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Parents of Children With Nonsyndromic Orofacial Clefting Show Altered Palate Shape
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Parents of Children With Nonsyndromic Orofacial Clefting Show Altered Palate Shape

Ahmed M. El Sergani, Stephanie Brandebura, Carmencita Padilla, Azeez Butali, Wasiu L. Adeyemo, Consuelo Valencia-Ramirez, Claudia P. Restrepo Muneton, Lina M. Moreno, Carmen J. Buxo, Ross E. Long, …
The Cleft palate-craniofacial journal, Vol.58(7), pp.847-853
07/01/2021
DOI: 10.1177/1055665620967235
PMCID: PMC8079510
PMID: 33111571
url
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/8079510View
Open Access

Abstract

Objective: The unaffected relatives of individuals with nonsyndromic orofacial clefts have been shown to exhibit subtle craniofacial differences compared with the general population. Here, we investigate whether these morphological differences extend to the shape of the palate. Design: We conducted a geometric morphometric analysis to compare palate shape in the clinically unaffected parents of children with nonsyndromic cleft lip with or without cleft palate and adult controls of European, Asian, and African ancestry. We conducted pairwise group comparisons using canonical variates analysis, and then confirmed and characterized findings of shape differences using Euclidean distance matrix analysis. Results: Significant differences in palate shape were detected in unaffected mothers (but not fathers) compared to demographically matched controls. The differences in shape were ancestry-specific; mothers of Asian-derived and African-derived ancestry showed wider and shorter palates with higher posterior palatal vaults, while mothers of European-derived ancestry showed narrower palates with higher anterior palatal vaults. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that altered palate shape is a subclinical phenotypic feature, which may be indicative of elevated orofacial cleft risk. The risk phenotype varied by sex and ancestry, suggesting possible etiologic heterogeneity among demographic groups. Understanding the genetic basis of these informative palate shape traits may reveal new genes and pathways relevant to nonsyndromic orofacial clefting.
Dentistry, Oral Surgery & Medicine Life Sciences & Biomedicine Science & Technology Surgery

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