Scientists at the University of California(USA) have discovered an unknown childhood genetic condition and named it after an Egyptian researcher, who has been credited with the discovery.
The San Diego School of Medicine at the University of California tweeted that it has been described as an unknown genetic condition affecting children.
“Researchers say they also found a potential method to prevent the gene mutation by administering a drug during pregnancy,”.
Describing a previously unknown genetic condition that affects children, @UCSanDiego & @radychildrens researchers say they also found a potential method to prevent the gene mutation by administering a drug during pregnancy
New in @NEJMhttps://t.co/zmPD3EeTBN
— UC San Diego School of Medicine (@UCSDMedSchool) September 30, 2021
The research team dubbed the condition “Zaki syndrome” after co-author Maha S. Zaki, MD, PhD, of the National Research Center in Cairo, Egypt, who first spotted the condition.
The statement said that Zaki syndrome affects prenatal development of several organs of the body, including the eyes, brain, hands, kidneys and heart.
Children suffer from lifelong disabilities as a result. The condition appears to be rare: future studies are required to determine prevalence.
Researchers at the University and Rady Children’s Institute for Genomic Medicine conducted the study.
The work involved researchers in Egypt, India, the United Arab Emirates, Brazil and the United States.
Senior author Joseph G. Gleeson, MD, Rady Professor of Neuroscience at UC San Diego School of Medicine, and director of neuroscience at the Rady Children’s Institute for Genomic Medicine, said that “Although different doctors were caring for these children; all of the children showed the same symptoms and all had DNA mutations in the same gene.”
