders caused by mutations in HBB, which encodes haemoglobin subunit β. The incidence is estimated to be between 300,000 and 400,000 neonates globally each year, the majority in sub-Saharan Africa. Haemoglobin molecules that include mutant sickle β-globin subunits can polymerize; erythrocytes that contain mostly haemoglobin polymers assume a sickled form and are prone to haemolysis. Other pathophysiological mechanisms that contribute to the SCD phenotype are vaso-occlusion and activation of the immune system. SCD is characterized by a remarkable phenotypic complexity. Common acute complications are acute pain events, acute chest syndrome and stroke; chronic complications (including chronic kidney disease) can damage all organs. Hydroxycarbamide, blood transfusions and haematopoietic stem cell transplantation can reduce the severity of the disease. Early diagnosis is crucial to improve survival, and universal newborn screening programmes have been implemented in some countries but are challenging in low-income, high-burden settings.

Xylella fastidiosa is a fastidious, xylem-limited bacterium that causes a range of economically important plant diseases. Here we report the complete genome sequence of X. fastidiosa clone 9a5c, which causes citrus variegated chlorosis--a serious disease of orange trees. The genome comprises a 52.7% GC-rich 2,679,305-base-pair (bp) circular chromosome and two plasmids of 51,158 bp and 1,285 bp. We can assign putative functions to 47% of the 2,904 predicted coding regions. Efficient metabolic functions are predicted, with sugars as the principal energy and carbon source, supporting existence in the nutrient-poor xylem sap. The mechanisms associated with pathogenicity and virulence involve toxins, antibiotics and ion sequestration systems, as well as bacterium-bacterium and bacterium-host interactions mediated by a range of proteins. Orthologues of some of these proteins have only been identified in animal and human pathogens; their presence in X. fastidiosa indicates that the molecular basis for bacterial pathogenicity is both conserved and independent of host. At least 83 genes are bacteriophage-derived and include virulence-associated genes from other bacteria, providing direct evidence of phage-mediated horizontal gene transfer.

Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a debilitating monogenic blood disorder with a highly variable phenotype characterized by severe pain crises, acute clinical events, and early mortality. Interindividual variation in fetal hemoglobin (HbF) expression is a known and potentially heritable modifier of SCD severity. High HbF levels are correlated with reduced morbidity and mortality. Here, we genotyped additional BCL11A SNPs, HBS1L-MYB SNPs, and an SNP upstream of G ␥-globin (HBG2; the XmnI polymorphism), in two independent SCD cohorts: the African American Cooperative Study of Sickle Cell Disease (CSSCD) and an SCD cohort from Brazil. We studied the effect of these SNPs on HbF levels and on a measure of SCD-related morbidity (pain crisis rate). We strongly replicated the association between these SNPs and HbF level variation (in the CSSCD, P values range from 0.04 to 2 ؋ 10 ؊42 ). Together, common SNPs at the BCL11A, HBS1L-MYB, and ␤-globin (HBB) loci account for >20% of the variation in HbF levels in SCD patients. We also have shown that HbF-associated SNPs associate with pain crisis rate in SCD patients. These results provide a clear example of inherited common sequence variants modifying the severity of a monogenic disease.genetic modifier ͉ single nucleotide polymorphism ͉ globin gene regulation

Acquired somatic mutations in exon 2 of the hematopoietic transcription factor GATA-1 have been found in individuals with Down syndrome with both transient myeloproliferative disorder and acute megakaryoblastic leukemia. These mutations prevent the synthesis of the full-length protein but allow the synthesis of its short isoform, GATA-1s. Experiments in mice suggest that GATA-1s supports normal adult megakaryopoiesis, platelet formation and erythropoiesis. Here we report a mutation, 332G --> C, in exon 2 of GATA1, leading to the synthesis of only the short isoform in seven affected males from two generations of a family. Hematological profiles of affected males demonstrate macrocytic anemia, normal platelet counts and neutropenia in most cases. Altogether, data suggest that GATA-1s alone, produced in low or normal levels, is not sufficient to support normal erythropoiesis. Moreover, this is the first study to indicate that a germline splicing mutation does not lead to leukemia in the absence of other cooperating events, such as Down syndrome.

SummaryMild hyperhomocysteinemia has been identified as a risk factor for arterial disease and for venous thrombosis. Individuals homozygous for the thermolabile variant of the methylene tetrahydrofolate reductase gene (MTHFR) which results from a common mutation Ala677→Val and is found in 5-15% of the general population, have significantly elevated plasma homocysteine levels and may account for one of the genetic risk factors in vascular disease. We have analyzed the prevalence of MTHFR-T homozygotes in patients with arterial disease or venous thrombosis. We studied 191 patients with arterial disease and 127 individuals with venous thrombosis and compared with 296 unmatched controls. The results showed that there was a high prevalence of homozygotes for the mutated MTHFR-T allele among a group of patients with arterial disease (19%) in the absence of hyperlipoproteinemia, hypertension, and diabetes mellitus when compared to controls (4%), odds ratio of 5.52 (95% C.I., 2.27 to 13.51). The prevalence of homozygotes among patients with venous thrombosis was 11%, odds ratio of 2.93 (95% C.I., 1.23 to 7.01). The risk of venous thrombosis remained high, odds ratio of 2.63, even after we excluded 27 patients with hereditary thrombophilia (e.g. factor V Leiden, dysfibrinogene- mia, deficiency of protein C, protein S, antithrombin III, or factor XII) from the 127 overall cases with venous thrombosis. These data support the hypothesis that being a homozygote for the MTHFR-T is a risk factor for the development of arterial diasease and also for venous thrombosis.