Raja A H Kuchay1, Yaser Rafiq Mir2, Xue Zeng3, Asima Hassan4, Kazunori Namba5, Mustafa Tekin6. 1. Department of Biotechnology, Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University, Rajouri, J&K, India. Electronic address: kuchay_bgsbu@yahoo.com. 2. Department of Biotechnology, Baba Ghulam Shah Badshah University, Rajouri, J&K, India. 3. Department of Genetics, Yale School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA. 4. Department of Ophthalmology, Government Medical College, Srinagar, J&K, India. 5. Division of Hearing and Balance Research, National Institute of Sensory Organs, National Hospital Organization Tokyo Medical Center, Japan. 6. John P. Hussman Institute for Human Genomics, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL, 33136, USA.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Hereditary hearing loss is characterized by a very high genetic heterogeneity. The OTOF (Locus: DFNB9), encoding otoferlin, is reported to be one of the major causes of non-syndromic hearing loss, and is also reported to be the most common cause of non-syndromic recessive auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder. METHODS: In this study, whole exome sequencing was employed for detection of novel pathogenic variant that segregates with autosomal recessive nonsyndromic hearing loss in a tribal family from Rajouri, Jammu and Kashmir. Proband was a 9-year-old male born to first-cousin parents and presented with sensorineural hearing loss since birth. Family resides in an area with high consanguinity and lack of basic health care facilities including genetic counselling services. RESULTS: We report a novel OTOF pathogenic variant NM_194248.2:c.4249_4250insG (p.Ser1417CysfsTer4) co-segregating with hearing loss in this family and not present in any public databases. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings not only extend the geographical and mutational spectrum of autosomal recessive nonsyndromic hearing loss but also support the need for introducing genetic counselling services to rural and tribal areas in India with high consanguinity.
BACKGROUND: Hereditary hearing loss is characterized by a very high genetic heterogeneity. The OTOF (Locus: DFNB9), encoding otoferlin, is reported to be one of the major causes of non-syndromic hearing loss, and is also reported to be the most common cause of non-syndromic recessive auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder. METHODS: In this study, whole exome sequencing was employed for detection of novel pathogenic variant that segregates with autosomal recessive nonsyndromic hearing loss in a tribal family from Rajouri, Jammu and Kashmir. Proband was a 9-year-old male born to first-cousin parents and presented with sensorineural hearing loss since birth. Family resides in an area with high consanguinity and lack of basic health care facilities including genetic counselling services. RESULTS: We report a novel OTOF pathogenic variant NM_194248.2:c.4249_4250insG (p.Ser1417CysfsTer4) co-segregating with hearing loss in this family and not present in any public databases. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings not only extend the geographical and mutational spectrum of autosomal recessive nonsyndromic hearing loss but also support the need for introducing genetic counselling services to rural and tribal areas in India with high consanguinity.