Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 23, 2025

Author Spotlight: Ex Vivo OCT-Based Multimodal Imaging of Human Donor Eyes for Research into Age-Related Macular Degeneration
Published on: May 26, 2023
Bilateral macular colobomata: expanded phenotype of PCARE/C2ORF71
Matteo Pederzolli1,2, Andrea Servillo1,2, Riccardo Sacconi1,2
1School of Medicine, Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy.
Introduction:
Macular colobomata (MCs) are excavated chorioretinal lesions found in subjects with systemic diseases and syndromes, positive family history, congenital toxoplasmosis, North Carolina Macular Dystrophy, and other retinal dystrophies.
Methods:
Case report.
Results:
A full-term-born, otherwise healthy 18-year-old female patient with no known family history of ocular conditions presented bilateral MCs, peripheral spotty hypopigmentation, and compromised cone and rod function. Genetic testing showed the pathogenic homozygous variant NM_001029883.3:c.3604C>T (p(Arg1202*)) of C2ORF71/PCARE, a ciliary gene previously associated with RP and cone-rod dystrophy, but not previously found in cases of MCs.
Conclusions:
Further studies are needed to elucidate the genotype/phenotype correlation and the pathogenesis of MCs in retinal dystrophies.

