Two Chinese nephronophthisis pedigrees harbored a compound heterozygous deletion with a point mutation in NPHP1

NPHP1 is the most prevalent genetic factor in the development of juvenile nephronophthisis (NPHP). In our previous study, NPHP1 homozygous point mutations were detected by Sanger sequencing in three cases from two nonconsanguineous pedigrees. However, mutant sites were detected in only one parent from each respective pedigree. To investigate whether other disease-causing mutations were present, targeted exome sequencing (TES) of 63 ciliopathy genes was performed in the probands of the two pedigrees. In addition to the previously detected point mutations, a complete heterozygous deletion of NPHP1 (1-20 exons) in the other allele was found in each of the three patients. The deletions were inherited from one parent of each pedigree. These is the first report of Chinese NPHP patients harboring a complete heterozygous deletion of NPHP1 in one allele and a point mutation in the other one. The study demonstrated that TES is helpful in identifying complicated mutations in patients with NPHP.