Kharkiv National Medical University, Kharkiv, Ukraine
Municipal Non-commercial Enterprise of Kharkiv Regional Council “Interregional Specialized Medical-Genetic Center for Rare (Orphan) Diseases”, Kharkiv, Ukraine
State Institution “Institute of General and Emergency Surgery named after V. T. Zaitsev of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine”, Kharkiv, Ukraine
Introduction. Hoyerall–Hreidarsson syndrome (HH) is a rare genetic disease The disease is caused by mutations in the genes of the telomerase complex, in particular RTEL1.
The aim of the work was to demonstrate the importance of identifying the rare genetic disease HH syndrome manifesting in adolescence, on the basis of clinical, metabolic and genetic parameters.
Materials and Methods. The actual observation of a patient diagnosed with HH syndrome during the dynamic monitoring by a multidisciplinary team from 2020 to 2025 years is presented. The data of the patient’s documentation, clinical manifestations, laboratory and instrumental studies and genetic testing (genome sequencing, screening for 21 rare genetic diseases) are demonstrated.
Results and discussion. Based on multisystem complaints on fever, persistent viral infections, arthralgias, skin rash, examination data (hepato and splenomegaly, cerebellar ataxia, hyperkeratosis, telangiectasias, leukocytosis with B cell immunodeficiency), genome sequencing (RTEL1 Regulator of Telomere Elongation Helicase 1) c.3791G>A (p.Arg1264His), heterozygote; CNV finding: DOCK8 duplication (exons 1–26, CN≈3) VUS) in a young adult, a diagnosis of HH syndrome was established.
Conclusions. Hoyerall-Hreidarsson syndrome may manifest itself as atypical in adolescence. Confirmation of the diagnosis is possible using the molecular genetics method of sequencing.
Key words: Hoyerall–Hreidarsson syndrome; RTEL1; ataxia, arthralgia; DOCK8.
REFERENCES
- Rolles B, Tometten M, Meyer R, et al. Inherited Telomere Biology Disorders: Pathophysiology, Clinical Presentation, Diagnostics, and Treatment. Transfusion Medicine and Hemotherapy. 2024; 51(5): 292–309. https://doi.org/ 10.1159/000540109.
- Speckmann C, Sahoo SS, Rizzi M, et al. Clinical and Molecular Heterogeneity of RTEL1 Deficiency. Frontiers in Immunology. 2017; 8: 449. https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2017.00449.
- Hourvitz N, Awad A, Tzfati Y. The many faces of the helicase RTEL1 at telomeres and beyond. Trends in Cell Biology. 2024; 34(2): 109–121. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tcb.2023.07.002.
- Walne AJ, Vulliamy T, Kirwan M, Plagnol V, Dokal I. Constitutional mutations in RTEL1 cause severe dyskeratosis congenita. The American Journal of Human Genetics. 2013; 92(3): 448–453. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajhg.2013.02.001.
- Nisar H, Khan M, Chaudhry QUN, Iftikhar R, Ghafoor T. Case report: A novel mutation in RTEL1 gene in dyskeratosis congenita. Frontiers in Oncology. 2023; 13: 1098876. https://doi.org/10.3389/fonc.2023.1098876.
- DeBoy EA, Tassia MG, Schratz KE, et al. Familial clonal hematopoiesis in a long telomere syndrome. The New England Journal of Medicine. 2023; 388: 2422–2433. https://doi.org/10.1056/NEJMoa2300503.
- Revy P, Kannengiesser C, Bertuch AA. Genetics of human telomere biology disorders. Nature Reviews Genetics. 2023; 24: 86–108. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41576-022-00527-z.
- Niewisch MR, Beier F, Savage SA. Clinical manifestations of telomere biology disorders in adults. Hematology American Society of Hematology Education Program. 2023; 2023(1): 563–572. https://doi.org/10.1182/hematology.2023000490.
- Stevens JB, Raj HA, Carson H, Savage SA. Publication of Second Edition Telomere Biology Disorders: Diagnosis and Management Guidelines. Blood. 2022; 140(1): 13078–13078. https://doi.org/10.1182/blood-2022-171040.
- Thompson AS, Niewisch MR, Giri N, McReynolds LJ, Savage SA. Germline RTEL1 Variants in Telomere Biology Disorders. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part A. 2025; 197(2): e63882. https://doi.org/10.1002/ajmg.a.63882.
- Xu HP, Niu H, Wang H, Lin J, Yao JJ. Knockdown of RTEL1 Alleviates Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease by Modulating M1, M2 Macrophage Polarization and Inflammation. COPD: Journal of Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease. 2024; 21(1): 2316607. https://doi.org/10.1080/15412555.2024.2316607.
- Ballew BJ, Yeager M, Jacobs K, et al. Germline mutations of regulator of telomere elongation helicase 1, RTEL1, in Dyskeratosis congenita. Human Genetics. 2013; 132(4): 473–480. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00439-013-1265-8.
- AlSabbagh M. Dyskeratosis Congenita: A Literature Review. Journal of the German Society of Dermatology. 2020; 18(9): 943–967. https://doi.org/10.1111/ddg.14268.
- Chatron N, Becker F, Morsy H, et al. Bi-allelic GAD1 variants cause a neonatal onset syndromic developmental and epileptic encephalopathy. Brain. 2020; 143(5): 1447–1461. https://doi.org/10.1093/brain/awaa085.
- Niewisch MR, Savage SA. An update on the biology and management of dyskeratosis congenita and related telomere biology disorders. Expert Review of Hematology. 2019; 12(12): 1037–1052. https://doi.org/10.1080/17474086.2019. 1662720.
- Armanios M. The role of telomeres in human disease. Annual Review of Genomics and Human Genetics. 2022; 23: 363–381. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-genom-010422-091101.
- Banaszak LG, Fiala E, Ceyhan-Birsoy O, et al. Subclinical Telomere Biology Disorder in Cancer Patients Heterozygous for the RTEL1 R1264H Founder Variant. American Journal of Medical Genetics Part A. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1002/ ajmga.70032.
- Morris ED. An Appreciation of The Gene: An Intimate History by Siddhartha Mukherjee and a Call for Expanded Training in the Responsible Conduct of Research. The Yale Journal of Biology and Medicine. 2017; 90(4): 661–665. PMID: 29259530; PMCID: PMC5733861.
- Deepthi K, Krishna MG, Santosh MP, Sakthivadivel V, Rao KR, Arvind M. Dyskeratosis Congenita: Beyond the Triad and Beyond the Cause. International Journal of Dermatology and Venereology. 2025; 8(3): 178–180. https://doi.org/10.1097/ JD9.0000000000000367.
- Peng YL, Qian XT, Tian YQ, et al. Dyskeratosis congenita combined with myeloproliferative disorder and trilineage cytopenia. Zhonghua Jie He He Hu Xi Za Zhi. 2025; 48(6): 540–547. https://doi.org/10.3760/cma.j.cn112147-20241010-00593.
