Genotypic and phenotypic profiles of EYS gene-related retinitis pigmentosa: a retrospective study

Retinitis pigmentosa (RP) affects 1:5000 individuals worldwide. Interestingly, variations in 271 RP-related genes are indicated to vary among populations. We aimed to evaluate the genetic prevalence and phenotypic profiles of Thai patients with RP. The clinical and whole exome sequencing data of 125 patients suggestive of inherited retinal diseases (IRD), particularly non-syndromic RP, were assessed. We found a total of 258 variants (63% of which remained unavailable in the ClinVar database) in 91 IRD-associated genes. Among the detected genes, the eyes shut homolog (EYS) gene showed the highest prevalence. We also provide insights into the genotypic, baseline, and follow-up clinical presentations of seven patients with disease-causing EYS variations. This study could provide comprehension of the prevalence of RP-related genes involved in the Asian population. It might also provide information to establish advanced and personalised therapy for RP in the Thai population.