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Updated: Aug 8, 2026

Functional Characterization of Endogenously Expressed Human RYR1 Variants
Published on: June 9, 2021
A mutation in RYK is a genetic factor for nonsyndromic cleft lip and palate
Akira Watanabe1, Sadanori Akita, Nguyen Thi Duc Tin
1The Second Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Tokyo Dental College, Chiba, Japan.
Objective:
The RYK, EPHB2, and EPHB3 genes are attractive candidates for cleft lip and/or palate and cleft palate only pathogenesis. Both the Ryk-deficient mouse and Ephb2/Ephb3 (genes for interaction molecules with RYK) double-mutant mouse show cleft palate.
Setting:
Mutation searches for RYK, EPHB2, and EPHB3 were carried out in a large number of Japanese and Vietnamese patients with cleft lip and/or palate and cleft palate only. Case-control study and transmission disequilibrium tests were performed also, using three single nucleotide polymorphisms within a linkage disequilibrium block in RYK. Seven haplotypes were constructed from the single nucleotide polymorphisms.
Results:
A missense mutation, 1355G>A (Y452C), in RYK was identified in one Vietnamese patient with cleft lip and/or palate. This mutation was not found among 1646 Vietnamese, Japanese, and Caucasians, including 354 cleft lip and/ or palate and cleft palate only patients. Colony formation assay using NIH3T3 cells transfected with mutant cDNA revealed that mutant RYK had significantly reduced protein activity, compared with those with wild-type RYK, implying that the transformation ability of RYK is depleted by this mutation. Although a case-control study and transmission disequilibrium tests on three individual single nucleotide polymorphisms provided no evidence for association with oral clefts, a case-control study on one rare haplotype suggested a positive association in Japanese patients with cleft lip and/or palate and cleft palate only. No mutations in EPHB2 and EPHB3 were found in any patients examined.
Conclusion:
The findings suggested that a missense mutation, 1355G>A, and one rare single nucleotide polymorphisms haplotype may play a role in the development of cleft lip and/or palate in the Vietnamese, and cleft lip and/ or palate and cleft palate only in the Japanese.
Insights
A rare mutation in the RYK gene was found in a Vietnamese patient with cleft lip and/or palate. This genetic variation may contribute to oral cleft development in specific populations.
Area of Science:
- Genetics
- Developmental Biology
- Craniofacial Research
Background:
- Cleft lip and/or palate (CLP) and cleft palate only (CPO) are common congenital anomalies.
- The RYK, EPHB2, and EPHB3 genes are implicated in craniofacial development and are candidate genes for CLP/CPO pathogenesis.
- Ryk-deficient and Ephb2/Ephb3 double-mutant mice exhibit cleft palate, supporting their role.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the role of RYK, EPHB2, and EPHB3 genes in the etiology of CLP and CPO.
- To identify genetic variations associated with oral clefts in Vietnamese and Japanese populations.
Main Methods:
- Mutation screening of RYK, EPHB2, and EPHB3 in patients with CLP/CPO.
- Case-control studies and transmission disequilibrium tests using single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and haplotypes in RYK.
- Functional analysis of identified RYK mutations using cell-based assays.
Main Results:
- A novel missense mutation (1355G>A, Y452C) in RYK was identified in one Vietnamese CLP patient, showing reduced protein activity.
- No mutations in EPHB2 or EPHB3 were detected in any patients.
- While individual SNPs in RYK showed no association, a rare RYK haplotype suggested a positive association with CLP/CPO in Japanese patients.
Conclusions:
- The identified RYK missense mutation may contribute to CLP in Vietnamese individuals.
- A rare RYK haplotype may be associated with CLP/CPO development in Japanese populations.
- RYK, but not EPHB2 or EPHB3, appears to play a role in oral cleft pathogenesis in the studied cohorts.
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