Rapid and reliable detection of glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) gene mutations in Han Chinese using high-resolution melting analysis.

Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) deficiency, an X-linked inherited disease, is one of the most common enzymopathies and affects over 400 million people worldwide. In China at least 21 distinct point mutations have been identified so far. In this study high-resolution melting (HRM) analysis was used to screen for G6PD mutations in 260 unrelated Han Chinese individuals, and the rapidity and reliability of this method was investigated. The mutants were readily differentiated by using HRM analysis, which produced distinct melting curves for each tested mutation. Interestingly, G1388A and G1376T, the two most common variants accounting for 50% to 60% of G6PD deficiency mutations in the Chinese population, could be differentiated in a single reaction. Further, two G6PD mutations not previously reported in the Chinese population were identified in this study. One of these mutations, designated "G6PD Jiangxi G1340T," involved a G1340T substitution in exon 11, predicting a Gly447Val change in the protein. The other mutation involved a C406T substitution in exon 5. The frequencies of the common polymorphism site C1311T/IVS (intervening sequence) XI t93c between patients with G6PD and healthy volunteers were not significantly different. Thus, HRM analysis will be a useful alternative for screening G6PD mutations.