Mutation at the Evi1 Locus in Junbo Mice Causes Susceptibility to Otitis Media

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Abstract
Otitis media (OM), inflammation of the middle ear, remains the most common cause of hearing impairment in children. It is also the most common cause of surgery in children in the developed world. There is evidence from studies of the human population and mouse models that there is a significant genetic component predisposing to OM, yet nothing is known about the underlying genetic pathways involved in humans. We identified an N-ethyl-N-nitrosourea-induced dominant mouse mutant Junbo with hearing loss due to chronic suppurative OM and otorrhea. This develops from acute OM that arises spontaneously in the postnatal period, with the age of onset and early severity dependent on the microbiological status of the mice and their air quality. We have identified the causal mutation, a missense change in the C-terminal zinc finger region of the transcription factor Evi1. This protein is expressed in middle ear basal epithelial cells, fibroblasts, and neutrophil leukocytes at postnatal day 13 and 21 when inflammatory changes are underway. The identification and characterization of the Junbo mutant elaborates a novel role for Evi1 in mammalian disease and implicates a new pathway in genetic predisposition to OM. Otitis media (OM), inflammation of the middle ear, is the most common cause of deafness in children. Although acute episodes of OM in children are associated with middle ear infections, in a substantial portion of cases recurrent episodes of OM, or a chronic suppurative OM, will develop. There is evidence from genetic studies of human families that there is a significant genetic component contributing to the development of recurrent and chronic forms of OM. However, the genes involved have not been identified. The authors have identified and characterized mouse mutants that demonstrate chronic OM as a route to identifying genes involved with OM. This study describes one mutant, Junbo, which shares many features with human OM. Junbo develops an acute OM following birth that subsequently develops into a chronic suppurative form of OM. Junbo carries a mutation in the transcription factor gene, Evi1. Evi1 is expressed in a variety of cell types in the middle ear lining when inflammatory changes are underway. The identification of the Junbo mutation implicates a new gene involved in predisposition to OM.

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