Brain calcification in congenital heart defects and ectodermal dysplasia (CHDED)

Congenital Heart Defect and Ectodermal Dysplasia (CHDED) is an autosomal dominant disorder caused by the PRKD1 gene. CHDED is characterized by heart defects and ectodermal dysplasia. To date, eight patients with CHDED have been described. Calcifications were present in three patients with CHDED. (two patients; renal calcifications, one patient; brain calcifications). The organ distribution of calcifications in CHDED has been unclear. We report here another patient with CHDED and brain calcifications. The patient was a 9-month-old Japanese girl. She presented with heart defects and ectodermal dysplasia. At 6 months of age, she had generalized seizures, and a CT scan revealed calcifications in the bilateral deep cerebral white matter. The seizures resolved with the administration of levetiracetam. The patient had a de novo, heterozygous pathogenic variant, c.1808G > A, p.(Arg603His), in the PRKD1 gene. Together with the previously reported patients mentioned above, we demonstrated the role of the PRKD1 variant in brain calcification. We propose that PRKD1 and two genes, ITGB2 and JAM2, which are known to be associated with brain calcification, act through a common signaling pathway abnormality. In support of our hypothesis, there are some experimental results that link PRKD1 and JAM2. PRKD1 functions with the integrin ITGB2 as a partner. JAM2, which is associated with brain calcification and is critical for maintaining of the tight junction of the endothelial cells, interacts with integrins including ITGB2. Therefore, PRKD1 could lead to the pathological phenotype of brain calcification.