This chapter describes the clinical presentation and molecular basis of two inherited bone marrow failure syndromes, Fanconi anemia (FA), and Diamond-Blackfan anemia (DBA). It also provides an update on diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to bone marrow failure of all types (inherited and acquired) in pediatric patients. In Section I, Dr. Alan D'Andrea reviews the wide range of clinical manif...

Fanconi anemia (FA) and ataxia telangiectasia (AT) are clinically distinct autosomal recessive disorders characterized by spontaneous chromosome breakage and hematological cancers. FA cells are hypersensitive to mitomycin C (MMC), while AT cells are hypersensitive to ionizing radiation (IR). Here, we identify the Fanconi anemia protein, FANCD2, as a link between the FA and ATM damage response p...

Fanconi anemia (FA) pathway genes are important tumor suppressors whose best-characterized function is repair of damaged nuclear DNA. Here, we describe an essential role for FA genes in two forms of selective autophagy. Genetic deletion of Fancc blocks the autophagic clearance of viruses (virophagy) and increases susceptibility to lethal viral encephalitis. Fanconi anemia complementation group ...

Fanconi anemia (AF) is a hereditary genetic disease characterized by developmental abnormalities, progressive bone marrow failure, hypersensitivity to alkylating agents, and tendency hematological solid tumors throughout life. The only curative option in the treatment of failure patients with AF allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). There are no detailed descriptions a...

DNA repair is a key determinant in the cellular response to therapy and tumor repair status could play an important role in tailoring patient therapy. Our goal was to evaluate the mRNA of 13 genes involved in different DNA repair pathways (base excision, nucleotide excision, homologous recombination, and Fanconi anemia) in paraffin embedded samples of triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) compar...

Fanconi anemia (FA) is a complex heterogenic disorder of genomic instability, bone marrow failure, cancer predisposition, and congenital malformations. The FA signaling network orchestrates the DNA damage recognition and repair in interphase as well as proper execution of mitosis. Loss of FA signaling causes chromosome instability by weakening the spindle assembly checkpoint, disrupting centros...

FANCD2 is a product of one of the genes associated with Fanconi anemia (FA), a rare recessive disease characterized by bone marrow failure, skeletal malformations, developmental defects, and cancer predisposition. FANCD2 forms a complex with FANCI (ID complex) and is monoubiquitinated, which facilitates the downstream interstrand crosslink (ICL) repair steps, such as ICL unhooking and nucleolyt...

Maternal metabolism provides essential nutrients to enable embryonic development. However, both mother and embryo produce reactive metabolites that can damage DNA. Here we discover how the embryo is protected from these genotoxins. Pregnant mice lacking Aldh2, a key enzyme that detoxifies reactive aldehydes, cannot support the development of embryos lacking the Fanconi anemia DNA repair pathway...

A pernicious anaemia-like picture of the peripheral blood associated with congenital abnormalities was first described by Fanconi (1927) in three brothers. Since then a similar syndrome has been reported from many parts of the world under the title of Fanconi's aplastic anaemia. Gmyrek and Syllm-Rapoport (1964) have reviewed 152 cases in the literature in considerable detail. Bloom et al. (1966...