BMS1 is mutated in aplasia cutis congenita

Aplasia cutis congenita (ACC) manifests with localized skin defects at birth of unknown cause, mostly affecting the scalp vertex. Here, genome-wide linkage analysis and exome sequencing was used to identify the causative mutation in autosomal dominant ACC. A heterozygous Arg-to-His missense mutation (p.R930H) in the ribosomal GTPase BMS1 is identified in ACC that is associated with a delay in 18S rRNA maturation, consistent with a role of BMS1 in processing of pre-rRNAs of the small ribosomal subunit. Mutations that affect ribosomal function can result in a cell cycle defect and ACC skin fibroblasts with the BMS1 p.R930H mutation show a reduced cell proliferation rate due to a p21-mediated G1/S phase transition delay. Unbiased comparative global transcript and proteomic analyses of ACC fibroblasts with this mutation confirm a central role of increased p21 levels for the ACC phenotype, which are associated with downregulation of heterogenous nuclear ribonucleoproteins (hnRNPs) and serine/arginine-rich splicing factors (SRSFs). Functional enrichment analysis of the proteomic data confirmed a defect in RNA post-transcriptional modification as the top-ranked cellular process altered in ACC fibroblasts. The data provide a novel link between BMS1, the cell cycle, and skin morphogenesis.