[Use of quantitative fluorescence polymerase chain reaction in the invasive prenatal diagnosis of Down's syndrome].

A quantitative fluorescence polymerase chain reaction (QF-PCR) technique based on the determination of triple-dose chromosome-specific short tandem repeats (STR) has been recently developed for the prenatal diagnosis of numeral abnormalities of chromosomes 21, 18, 13 and X and Y. This investigation examined 55 blood samples from healthy donors, 17 amniotic fluid samples, 27 blood samples from children with regular trisomy 21, 1 sample with a translocation variant of Down's syndrome, and 3 samples with triploidy. The heterozygosity of 4 STR markers specific for chromosome 21 was determined, which were used in QF-PCR to detect Down's syndrome.

[Epidemiology of monogenic hereditary diseases in Rostov oblast: population dynamic factors determining the differentiation of the load of hereditary diseases in eight districts].

Analysis of the diversity of monogenic hereditary diseases in eight raions (districts) of Rostov oblast (region) of Russia (Tsimlyansk, Volgodonskoi, Tselina, Egorlykskaya, Millerovo, Tarasovskaya, Rodionovo-Nesvetaiskaya, and Matveevo-Kurgan raions) has been summarized. The total sample size was 320925 subjects. The spectrum of hereditary diseases detected in the eight districts comprises 187 diseases, including 99 autosomal dominant (AD), 72 autosomal recessive (AR), and 16 X-linked diseases. The mean prevalence rate of each disease in the total population has been calculated. Accumulation of individual diseases in different regions of Rostov oblast has been calculated; the disease accumulation has been compared with that in some populations of Russia examined earlier. Cluster analysis using the data on the frequencies of genes of hereditary diseases has shown the gene geographic position of the Rostov oblast population among the following ethnic populations of Russia: Russians (Kostroma, Kirov, and Rostov oblasts and Krasnodar krai), Chuvashes (Chuvashia), Adygeans (Adygea), Maris (Marii El), and Udmurts (Udmurtia).

[Epidemiology of monogenic hereditary diseases in Rostov Oblast: population dynamic factors determining the differentiation of the load of hereditary diseases in eight districts].

A genetic epidemiological study has been carried out in eight raions (districts) of Rostov oblast (region) of Russia: Tsimlyansk, Volgodonskoi, Tselina, Egorlykskaya, Millerovo, Tarasovskaya, Rodionovo-Nesvetaiskaya, and Matveevo-Kurgan raions. The population structure (the parameters of the isolation by distance model, ethnic assortative marriage, random inbreeding (F(ST), endogamy index, and ie) and the genetic demographic characteristics of the regional population (vital statistics, Crow's index, and its components) have been analyzed. The total sample size was 320925 subjects (including 114106 and 206816 urban and rural residents, respectively). The load of the main types of Mendelian diseases (autosomal dominant (AD), autosomal recessive (AR), and X-linked diseases) has been calculated for the total sample from eight districts and separately for the urban and rural populations. Substantial differences between individual districts in the AD and AR genetic loads have been found, especially upon separation into urban and rural samples. The results of correlation analysis suggest that migration and genetic drift are the main factors of genetic differentiation of populations with respect to the prevalence of hereditary diseases.

[Medical genetic study of the Rostov oblast population: analysis of surname distribution in seven districts].

Data on the surname frequency distribution in seven districts (districts) of the Rostov oblast (region) have been used to calculate random inbreeding varying from 0.000064 to 0.000186 in the Volgodonsk and Millerovo districts, respectively. Schematic surname landscapes have been constructed for six districts. The observed spectrum of frequent surnames is compared with that of the complete register of surnames in Russia.