Nasal Brushing for the Diagnosis and Understanding of Telomeropathies (TELOSTIC)

To date, the diagnosis of telomeropathies is based on telomere length measured in blood cells. However, this type of analysis is not always sufficient because some mutations underlying the development of telomeropathies are not associated with abnormal shortened telomeres. Since telomere dysfunction analysis cannot be performed on blood cells, it is mandatory to have access to another cellular material. To date, skin biopsies are performed to obtain fibroblasts. However, this technique is relatively invasive. The aim of this project is to assess whether nasal epithelial cells obtained through nasal brushing could offer the opportunity to detect cellular alterations and mutations involved in telomeropathies, in a mildly invasive way. If successful, this technique could become a non-invasive clinical tool for the diagnosis work-up of telomeropathies. Moreover, investigators aim to assess whether olfactory function is impaired in patients with telomeropathies.

Study Overview

• Status: Recruiting
• Conditions: Telomere Shortening; Telomere Disease
• Intervention / Treatment: Diagnostic test: Nasal brushing; Diagnostic test: Sniffin' Sticks

Detailed Description

Endpoint #1: To assess the suitability of nasal brushing analyses for the diagnosis of telomeropathies.

To date, the complete diagnosis of telomeropathies, including the identification of responsible mutations, is based on blood samples and fibroblast cultures obtained through skin biopsies. Cells obtained through nasal brushing offer the opportunity to detect cellular alterations and mutations involved in telomeropathies, in a mildly invasive way. Investigators will thus assess a population of patients with a suspicion of telomeropathy, using a nasal brushing, and will compare their nasal brushing results to those of age-matched healthy controls. In patients, results of nasal brushing will be compared to standard of care blood test (leukocyte telomere length using Flow-FISH technique). If investigators confirm that the nasal brushing offers the opportunity to i) detect damaged telomeres and premature cellular senescence and ii) identify mutations related to telomeropathies, this technique could become a non-invasive clinical tool for the diagnosis work-up of telomeropathies.

Endpoint #2: To develop primary cell cultures for the functional study of new germline mutations.

To date, various germline mutations have already been identified in telomeropathy patients, in a total of 17 genes. Understanding how these mutations were affecting telomere biology relied on in vitro studies with either patient-derived fibroblasts or engineered human cell lines recapitulating the mutation. This was a mandatory step towards the molecular understanding of these pathologies. Because olfactory neural precursors have the capacity to grow in culture, this offers the additional possibility to perform functional studies on primary cultures of nasal brushing-derived cells for novel mutations, with still unknown impact on telomeres, that would be identified. Again, this could advantageously replace patients' fibroblast cultures established through skin biopsy.

Endpoint #3: To evaluate whether patients with telomeropathies have impaired olfactory function.

Olfactory function is decreased in several diseases and is increasingly recognized as an indicator of biological aging. To date, no data exist regarding the impact of telomeropathies on olfactory function. Therefore, investigators aim to psychophysically assess olfactory function in patients with telomeropathies, in comparison to age-matched healthy controls.

• Study Type: Interventional
• Enrollment (Anticipated): 250
• Phase: Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

• Study Contact: Name: Caroline Huart, MD, PhD; Phone Number: +3227646005; Email: caroline.huart@saintluc.uclouvain.be
• Study Contact Backup: Name: Anabelle Decottignies, PhD; Phone Number: +3227647574; Email: anabelle.decottignies@uclouvain.be

Study Locations

• Belgium
  • Woluwé-Saint-Lambert
    • Bruxelles, Woluwé-Saint-Lambert, Belgium, 1200
      • Recruiting
      • Clinique Universitaires Saint-Luc
      • Contact: Caroline Huart, MD, PhD; Phone Number: +3227646005; Email: caroline.huart@saintluc.uclouvain.be
      • Contact: Anabelle Decottignies, PhD; Phone Number: +3227647574; Email: anabelle.decottignies@uclouvain.be

Participation Criteria

Eligibility Criteria

• Ages Eligible for Study: ADULT; OLDER_ADULT; CHILD
• Accepts Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Genders Eligible for Study: All

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

• Patients : Having a suspicion of or a confirmed telomeropathy

Exclusion Criteria:

Patients and controls:No access to the olfactory cleft Patients and controls: Abnormal endoscopic finding (i.e. meningocele, vascular ectasia)

Specific exclusion criteria for smell assessment (outcome 3):

Patients and controls: History of neurological or psychiatric disorder known to interfere with olfactory function or olfactory trouble (postinfectious, posttraumatic, toxic) Patients and controls: History of chronic rhinosinusitis

Study Plan

How is the study designed?

Design Details

• Primary Purpose: DIAGNOSTIC
• Allocation: NON_RANDOMIZED
• Interventional Model: PARALLEL
• Masking: NONE

Number of Arms

2

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm	Intervention / Treatment
EXPERIMENTAL: Patients with confirmed or suspected telomeropathy; Patients with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis, adult or pediatric medullar dysplasia or myelodysplasia, unexplained liver cirrhosis or unexplained liver regenerative nodular hyperplasia.	Diagnostic test: Nasal brushing; Nasal brushing to harvest nasal cells and perform staining experiments; Diagnostic test: Sniffin' Sticks; Assessment of olfactory function
OTHER: Controls; Age and sex-matched control participants	Diagnostic test: Nasal brushing; Nasal brushing to harvest nasal cells and perform staining experiments; Diagnostic test: Sniffin' Sticks; Assessment of olfactory function

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
To assess the suitability of nasal brushing analysis for the diagnosis of telomeropathies through evaluation of cellular senescence (SA-B-gal activity) and damaged telomeres (FISH/IF)	Investigators will evaluate if it is possible to detect damaged telomeres (via FISH/IF - Fluorescence In Situ Hybridation /ImmunoFluoresence -) and premature cellular senescence in patients (via SA-B-gal activity - Senescence Associated Beta-galactosidase activity measurement - and senescence associated biomarkers by qRT-PCR - quantitative Reverse Transcription - Polymerase Chain Reaction - ), in comparison to healthy controls.	5 minutes

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
To develop primary cell cultures to study how the germline mutation affects telomere integrity in vitro through functional telomere assays	Cells harvested from the nasal mucosa will be cultived and analysed to detect telomeric DNA damage and premature cellular senescence	5 minutes

Other Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure	Measure Description	Time Frame
To assess whether patients with telomeropathies have impaired olfactory function	Olfactory function will be assessed using the validated Sniffin' Sticks test	20 minutes

Collaborators and Investigators

• Sponsor: Cliniques universitaires Saint-Luc- Université Catholique de Louvain
• Investigators: Principal Investigator: Caroline Huart, MD, PhD, Cliniques Universitaires Saint-luc

Study record dates

Study Major Dates

• Study Start (ACTUAL): October 1, 2022
• Primary Completion (ANTICIPATED): December 31, 2025
• Study Completion (ANTICIPATED): December 31, 2025

Study Registration Dates

• First Submitted: August 10, 2022
• First Submitted That Met QC Criteria: August 17, 2022
• First Posted (ACTUAL): August 19, 2022

Study Record Updates

• Last Update Posted (ACTUAL): November 4, 2022
• Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria: November 3, 2022
• Last Verified: November 1, 2022

More Information

Terms related to this study

• Keywords: telomere; cellular senescence; smell
• Other Study ID Numbers: 2022/07FEV/046

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

• Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?: NO

Drug and device information, study documents

• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product: No
• Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product: No