CIROZ is dispensable in ancestral vertebrates but essential for left-right patterning in humans

Emmanuelle Szenker-Ravi*, Tim Ott, Amirah Yusof, Maya Chopra, Muznah Khatoo, Beatrice Pak, Wei Xuan Goh, Anja Beckers, Angela F. Brady, Lisa J. Ewans, Nabila Djaziri, Naif A.M. Almontashiri, Malak Ali Alghamdi, Essa Alharby, Majed Dasouki, Lindsay Romo, Wen Hann Tan, Sateesh Maddirevula, Fowzan S. Alkuraya, Jessica L. GiordanoAnna Alkelai, Ronald J. Wapner, Karen Stals, Majid Alfadhel, Abdulrahman Faiz Alswaid, Susanne Bogusch, Anna Schafer-Kosulya, Sebastian Vogel, Philipp Vick, Axel Schweickert, Matthew Wakeling, Anne Moreau de Bellaing, Aisha M. Alshamsi, Damien Sanlaville, Hamdi Mbarek, Chadi Saad, Sian Ellard, Frank Eisenhaber, Kornelia Tripolszki, Christian Beetz, Peter Bauer, Achim Gossler, Birgit Eisenhaber, Martin Blum, Patrice Bouvagnet, Aida Bertoli-Avella, Jeanne Amiel, Christopher T. Gordon, Bruno Reversade*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Four genes—DAND5, PKD1L1, MMP21, and CIROP—form a genetic module that has specifically evolved in vertebrate species that harbor motile cilia in their left-right organizer (LRO). We find here that CIROZ (previously known as C1orf127) is also specifically expressed in the LRO of mice, frogs, and fish, where it encodes a protein with a signal peptide followed by 3 zona pellucida N domains, consistent with extracellular localization. We report 16 individuals from 10 families with bi-allelic CIROZ inactivation variants, which cause heterotaxy with congenital heart defects. While the knockout of Ciroz in mice also leads to situs anomalies, we unexpectedly find that its targeted inactivation in zebrafish and Xenopus does not lead to observable LR anomalies. Moreover, CIROZ is absent or obsolete in select animals with motile cilia at their LRO, including Carnivora, Atherinomorpha fish, or jawless vertebrates. In summary, this evo-devo study identifies CIROZ as an essential gene for breaking bilateral embryonic symmetry in humans and mice, whereas we witness its contemporary pseudogenization in discrete vertebrate species.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)353-373
Number of pages21
JournalAmerican Journal of Human Genetics
Volume112
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 6 2025

Keywords

  • C1orf127
  • CIROP
  • CIROZ
  • DAND5
  • evo-devo
  • gene loss
  • heterotaxy
  • laterality
  • left-right organizer
  • MMP21
  • motile cilia
  • PKD1L1
  • pseudogenization
  • ZP-N
  • ZP2

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Genetics
  • Genetics(clinical)

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