GTPBP2 in-frame deletion in canine model with non-syndromic progressive retinal atrophy

Abstract Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), caused by aberrant functioning of rod/cone photoreceptors, leads to blindness affecting mammals, including dogs. We identified a litter of three Labrador retrievers affected by non-syndromic PRA; the parents and three other siblings were unaffected. Homozy...

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Main Authors: Leonardo Murgiano, Jessica K Niggel, Eylem Emek Akyürek, Roberta Sacchetto, Gustavo D. Aguirre
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-02-01
Series:Scientific Reports
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-89446-7
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author Leonardo Murgiano
Jessica K Niggel
Eylem Emek Akyürek
Roberta Sacchetto
Gustavo D. Aguirre
author_facet Leonardo Murgiano
Jessica K Niggel
Eylem Emek Akyürek
Roberta Sacchetto
Gustavo D. Aguirre
author_sort Leonardo Murgiano
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), caused by aberrant functioning of rod/cone photoreceptors, leads to blindness affecting mammals, including dogs. We identified a litter of three Labrador retrievers affected by non-syndromic PRA; the parents and three other siblings were unaffected. Homozygosity mapping and whole-genome sequencing detected a homozygous 3-bp deletion in the coding region of GTPBP2, located in CFA12 (NC_049233.1:12,264,348_12,264,350del, c.1606_1608del, p.Ala536del). The variant was absent from the online European Variation Archive (EVA) database, the Dog Biomedical Variants Database Consortium, and the Dog10k database. We tested 91 non-affected dogs from the same kennel and found 75 wild-type (WT) and 16 carriers, all clinically normal, and 569 Labradors from the general population (USA), all WT. GTPBP2 is associated with Jaberi-Elahi syndrome (JES) in Homo sapiens, and splice variants in Mus musculus are associated with neurodegeneration; in both cases photoreceptor degeneration may be included in its manifestation. Heterologous cellular systems were transfected with cDNA encoding WT or A536del mutant GTPBP2 protein and immunoblot analysis of total cell lysate with anti-GTPBP2 antibodies showed that the expression level of the GTPBP2 mutant protein A536del is slightly but not significantly reduced compared to WT. Immunofluorescent methods and confocal analysis of cells transfected with WT or A536del GTPBP2 protein revealed that the WT form is diffuse throughout the cytosol, while the mutant form resulted in the formation of cytoplasmic aggregates in ~70–80% of cells. The deleted amino acid falls within a conserved interval outside the GTP domain of GTPBP2, suggesting a potentially novel role of the sequence on cellular localization of the protein.
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spelling doaj-art-7b555b849b8d4faab1327e91a1db68792025-08-20T03:18:41ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222025-02-0115111510.1038/s41598-025-89446-7GTPBP2 in-frame deletion in canine model with non-syndromic progressive retinal atrophyLeonardo Murgiano0Jessica K Niggel1Eylem Emek Akyürek2Roberta Sacchetto3Gustavo D. Aguirre4Department of Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of PennsylvaniaDepartment of Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of PennsylvaniaDepartment of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of PadovaDepartment of Comparative Biomedicine and Food Science, University of PadovaDepartment of Clinical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of PennsylvaniaAbstract Progressive retinal atrophy (PRA), caused by aberrant functioning of rod/cone photoreceptors, leads to blindness affecting mammals, including dogs. We identified a litter of three Labrador retrievers affected by non-syndromic PRA; the parents and three other siblings were unaffected. Homozygosity mapping and whole-genome sequencing detected a homozygous 3-bp deletion in the coding region of GTPBP2, located in CFA12 (NC_049233.1:12,264,348_12,264,350del, c.1606_1608del, p.Ala536del). The variant was absent from the online European Variation Archive (EVA) database, the Dog Biomedical Variants Database Consortium, and the Dog10k database. We tested 91 non-affected dogs from the same kennel and found 75 wild-type (WT) and 16 carriers, all clinically normal, and 569 Labradors from the general population (USA), all WT. GTPBP2 is associated with Jaberi-Elahi syndrome (JES) in Homo sapiens, and splice variants in Mus musculus are associated with neurodegeneration; in both cases photoreceptor degeneration may be included in its manifestation. Heterologous cellular systems were transfected with cDNA encoding WT or A536del mutant GTPBP2 protein and immunoblot analysis of total cell lysate with anti-GTPBP2 antibodies showed that the expression level of the GTPBP2 mutant protein A536del is slightly but not significantly reduced compared to WT. Immunofluorescent methods and confocal analysis of cells transfected with WT or A536del GTPBP2 protein revealed that the WT form is diffuse throughout the cytosol, while the mutant form resulted in the formation of cytoplasmic aggregates in ~70–80% of cells. The deleted amino acid falls within a conserved interval outside the GTP domain of GTPBP2, suggesting a potentially novel role of the sequence on cellular localization of the protein.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-89446-7Animal modelNon-syndromicProtein domainProgressive retinal atrophyProtein functionPhenotype variability
spellingShingle Leonardo Murgiano
Jessica K Niggel
Eylem Emek Akyürek
Roberta Sacchetto
Gustavo D. Aguirre
GTPBP2 in-frame deletion in canine model with non-syndromic progressive retinal atrophy
Scientific Reports
Animal model
Non-syndromic
Protein domain
Progressive retinal atrophy
Protein function
Phenotype variability
title GTPBP2 in-frame deletion in canine model with non-syndromic progressive retinal atrophy
title_full GTPBP2 in-frame deletion in canine model with non-syndromic progressive retinal atrophy
title_fullStr GTPBP2 in-frame deletion in canine model with non-syndromic progressive retinal atrophy
title_full_unstemmed GTPBP2 in-frame deletion in canine model with non-syndromic progressive retinal atrophy
title_short GTPBP2 in-frame deletion in canine model with non-syndromic progressive retinal atrophy
title_sort gtpbp2 in frame deletion in canine model with non syndromic progressive retinal atrophy
topic Animal model
Non-syndromic
Protein domain
Progressive retinal atrophy
Protein function
Phenotype variability
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-025-89446-7
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