polycystic kidneys

Meckel Syndrome

Clinical Characteristics
Ocular Features: 

The ocular phenotype is highly variable.  The globe is often malformed or may be clinically absent.  Cryptophthalmos, clinical anophthalmia, and microphthalmos with sclerocornea and microcornea have been reported.  Posterior staphylomas, retinal dysplasia, partial aniridia, cataracts, and hypoplasia or absence of the optic nerve are sometimes seen.  Some patients have incompletely formed eyes with shallow anterior chambers, angle anomalies, and a persistent tunica vasculosa with lens opacification.  Histopathology may reveal thinning of the nerve fiber layer and a paucity of retinal ganglion cells.  The retina has been described as dysplastic with foci of rosette-like structures and abundant glial cells.

Systemic Features: 

Meckel or Meckel-Gruber syndrome is a clinically and genetically heterogeneous group of disorders with severe multisystem manifestations.  The triad of cystic renal disease, polydactyly (and sometimes syndactyly), and a skull malformation (usually an encephalocele) is considered characteristic of MKS.  However, these signs are variable and only about 60% of patients have all three features.  Many patients have additional signs such as malformations of the biliary tree, cleft palate (and/or lip), sloping forehead, low-set ears, short neck, low-set ears, ambiguous genitalia, and short, bowed limb bones.  Pulmonary hypoplasia is common which, together with kidney and liver disease, is responsible for the poor prognosis of most infants. 

Many clinical abnormalities resemble those present in the Smith-Lemli-Opitz syndrome (270400) and in Joubert syndrome (213300).

Genetics

Most conditions in this group are inherited in an autosomal recessive pattern.  Mutations in 9 genes have been identified as responsible for some variant of MKS in which there is a considerable range of clinical expression.  There is significant clinical overlap with Joubert syndrome and it is not surprising that at least 5 of these mutations have been identified in both conditions.  Further nosological confusion is generated by those who consider patients with the severe, lethal phenotype to have Meckel syndrome while those with milder disease are labeled Joubert syndrome, regardless of genotype.

Rare heterozygotes have been reported with isolated features such as polydactyly.

Pedigree: 
Autosomal recessive
Treatment
Treatment Options: 

There is no treatment for this syndrome.  The prognosis for life beyond infancy is poor due to the advanced dysfunction of numerous organs such as the kidney, lungs, liver and the central nervous system.

References
Article Title: 

Clinical and genetic heterogeneity in Meckel syndrome

Paavola P, Salonen R, Baumer A, Schinzel A, Boyd PA, Gould S, Meusburger H, Tenconi R, Barnicoat A, Winter R, Peltonen L. Clinical and genetic heterogeneity in Meckel syndrome. Hum Genet. 1997 Nov;101(1):88-92.

PubMed ID: 
9385376

Majewski Syndrome

Clinical Characteristics
Ocular Features: 

No clinical information is available on the ocular features in this disorder.  The fundi have been described as normal in one patient but postmortem histopathology at 8 weeks revealed optic nerve edema with segmental axonal dropout and loss of myelin.  The nerve fiber layer of the retina was prominent with some proliferation of glial tissue.  Early nuclear sclerosis was also present.

Systemic Features: 

This disorder results from a dysgenesis of the cilia and is one of a group of short rib-polydactyly disorders.  Congenital anomalies are found in multiple organs including heart, lungs, skeleton, intestines, genitalia, pancreas, liver, and kidneys.  The diagnostic characteristic of SRPS type II is extreme shortening of the tibia in addition to short ribs in this type of short-limbed dwarfism.

Midline facial clefting, especially cleft lip, is common.  The epiglottis and lungs are often hypoplastic and the kidneys are polycystic.  Polydactyly and polysyndactyly of both pre- and postaxial types are usually present.  Most neonates with SRPS type II do not live beyond infancy.

Genetics

This is an autosomal recessive condition resulting from homozygous mutations in the NEK1 gene (4q33), or, rarely, from digenic biallelic mutations in NEK1 and DYNC2H1 (11q22.3).

Another condition with some of the same features leading to respiratory distress is asphyxiating thoracic dysplasia 1 (208500), or Jeune syndrome.

Pedigree: 
Autosomal recessive
Treatment
Treatment Options: 

No effective treatment is available for this condition but surgical treatment could be considered for specific anomalies.

References
Article Title: 

NEK1 mutations cause short-rib polydactyly syndrome type majewski

Thiel C, Kessler K, Giessl A, Dimmler A, Shalev SA, von der Haar S, Zenker M, Zahnleiter D, Stoss H, Beinder E, Abou Jamra R, Ekici AB, Schroder-Kress N, Aigner T, Kirchner T, Reis A, Brandst?SStter JH, Rauch A. NEK1 mutations cause short-rib polydactyly syndrome type majewski. Am J Hum Genet. 2011 Jan 7;88(1):106-14.

PubMed ID: 
21211617

Potter Disease, Type I

Clinical Characteristics
Ocular Features: 

As part of the facial morphology said to be characteristic of Potter disease, there is usually hypertelorism, telecanthus and epicanthal folds.  Cataracts and angiomas of the optic disc area have also been described.

Systemic Features: 

Polycystic kidney disease and hepatic system anomalies are major features of Potter disease.   Pulmonary hypoplasia with neonatal respiratory distress, however, is often the most immediate cause of death in most infants.  Antenatal oligohydramnios and low birth weight are commonly present.  As many as 33% of fetuses die in utero, often the result of bilateral renal agenesis.  Infants that survive can have chronic lung disease and renal dysfunction.  Congenital heart malformations are common, including septal defects, tetralogy of Fallot and patent ductus arteriosis.  Vertebrae may have a ‘butterfly’ shape but other skeletal findings include hemivertebrae and sacral agenesis.  The neck has been described as short and the skull is brachycephalic.

The facial appearance, known as Potter facies, is said to be characteristic and may be helpful in distinguishing this type of polycystic kidney disease.  In addition to the ocular findings, the nares are often anteverted, and the external ears are large and often posteriorly rotated.

Genetics

The uniqueness of this syndrome remains to be established.  There are several polycystic kidney disorders which have a monogenic basis. These often have overlapping renal features with the condition described here but lack the facial features said to be characteristic of Potter type I disease.  Autosomal recessive inheritance has been suggested on the basis of several reported families with affected sibs from consanguineous parents but so far no gene locus or mutation has been identified.

Pedigree: 
Autosomal recessive
Treatment
Treatment Options: 

There is no treatment for the condition but symptoms of respiratory distress and renal failure may need to be addressed acutely.  Long-term therapy for pulmonary disease and renal dysfunction can be considered for older individuals.  Many infants die in the neonatal period.

References
Article Title: 

Syndrome of autosomal recessive polycystic kidneys with skeletal and facial anomalies is not linked to the ARPKD gene locus on chromosome 6p

Hallermann C, M?ocher G, Kohlschmidt N, Wellek B, Schumacher R, Bahlmann F, Shahidi-Asl P, Theile U, Rudnik-Schoneborn S, M?ontefering H, Zerres K. Syndrome of autosomal recessive polycystic kidneys with skeletal and facial anomalies is not linked to the ARPKD gene locus on chromosome 6p. Am J Med Genet. 2000 Jan 17;90(2):115-9. Review.

PubMed ID: 
10607948
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