Summary
We found a partial deletion of the clotting factor VIII gene of about 2000 bp, spanning exon 5 and part of intervening sequence 4 and 5 in an isolated patient with severe haemophilia A. The mother of the patient, who appeared to be a non-carrier on the basis of coagulation assays and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis in the family, turned out to be a mosaic for the deletion, not only in her germ cells, but also in various somatic cells. These findings suggest that the mutation is the result of an event in early embryogenesis. If mosaicism for a mutation, either gonadal or somatic, proves to be a common phenomenon in human genetics, it is imperative to reconsider genetic risks for (future) sibs of any apparently new mutant of a hereditary disease.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Allanson JE (1986) Germinal mosaicism in Apert syndrome. Clin Genet 29:429–433
Antonarakis SE, Youssoufian H, Kazazian HH (1987) Molecular genetics of hemophilia A in man (factor-VIII deficiency). Mol Biol Med 4:81–94
Baas F, Bikker H, Ommen GJB van, De Vijlder JJM (1984) Unusual scarcity of restriction site polymorphism in the human thyroglobulin gene. A linkage study suggesting autosomal dominance of a defective thyroglobulin allele. Hum Genet 67:301–305
Bakker E, Van Broeckhoven C, Bonten EJ, Van de Vooren MJ, Veenema H, Hul W van, Ommen GJB van, Vandenberghe A, Pearson PL (1987) Germline mosaicism and Duchenne muscular dystrophy mutations. Nature 329:554–556
Bakker E, Veenema H, Dunnen JT den, Broeckhoven C van, Grootscholten PM, Bonten EJ, Ommen GJB van, Pearson PL (1989) Germinal mosaicism increases the recurrence risk for “new” Duchenne muscular dystrophy mutations. J Med Genet 26:553–559
Bröcker-Vriends AHJT, Briët E, Quadt R, Dreesen JCFM, Bakker E, Claassen-Tegelaar R, Kanhai HHH, Kamp JJP van de, Pearson PL (1987) Genotype assignment of haemophilia A by use of intragenic and extragenic restriction fragment length polymorphisms. Thromb Haemost 57:131–136
Cantu JM, Rivas F, Rivera H, Ruiz C (1985) The prezygotic origin of structural mosaicisms. Ann Génét (Paris) 28:73–74
Comings DE (1986) The genetics of Rett syndrome: the consequences of a disorder where every case is a new mutation. Am J Med Genet 24:383–388
Darras BT, Francke U (1987) A partial deletion of the muscular dystrophy gene transmitted twice by an unaffected male. Nature 329:556–558
Dunn LC, Gluecksohn-Waelsch S (1953) Genetic analysis of seven newly discovered mutant alleles at locus T in the house mouse. Genetics 38:261–271
Frijns JP, Kleczkowska A, Verresen H, Van den Berghe H (1983) Germinal mosaicism in achondroplasia: a family with three af fected siblings of normal parents. Clin Genet 24:156–158
Gartler SM, Francke U (1975) Half chromatid mutations: transmission in humans? Am J Hum Genet 27:218–223
Gitschier J (1988) Maternal duplication with gene deletion in sporadic hemophilia. Am J Hum Genet 43:274–279
Gitschier J, Wood WI, Goralka TM, Wion KL, Chen EY, Eaton DH, Vehar GA, Capon DJ, Lawn RM (1984) Characterization of the human factor VIII gene. Nature 312:326–330
Gitschier J, Drayna D, Tuddenham EGD, White RL, Lawn RM (1985) Genetic mapping and diagnosis of haemophilia A achieved through a BclI polymorphism in the factor VIII gene. Nature 314:738–740
Gitschier J, Levinson B, Lehesjoki A-E, Chapelle A de la (1989) Mosaicism and sporadic haemophilia: implications for carrier detection. Lancet I:273–274
Green PP, Mannucci PM, Briët E, Ljung R, Kasper CK, Essein EM, Chediak J, Rizza ER, Graham JB (1986) Carrier detection in hemophilia A: a cooperative international study. II. The efficacy of a universal discriminant. Blood 67:1560–1567
Hall BD (1985) Recurrence risk in de novo 21q21q translocation Down syndrome. Am J Med Genet 22:417–418
Hall JG (1988) Review and hypotheses. Somatic mosaicism: observations related to clinical genetics. Am J Hum Genet 43:355–363
Hall JG, Drost JP, Rotta J, McKusick VA (1987) Gonadal mosaicism in pseudoachondroplasia. Am J Med Genet 28:143–151
Hartl DL (1971) Recurrence risks for germinal mosaics. Am J Hum Genet 23:124–134
Hartl DL, Green MM (1970) Genetic studies of germinal mosaicism in Drosophila melanogaster using the mutable Wc gene. Genetics 65:449–456
Higuchi M, Kochhan L, Olek K (1988) A somatic mosaic for haemophilia A detected at the DNA level. Mol Biol Med 5:23–27
Hofker MH, Wapenaar MC, Goor N, Bakker B, Ommen GJB van, Pearson PL (1985) Isolation of probes detecting restriction fragment length polymorphism from X chromosome specific libraries: potential use for diagnosis of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Hum Genet 70:148–156
Hoo JJ, Lowry RB, Lin CC, Haslam RHA (1985) Recurrent de novo interstitial deletion of 16q in two mentally retarded sisters. Clin Genet 27:420–425
Laurell CB (1966) Quantitative estimation of protein by electrophoresis in agarose gels containing antibodies. Anal Biochem 15:45–52
Leyte A, Mertens K, Distel B, Evers RF, Keyzer-Nellen MJM de, Groenen-van Doren MMCL, Bruin J de, Pannekoek H, Mourik JA van, Verbeet MP (1989) Inhibition of human coagulation factor VIII by monoclonal antibodies; mapping of functional epidomes using recombinant factor VIII fragments. Biochem J 263:187–194
Maddalena A, Sosnoski DM, Berry GT, Nussbaum RL (1988) Mosaicism for an intragenic X chromosome deletion in a boy with mild ornithine transcarbamylase deficiency. N Engl J Med 319:999–1003
Murphy EA, Cramer DW, Krysicio RJ, Brown CC, Pierce ER (1974) Gonadal mosaicism and genetic counselling for X-linked recessive lethals. Am J Hum Genet 26:207–222
Oberlé I, Camerino R, Heilig L, Grunebaum L, Cazenave JP, Crapanzo C, Mannucci PM, Mandel J-L (1985) Genetic screening for hemophilia A (classic hemophilia) with a polymorphic DNA probe. N Engl J Med 312:682–686
Steinberg C, Zackai EH, Eunpu L, Mennuti MT, Emanuel BS (1984) Recurrence rate for de novo 21q21q translocation Down syndrome: a study of 112 families. Am J Med Genet 17:523–530
Veltkamp JJ, Drion EF, Loeliger EA (1968) Detection of the carrier state in hereditary coagulation disorders I. Thromb Diathes Haemorrh 19:279–303
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Bröcker-Vriends, A.H.J.T., Briët, E., Dreesen, J.C.F.M. et al. Somatic origin of inherited haemophilia A. Hum Genet 85, 288–292 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00206748
Received:
Revised:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00206748