Epilepsiome. Within the new structure of the ILAE Genetics Commission, the Epilepsiome has become a Task Force for the current term. Our blog has accompanied the developments in the field of neurogenetics for the last seven years and has seen the rise of next-generation sequencing and formal gene and variant curation frameworks. This has left us with a basic question: what is left to say? Should the future Epilepsiome simply chronicle what is happening in the field or should we try to use our platform to develop novel and potentially provocative thoughts? Within the current Epilepsiome Task Force, we decided to try the latter. There has been much attention paid to, and understandably much excitement about, the prospect of targeted precision treatments based on specific gene mutations. But could this be a Potemkin village based on unrealistic treatment expectations? What else is happening in the field of epilepsy genetics, outside the spotlight? We agreed that the new Epilepsiome Task Force will strive to emphasize a richer, globally oriented, and multifaceted view of the genetic basis of human epilepsies and neurodevelopmental disorders. Here are the three things that our Task Force hopes to accomplish. Continue reading
Monthly Archives: August 2018
The 2018 neurological phenotyping course for systems genetics – an invitation to Luxembourg
Computational phenotypes. Clinical epilepsy research requires the capturing of complex information in a way that then can be subjected to statistical analysis. For the analysis on the phenotype level, new standards are emerging that are heavily informed by genetic studies. In fact, in addition to the known domain-specific classifications such as the ILAE classification for epilepsy, interdisciplinary action is often required to improve the classification of neurological syndromes for a larger analysis. During the upcoming EMBO Practical phenotyping course in Luxembourg, we will introduce trainees in the field to concepts like the Human Phenotype Ontology (HPO), a controlled vocabulary to characterize syndromes and one of pillars of research in complex syndromes such as epilepsy and how to address aspects not covered in HPO. The course will be held in Luxembourg from Oct 4 to Oct 10, 2018. There has already been a strong interest in this course, but we have a few spots left if you would like to register!
Five elements to include in your manuscript to get full ClinGen points
ClinGen Epilepsy Gene Curation Expert Panel. For the past year I have been a member of the ClinGen Epilepsy Gene Curation Expert Panel, which has been a rewarding professional experience. I have gotten to know several colleagues within the epilepsy and ClinGen communities, I’ve become familiar with resources for gene curation including MONDO and HPO, and I’ve dived deeply into the existing literature linking genes with a broad spectrum of epilepsies. But working with ClinGen has had another unexpected benefit – it has influenced my approach to writing scientific manuscripts. I have been able to apply this knowledge recently when writing a manuscript about a new causative gene for developmental and epileptic encephalopathies. In this post I would like to share five insider tips about what to include in your genetics manuscript so that it can receive full consideration from the ClinGen Epilepsy Expert Panel.
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The power of 3 – exome trios in neurodevelopmental disorders with epilepsy
Trio exomes. The concept of neurodevelopmental disorders is an umbrella term including intellectual disability, developmental delay, and autism spectrum disorder. About one quarter of these patients have epilepsy, including epileptic encephalopathy, in which the epileptic activity itself contributes to developmental delay or regression. One major cause of these disorders are de novomutations, which are present in the child but not present in either of the parents. A recent publication in Nature Genetics looked for de novo variants in nearly 6,700 patients with neurodevelopmental disorders, nearly 2,000 of whom had epilepsy. This study is an order of magnitude larger than the largest previous study of this kind and represents an important effort in epilepsy genetics. Here is what we want to review their major findings. Continue reading
