Building a growing genomic repository for maternal and fetal health through the PING Consortium

Clara M. Abdelmalek, Center for Genetic Medicine, Children's National Research Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
Shriya Singh, Center for Genetic Medicine, Children's National Research Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
Blain Fasil, Center for Genetic Medicine, Children's National Research Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
Allison R. Horvath, Center for Genetic Medicine, Children's National Research Institute, Washington, DC, USA.
Sarah B. Mulkey, Departments of Neurology, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC, USA.
Carlos Curé, BIOMELab, Barranquilla, Colombia.
Maribel Campos, Center for Community Outreach for Health Across the Lifespan, Dental and Craniofacial Genomics Core, Medical Sciences Campus, University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Denise P. Cavalcanti, Perinatal Genetics Program, Department of Translational Medicine, Medical Genetics, University of Campinas, Campinas, Brazil.
Van T. Tong, Division of Birth Defects and Infant Disorders, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Marcela Mercado, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad del Norte, Barranquilla, Colombia.
Marcela Daza, Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Bogotá, Colombia.
Mónica Marcela Benavides, Instituto Nacional de Salud, Bogotá, Colombia.
Jacqueline Acosta, Vysnova Partners, Inc., Landover, MD, USA.
Suzanne Gilboa, Division of Birth Defects and Infant Disorders, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Diana Valencia, Division of Preparedness and Emerging Infections, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Christina L. Sancken, Division of Birth Defects and Infant Disorders, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Suzanne Newton, Division of Birth Defects and Infant Disorders, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Deolinda M. Scalabrin, Department of Epidemiology of Microbial Diseases, Yale School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, USA.
Marisa M. Mussi-Pinhata, Department of Pediatrics, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil.
Zilton Vasconcelos, Instituto Fernandes Figueira, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Nahida Chakhtoura, Pregnancy and Perinatology Branch, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Jack Moye, Maternal and Pediatric Infectious Disease Branch, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Elizabeth J. Leslie, Department of Human Genetics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Dorothy Bulas, Department of Radiology, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC, USA.
Gilbert Vezina, Department of Radiology, George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Washington, DC, USA.
Fernanda J. Marques, SARAH Network of Rehabilitation Hospitals, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Marcio Leyser, Stead Family Department of Pediatrics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, IA, USA.
Miguel Del Campo, Department of Pediatrics, Division of Genetics, University of California, San Diego and Rady Children's Hospital-San Diego, San Diego, California, USA.
Eric Vilain, Institute for Clinical and Translational Science, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA.
Roberta L. DeBiasi, Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases, Children's National Hospital, Washington, DC, USA.
Tongguang Wang, Translational Neuroscience Center, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
Avindra Nath, Translational Neuroscience Center, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.

Document Type

Journal Article

Publication Date

1-3-2025

Journal

Pediatric research

DOI

10.1038/s41390-024-03793-1

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Prenatally transmitted viruses can cause severe damage to the developing brain. There is unexplained variability in prenatal brain injury and postnatal neurodevelopmental outcomes, suggesting disease modifiers. Of note, prenatal Zika infection can cause a spectrum of neurodevelopmental disorders, including congenital Zika syndrome. Currently, there is no preventative treatment or cure. The Prenatal Infection and Neurodevelopmental Genetics (PING) Consortium aims to identify modulators of brain injury and adverse neurodevelopmental outcomes for Zika and other prenatal viral infections. METHODS: The Consortium pools information from eight multi-site studies conducted at 23 research centers in six countries to build a growing clinical and genomic repository, which is being mined for modifiers of virally induced brain injury. Partners include Children's National Hospital (USA), Instituto Nacional de Salud (Colombia), the Natural History of Zika Virus Infection in Gestation program (Brazil), Zika Instituto Fernandes Figueira (Brazil), the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and the National Institutes of Health. RESULTS: We have enrolled 4102 mothers and 3877 infants with 3063 biological samples and clinical data covering over 80 phenotypic fields and 5000 variables. Thus far, we have performed whole exome sequencing on 1226 participants. CONCLUSION: Here, we present the Consortium's formation and overarching study design. IMPACT: The PING Consortium brings together investigators and institutions to determine the causes of virally induced brain injury and neurological deficits. The clinical and genomic repository, with data from over 8000 patients, will serve as a foundation for a variety of basic and clinical studies.

Department

Pediatrics

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