The phenotype of the HID (hystrix-like ichthyosis, deafness)/KID (keratitis, ichthyosis, deafness) syndrome is primarily characterized by skin changes.
Keratitis-ichthyosis-deafness syndrome-associated Cx26 mutants produce nonfunctional gap junctions but hyperactive hemichannels when co-expressed with wild type Cx43.
Keratitis-ichthyosis-deafness (KID) syndrome is a rare genodermatosis that typically results from mutations of the GJB2 gene or, less commonly, the GJB6 gene.
In both patients, a GJB2 mutation (N14K) was identified, which shares the same gene with classic Keratitis-ichthyosis-deafness syndrome but has never been described in patients with this condition.
Here, we assessed the effect of two Cx26 mutations associated with KID syndrome, Cx26I30N and D50Y, on protein biosynthesis and channel function in N2A and HeLa cells.
Mutation analysis revealed a novel GJB2 mutation p.Gly59Ser in the patient with Vohwinkel syndrome, whereas a recurrent mutation p.Asp50Asn was found in the patient with KID syndrome.
Here, we used the Xenopus oocyte expression system to examine the functional characteristics of a Cx26 mutation (G45E) that results in keratitis-ichthyosis-deafness syndrome (KIDS) with a fatal outcome.
A group of human mutations within the N-terminal (NT) domain of connexin 26 (Cx26) hemichannels produce aberrant channel activity, which gives rise to deafness and skin disorders, including keratitis-ichthyosis-deafness (KID) syndrome.
These results indicated that GJB2 mutation (p.G12R) in this case of KID syndrome, which was susceptible to T. rubrum infection, might be attributed to a limited native immune response.
Dominant mutations in the Cx26 gene GJB2 have been shown to cause keratitis-ichthyosis-deafness (KID) syndrome, palmoplantar keratoderma associated with hearing loss, and Vohwinkel syndrome.