Familial ROBO1 deletion associated with ectopic posterior pituitary, duplication of the pituitary stalk and anterior pituitary hypoplasia

Background The genetic causes of abnormal pituitary development have been extensively studied in the last few years. ROBO1 is involved in neurogenesis and axon guidance. Loss-of-function variants in ROBO1 have been associated with pituitary stalk interruption syndrome (PSIS), suggesting that its haploinsufficiency could impair the guidance of hypothalamic axons to the pituitary gland leading to developmental abnormalities. Case presentation We report a 4.5-year-old girl with anterior pituitary hypoplasia and pituitary stalk duplication in the ventral-dorsal direction. Her father had a similar pituitary phenotype, characterized by anterior pituitary hypoplasia combined with ectopic posterior pituitary. Comparative genomic hybridization (CGH) microarray analysis identified a 343.7 kb deletion of 3p12.3 encompassing ROBO1 in both individuals. Conclusions We report the first familial ROBO1 deletion in two individuals with peculiar pituitary anomalies, including the rare pituitary stalk duplication in the ventral-dorsal direction. These findings widen the spectrum of the phenotypes associated with ROBO1 haploinsufficiency and support its role in human pituitary development.