Patterns of gastrointestinal disease associated with mutations of CFTR

This review focuses on the pathobiology of the gastrointestinal and hepatic manifestations of cystic fibrosis (CF) disease in relation to their genetic basis in mutations of the CF transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene. It reviews the nature of the CFTR protein, a categorization of the types of gene mutations underlying CF's various manifestations, and the ways in which absent or reduced CFTR produces various functional abnormalities in the different organs affected by CF. Subsequently, the particular organ-related clinical manifestations of CF directly associated with loss of CFTR function are addressed. Thereafter, the review discusses some of the complexities of the genotype-phenotype relationships related to milder mutations or complex genetic disorders in which CFTR abnormalities interact with other genetic and environmental factors, and the potential diagnostic roles of sweat testing or other electrophysiologic testing. This discussion examines secondary gastrointestinal manifestations of CF and the particular cases of diseases that may be related to abnormalities of CFTR.