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Parents of children with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11DS) report concern about the psychiatric manifestations of the condition, but typically receive little information about this in clinical encounters and instead find information about it elsewhere. We developed an educational booklet about the psychiatric manifestations of 22q11DS and assessed its utility among parents of children with the condition. First, six parents of individuals with 22q11DS completed cognitive interviews to review an established generic booklet about the genetics of psychiatric conditions-and to suggest 22q11DS-specific adaptations. We used these suggestions to develop a novel booklet specific to psychiatric conditions and 22q1DS. Then, before and 1-month after reading the novel 22q11DS-specific online booklet, 73 parents of children with 22q11DS (with/without psychiatric conditions) completed validated scales (measuring empowerment, stigma, intolerance of uncertainty), an adapted version of a scale measuring worry about their child developing psychiatric illness, and purpose-designed items assessing perceptions of understanding of 22q11DS and mental illness, confidence in recognizing early signs, etc. After reading the 22q11DS online booklet, participants' feelings of empowerment increased (p = 0.002), while feelings of worry about their child developing psychiatric illness decreased (p = 0.05), and they reported better understanding 22q11DS and mental illness, and increased confidence in recognizing early warning signs. There is potential benefit in broadly distributing this educational booklet to parents of children with 22q11DS., (© 2023 The Authors. Journal of Genetic Counseling published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of National Society of Genetic Counselors.)

Purpose: Pathogenic variants in genes involved in the epigenetic machinery are an emerging cause of neurodevelopment disorders (NDDs). Lysine-demethylase 2B (KDM2B) encodes an epigenetic regulator and mouse models suggest an important role during development. We set out to determine whether KDM2B variants are associated with NDD., Methods: Through international collaborations, we collected data on individuals with heterozygous KDM2B variants. We applied methylation arrays on peripheral blood DNA samples to determine a KDM2B associated epigenetic signature., Results: We recruited a total of 27 individuals with heterozygous variants in KDM2B. We present evidence, including a shared epigenetic signature, to support a pathogenic classification of 15 KDM2B variants and identify the CxxC domain as a mutational hotspot. Both loss-of-function and CxxC-domain missense variants present with a specific subepisignature. Moreover, the KDM2B episignature was identified in the context of a dual molecular diagnosis in multiple individuals. Our efforts resulted in a cohort of 21 individuals with heterozygous (likely) pathogenic variants. Individuals in this cohort present with developmental delay and/or intellectual disability; autism; attention deficit disorder/attention deficit hyperactivity disorder; congenital organ anomalies mainly of the heart, eyes, and urogenital system; and subtle facial dysmorphism., Conclusion: Pathogenic heterozygous variants in KDM2B are associated with NDD and a specific epigenetic signature detectable in peripheral blood., Competing Interests: Conflict of Interest The authors declare no conflicts of interest., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Background: Hyperinsulinism-hyperammonemia syndrome is the second most common cause of congenital hyperinsulinism and is easily treated with diazoxide; however, the symptoms in our patient were very difficult to control with typical medical therapy. To the best of our knowledge, neither our patient's mutation, nor a case of hyperinsulinism-hyperammonemia presenting with dysmorphic features and intrauterine growth restriction has previously been reported., Case Presentation: We describe a 2-year-old Hispanic girl with an unusual presentation of dysmorphic features and intrauterine growth restriction who was later found to have hyperinsulinism-hyperammonemia syndrome. Chromosomal microarray analysis revealed no copy number variants but demonstrated a high density of noncontiguous regions of homozygosity consistent with limited outbreeding. Sequencing of her GLUD1 gene revealed a previously undescribed mutation of cytosine to thymine at position 1519 resulting in an amino acid change of histidine to tyrosine at position 507. Although no functional studies were performed, function prediction tools in combination with our patient's phenotype support the hypothesis that the mutation is deleterious. Despite treatment with a maximum dose of diazoxide (15 mg/kg/day), phenobarbital (8.5 mg/kg/day divided twice daily) and a protein-restricted diet, she has global developmental delay, and continues to have seizures and recurrent episodes of hypoglycemia., Conclusions: It remains unclear if her clinical presentation can be solely explained by hyperinsulinism-hyperammonemia syndrome or is the result of an undiagnosed recessive disorder related to her homozygosity. It is our hope that clinicians may learn from our patient when formulating treatment plans for refractory cases of hyperinsulinism-hyperammonemia and avoid the morbidities associated with delayed diagnosis and treatment.