Cystic fibrosis mutations: report from the French Registry. The Clinical Centers of the CF.

Data from 2,666 patients with cystic fibrosis (CF) born in France, submitted during the period of 1992-1996 to the French registry for CF, were used to describe the different mutations, their frequency and their regional distribution. A total of 5,332 CF chromosomes have been analyzed, demonstrating 229 different mutations and accounting for 87% of CF genes in the French population. DeltaF508 is the most common mutation at 67.9% of CF mutations, followed by G542X (2.5%), N1303K (2.0%), 1717-1G-->A (1.2%), R553X (0.8%) and G551D (0.7%). The data show a clear geographical variation in the distribution of many of the mutations. Given the geographical heterogeneity of these mutations, carrier screening does not appear to be feasible in most French regions.

An abnormal distribution of delta F508 genotypes in cystic fibrosis patient registries.

Delta F508 mutation of the CFTR gene is the most frequent deleterious allele involved in cystic fibrosis (CF). We have studied the distribution of the three genotypes, delta F508/delta F508, delta F508/x, x/x, in the American, Canadian and French data registries concerning CF; "x" represents the non-delta F508 mutations. In the three registries the observed distribution of the three genotypes differs from the expected one, calculated according to the Hardy and Weinberg equilibrium. Three factors could explain this discrepancy: Wahlund's effect, misinterpretation of the molecular diagnosis, or an ascertainment bias in relation with the severity of the disease. This last factor is the most likely.