Angelman Syndrome

Symptoms

Genomic Imprinting

EBE3A: role and effect of mutaion

Chromosome 15: UPD and deletions which give rise to Angelman Syndrome

Developmental delays, including no crawling or babbling at 6 to 12 months

Causes

Intellectual disability

click to edit

No speech or minimal speech

Difficulty walking, moving or balancing well

Frequent smiling and laughter

Happy, excitable personality

Sucking or feeding difficult

Trouble going to sleep and staying asleep

May also display

Seizures, usually beginning between 2 and 3 years of age

Stiff or jerky movements

Small head size, with flatness in the back of the head

Tongue thrusting

Hair, skin and eyes that are light in color

Unusual behaviors, such as hand flapping and arms uplifted while walking

Sleep problems

Curved spine (scoliosis)

Angelman Syndrome is caused by a mutation in the 15th chromosome called the ubiquitin protein ligase (UBE3A). .

This is the process of marking the parent of origin during the formation of sperm and egg cells.

Has major effects on prenatal development and placental biology.

Imprinted genes are emerging as key regulators of metabolic processes in both infants and adults. They can influence maintenance of body temperature, food intake and adiposity by acting on multiple tissues and pathways.

The UBE3A gene provides instructions for making a protein called ubiquitin protein ligase E3A.

Ubiquitin protein ligase E3A plays a critical role in the normal development and function of the nervous system

Both genes are generally inherited from ach parent however there are rare cases when both genes can be inherited from the paternal

Most cases of Angelman Syndrome occur when part of the maternal copy is missing or damaged

The mutation is generally caused by a missing segment in the maternal copy of the Chromosome 15.

It affects the nervous system which leads to the other symptoms of Angelman Syndrome

Uniparental Disomy is when a person receives 2 chromosomes or part of a chromosomes from a single parent but not the other

If both copies of Chromosome 15 are inherited from the paternal then Angelman Syndrome can occur. More commonly the maternal copy of Chromosome 15 is damaged which gives rise to Angelman Syndrome.