skeleton
• all homozygotes have at least a few alterations to the axial skeleton characteristic of posterior transformations; however, the skull is similar to wild-type
• an ectopic bone floats between the occipital bones and the first cervical vertebra
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• the sternum is shifted cranially
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• the 7th rib pair are detached from the sternum and the 13th rib pair are missing or floating
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• ectopic ribs are associated with C7 in 67% of homozygotes
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rib fusion
(
J:100027
)
• C7 ectopic ribs are imperfect and fused to the middle part of the first ribs; the rest of the ribs are perfect and directly associated with the cranially shifted sternum
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• the odontoid process is fused to the first cervical vertebra (C1)
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• the dorsal part of the C1 is often bifurcated
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• the dorsal part of C2 is often bifurcated
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• the thoracolumbar and lumbosacral boundaries are shifted anteriorly
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• a prominent spinous process normally associated with the second thoracic vertebra (T2) is associated with T1 in all homozygotes
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• in the lateral view C2 resembles C3
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cellular
• MEFs grow more slowly and stop dividing earlier
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immune system
N |
• no significant changes in lymphocyte development are seen
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