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Molecular genetic analysis of the transmission of mutations in 73 families with fragile X (one of the largest samples evaluated so far) has confirmed previous hypotheses that the fragile X syndrome results from two consecutive mutational steps, designated “premutation” and “full fragile X mutation”. These mutations give rise to expansions of restriction fragments, most probably by amplification of the FMR-1 CGG repeat. Premutations are identified by small expansions that apparently have no effect on either the clinical or the cellular phenotype. Full mutations are reflected by large expansions and hypermethylation of the expanded gene region. All males showing large expansions were affected. Individuals with full mutations also expressed the fragile X, with only one exception. An affected “mosaic” male, showing a predominance of premutated fragments in his leukocytes, was shown to be fragile-X-negative on different occasions. About 50% of heterozygotes with full mutations were reported by clinicians to be mentally retarded. Conversion of the premutation to the full mutation may occur at oogenesis, as previously suggested, or after formation of a zygote at an early transitional stage in development when the CGG repeat behaves as a mitotically unstable element on maternally derived/imprinted X chromosomes carrying a premutation of sufficient repeat length.

Three cases of inherited satellited Y chromosomes (Yqs) were analysed using several cytogenetic techniques. The cytogenetic data of the 14 cases of Yqs chromosomes described to date were reviewed. All Yqs chromosomes carry an active nucleolus organizer region (NOR) in their long arm and must have developed from translocations involving the short arms of the acrocentric autosomes. The structure of the heterochromatic satellite region in the Yqs chromosomes shows conspicuous inter-familial differences; this permits the reconstruction of the translocations from which the various Yqs were derived. Some causal factors leading to the development of Yqs chromosomes are considered: the specific localization of the four satellite DNAs and highly methylated DNA sequences in the karyotype, and some new experimental data on the spatial arrangement of heterochromatic regions in interphase nuclei. These provide distinct evidence for a preferential involvement of the autosomes 15 and 22 in the translocations with the Y heterochromatin. All clinical reports documenting Yqs males born with malformations were reviewed. It appears that the presence of an extra NOR and NOR-associated heterochromatin in the Yqs chromosomes does not cause any phenotypic abnormalities (as long as the Y euchromatin is intact). The possibility that a Yqs chromosome predisposes to non-disjunction and/or to translocations of other chromosomes is discussed.

On the basis of lymphocyte cultures, chromosome studies were carried out on 28 degreasers under different trichloroethylene load. Nine of these cases showed pathological rates of hypodiploid cells, but otherwise normal caryotypes; one case had a caryotype 47,XY,+mar (small metacentric extrachromosome). In these nine cases the trichloroethylene load, but not the exposure periods on the working place were significantly higher than in the controll group.

Induction of neoplastic growth of murine stroma cells within the human tumor xenograft was observed after serial passage of CEA and ß2-microglobulin producing human colonic SLu tumor xenografts in nu/nu BALB/c mice. Mouse tumors within the human tumor xenografts wre identified using specific immunohistologic staining techniques for mouse histocompatibility marker or human CEA. These mixed tumors could be distinguished from normal human tumor xenografts by a different relationship between development of the tumor marker in the serum and tumor size. We were able to establish transformed murine cells from human xenografts, either induced by SC injection of 1×106 tumor cells of the SLu cell line or by human SLu or mammary carcinoma tissue serially passaged in athymic animals. The established human and murine cell lines were characterized by cytogenetic methods. Transformed murine cells were then continuously passaged in tissue culture. The transformed mouse fibroblasts proved to possess tumorigenicity in nude mice. In the case of SLu-derived mouse tumor cells, tumors also developed in the immunocompetent BALB/c mice using 1×106 to 5×106 tumor cells for SC transplantation.

We report a 2-year-old boy with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD), glycerol kinase deficiency (GK) and adrenal hypoplasia congenita (AHC). At three weeks of age, the patient was hospitalized for the first time with symptoms of hypotone dehydration because of AHC, At present, he shows severe muscular hypotonia and developmental delay. The patient and his family were referred to us for prenatal diagnosis and carrier testing in the mother of the patient and the mother's sister, respectively. The patient's DNA was examined by Southern blot and polymerase chain reaction analyses, using cDNA and genomic probes within and around the dystrophin (DYS) locus. A deletion was revealed, spanning DXS28, the whole dystrophin locus, DXS84 and DXS148, whereas DXS67, DXS68 (pter) and OTC (cen) were found to be retained. The cytogenetically visible microdeletion was also seen in the patient's mother, but not in the mother's sister or the patient's maternal grandmother. Our findings support the locus order pter-DXS67-DXS68-DXS28-AHC-GK-DMD-cen.

Linkage between GLO and 21-hydroxylase was investigated in 11 families with 24 children. Positive lod score values with a maximum of +1.618 at ?=0.05 indicate close linkage between these marker loci.