Thyroglobulin exon 10 gene point mutation in a patient with endemic goiter

Iodine deficiency is the most relevant etiologic factor in endemic goiter. However, the fact that not all residents in the same area eventually develop goiter suggests that individual factors might also be involved in the etiology of endemic goiter. We have previously reported a point mutation in thyroglobulin exon 10 associated with nonendemic simple goiter. In an attempt to determine whether the mutation in thyroglobulin exon 10 might be linked to endemic goiter, we studied the genomic organization of thyroglobulin exon 10 in 36 patients diagnosed with endemic goiter by Southern blot, PCR, and sequencing analysis. We also analyzed by Southern blot the organization of the genomic region that contains thyroglobulin exons 1 to 11. In one case, we observed a point mutation in thyroglobulin exon 10. Sequencing analysis revealed a mutation at position 2610 of the cDNA, which implies a G to T substitution. This single base change results in a glutamine to histidine substitution and is the same as that previously reported by our group in patients with nonendemic goiter. To our knowledge, this is the first time that a mutation in the thyroglobulin gene has been described in a patient with endemic simple goiter and further confirms the association between the exon 10 mutation and development of goiter.