Diagnosis and counseling for a Chinese pedigree affected with autosomal recessive primary microcephaly 5 due to variants of ASPM gene / 中华医学遗传学杂志

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVE@#To detect potential mutation of the ASPM gene in a Chinese pedigree affected with autosomal recessive primary microcephaly 5 (MCPH5).@*METHODS@#Peripheral venous blood samples were collected from the proband and her parents. Amniotic fluid sample was also collected upon her mother' s subsequent pregnancy. Following extraction of genomic DNA, PCR and Sanger sequencing were carried out to identify potential variants of the ASPM gene.@*RESULTS@#The proband was found to harbor compound heterozygous variants of the ASPM gene, namely c.8214dupT (p.Q2739fs) in exon 18 and c.9541C>T (p.R3181X) in exon 23, which were respectively inherited from her father and mother. The fetus has found to have inherited the c.9541C>T (p.R3181X) variant only.@*CONCLUSION@#The c.8214dupT (p.Q2739fs) and c.9541C>T (p.R3181X) compound heterozygous variants of the ASPM gene probably underlay the pathogenesis of MCPH5 in this patient. Above finding has enabled genetic counseling and prenatal diagnosis for her family.