Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41680931›Full record

ArticleHuman genomics2026

Genetic findings in ten Ecuadorian patients with suspected Wilson's disease.

Vanessa I Romero, Martina Armas Samaniego, Paúl León, Benjamín Arias-Almeida, Rino Sasaki, Yoko Iwauchi, Kazuyoshi Hosomichi

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Article in Human genomics, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.

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4 · The record

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5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Vanessa I RomeroEscuela de Medicina, Colegio de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Quito, Ecuador. vromero@usfq.edu.ec.
Martina Armas SamaniegoEscuela de Biotecnología, Colegio de Ciencias Biológicas y Ambientales, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Quito, Ecuador.
Paúl LeónInstituto de Microbiología, Colegio de Ciencias Biológicas y Ambientales, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Quito, Ecuador.
Benjamín Arias-AlmeidaInstituto de Microbiología, Colegio de Ciencias Biológicas y Ambientales, Universidad San Francisco de Quito, Quito, Ecuador.
Rino SasakiLaboratory of Computational Genomics, Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, Tokyo, Japan.
Yoko IwauchiLaboratory of Computational Genomics, Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, Tokyo, Japan.
Kazuyoshi HosomichiLaboratory of Computational Genomics, Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Sciences, Tokyo, Japan.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundWilson disease is a rare autosomal recessive disorder caused by variations in ATP7B, leading to copper accumulation and multisystemic damage. Diagnosis is often delayed due to its heterogeneous clinical presentation and limited genetic data in underrepresented populations.

methodsWe characterized ten Ecuadorian patients with clinical suspicion of Wilson disease using whole-exome sequencing (WES), selected to enable simultaneous assessment of ATP7B and other metabolic genes relevant to Wilson-like phenotypes. Variants were interpreted following HGNC and ACMG/AMP guidelines. Ancestry was examined in nine patients using ADMIXTURE and PCA with a reference panel of 968 individuals from African, European, and Indigenous American populations. ATP7B expression was quantified by RT-qPCR in the one patient lacking identifiable coding-region variants.

resultsSix patients were homozygous and two were compound heterozygous for pathogenic or likely pathogenic ATP7B variants. The recurrent alleles c.2052dupC p.(Met685*) (Guayaquil) and c.2012_2013insAT p.(Met671Ilefs*) (Cañar/Cuenca) showed geographic and ancestry patterns consistent with known demographic structure in Ecuador, though not sufficient to infer founder effects. Additional variants included c.3188 C > T p.(Ala1603Val), c.3727 C > G p.(Leu1243Val), c.2318G > A p.(Cys773Tyr), and c.2080 C > T p.(Arg694Trp). One patient with no detectable ATP7B coding-region variation demonstrated ~ 9.8-fold reduced ATP7B expression, supporting the clinical diagnosis.

conclusionsThis study provides an integrated clinical, molecular, and ancestry framework for characterizing Wilson disease in an underrepresented population. The identification of regionally recurrent ATP7B variants, together with the diversity of clinical presentations, highlights the need for comprehensive diagnostic approaches in admixed populations. Larger studies incorporating segregation and functional assays will be essential to refine variant interpretation and improve access to molecular diagnosis in Latin America.

Indexed as

Copper-Transporting ATPasesHepatolenticular DegenerationAdolescentAdultAllelesChildEcuadorExome SequencingFemaleHomozygoteHumansMaleMutationPhenotypeYoung AdultATP7B protein, humanCopper-Transporting ATPasesATP7B variationsCopper metabolismEcuadorGenetic variantsWilson’s disease

Identifiers

PMID41680931
PMCPMC12998073

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