Karl R. Klingler, Dagmar Zech, Klaus Wielckens
Haemochromatosis: Automated Detection of the Two Point Mutations in the HFE Gene: Cys282Tyr and His63Asp
Hereditary haemochromatosis (HH) is one of the most common inherited diseases among Caucasians. Two mutations in the HFE gene have been implicated in HH: 80 to 90% of the patients with HH are homozygous for the point mutation CYS282Tyr, while the majority of the remaining patients displays either a compound heterozygosity for the mutation CYS282Tyr and the point mutation HIS63Asp, or are homozygous for HIS63Asp. Though the disease can be treated easily, symptoms are non-specific, and onset and severity are influenced by environmental factors, and therefore the disease can remain undetected until decades of iron overload lead to irreversible damage in a variety of organs, which may result in their failure. In order to detect patients with HH, simple and cost-effective tests are needed. We have developed a rapid, automated, PCR-based test which makes use of a diagnostic restriction site in each of two amplified fragments. The test employs off-the-shelf chemistry and uses the automated detection process of an immunoassay analyzer that is available in many clinical laboratories, thus avoiding an additional investment in a more specialized PCR analyzer. Because of its low costs and easy handling, the assay is particularly suited for the routine clinical laboratories.
Clinical Chemical Laboratory Medicine, Walter de Gruyter
Print ISSN: 1434-6621
Volume: 38, 12/2000
Pages: 1225 - 1230
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