[Compound heterozygous NDUFS1 variants identified in a Chinese pedigree affected with mitochondrial respiratory chain...

To explore the genetic basis for a Chinese pedigree with suspected mitochondrial functional defects through combined next-generation sequencing (NGS), copy number variation sequencing (CNV-seq), and mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequencing.

Clinical data of the proband and his family members were collected. The patient and his parents were subjected to family-trio whole-exome sequencing (WES), CNV-seq and mtDNA variant detection. Candidate variant was verified by Sanger sequencing.

Trio-WES revealed that the proband has carried compound heterozygous variants of the NDUFS1 gene, including a paternally derived c.64C>T (p.R22X) nonsense variant and a maternally derived c.845A>G (p.N282S) missense variant. Both variants may cause loss of protein function. No variant that may cause the phenotype was identified by CNV-seq and mtDNA variant analysis.

Children with suspected mitochondrial disorders may have no specific syndromes or laboratory findings. A comprehensive strategy including mtDNA testing may facilitate the diagnosis and early clinical interventions.