The biogenesis of the multi-subunit vacuolar-type H⁺-ATPase (V-ATPase) is initiated in the endoplasmic reticulum with the assembly of the proton pore V0, which is controlled by a group of assembly factors. Here, we identify two hemizygous missense mutations in the extracellular domain of the accessory V-ATPase subunit ATP6AP2 (also known as the [pro]renin receptor) responsible for a glycosylation disorder with liver disease, immunodeficiency, cutis laxa, and psychomotor impairment. We show that ATP6AP2 deficiency in the mouse liver caused hypoglycosylation of serum proteins and autophagy defects. The introduction of one of the missense mutations into Drosophila led to reduced survival and altered lipid metabolism. We further demonstrate that in the liver-like fat body, the autophagic dysregulation was associated with defects in lysosomal acidification and mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling. Finally, both ATP6AP2 mutations impaired protein stability and the interaction with ATP6AP1, a member of the V0 assembly complex. Collectively, our data suggest that the missense mutations in ATP6AP2 lead to impaired V-ATPase assembly and subsequent defects in glycosylation and autophagy.

We used exome sequencing to identify mutations in sideroflexin 4 (SFXN4) in two children with mitochondrial disease (the more severe case also presented with macrocytic anemia). SFXN4 is an uncharacterized mitochondrial protein that localizes to the mitochondrial inner membrane. sfxn4 knockdown in zebrafish recapitulated the mitochondrial respiratory defect observed in both individuals and the macrocytic anemia with megaloblastic features of the more severe case. In vitro and in vivo complementation studies with fibroblasts from the affected individuals and zebrafish demonstrated the requirement of SFXN4 for mitochondrial respiratory homeostasis and erythropoiesis. Our findings establish mutations in SFXN4 as a cause of mitochondriopathy and macrocytic anemia.

BACKGROUND:To improve our understanding of urea cycle disorders (UCDs) prospectively followed by two North American (NA) and European (EU) patient cohorts. AIMS:Description of the NA and EU patient samples and investigation of the prospects of combined and comparative analyses for individuals with UCDs. METHODS:Retrieval and comparison of the data from 1095 individuals (NA: 620, EU: 475) from two electronic databases. RESULTS:The proportion of females with ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency (fOTC-D), particularly those being asymptomatic (asfOTC-D), was higher in the NA than in the EU sample. Exclusion of asfOTC-D resulted in similar distributions in both samples. The mean age at first symptoms was higher in NA than in EU patients with late onset (LO), but similar for those with early (≤ 28 days) onset (EO) of symptoms. Also, the mean age at diagnosis and diagnostic delay for EO and LO patients were similar in the NA and EU cohorts. In most patients (including fOTC-D), diagnosis was made after the onset of symptoms (59.9%) or by high-risk family screening (24.7%), and less often by newborn screening (8.9%) and prenatal testing (3.7%). Analysis of clinical phenotypes revealed that EO patients presented with more symptoms than LO individuals, but that numbers of symptoms correlated with plasma ammonium concentrations in EO patients only. Liver transplantation was reported for 90 NA and 25 EU patients. CONCLUSIONS:Combined analysis of databases drawn from distinct populations opens the possibility to increase sample sizes for natural history questions, while comparative analysis utilizing differences in approach to treatment can evaluate therapeutic options and enhance long-term outcome studies.