Three new alpha-thalassemia point mutations ascertained through newborn screening

We report three new alpha-thalassemia (thal) point mutations detected during newborn screening for hemoglobinopathies. The first mutation is a single nucleotide deletion (-A) that abolishes the translation initiation codon of the alpha2-globin gene, detected in a newborn of Hmong ethnicity who carried the Southeast Asian alpha(0)-thal deletion (alpha(T)alpha/- -(SEA)). The second mutation, a frameshift caused by a single nucleotide deletion in exon 2 of the alpha1-globin gene [codon 78 (-C)], was detected in a Black/Chinese newborn who also carried the Southeast Asian alpha0-thal deletion (alphaalpha(T)/- -(SEA)). The third mutation was a frameshift in exon 3 of the alpha2-globin gene, codons 113/114 (-C). This mutation was detected in a newborn who carried the 3.7 kb alpha(+)-thal deletion (alpha(T)alpha/-alpha(3.7)).