[Distribution of variants of 88 recessive genetic disease-related genes among 1314 individuals from Chenzhou, China].

OBJECTIVE
To determine the carrier rate for common recessive genetic diseases in Chenzhou region in order to provide a reference for carrier screening in this region.


METHODS
Targeted capture and high-throughput sequencing were carried out to detect potential variants of 79 genes associated with 88 recessive genetic diseases. Couples at risk were provided with prenatal diagnosis upon their subsequent pregnancies.


RESULTS
A total of 1314 individuals were enrolled, among whom 355 (27.02%) were found to be carrier for at least one disease. The carrier rates for 8 diseases have exceeded 1%, with the most common two including thalassemia (11.72%, 154/1314) and autosomal recessive deafness (5.48%, 72/1314). Ten couples were found to be at risk for producing affected offspring. Among these, five females were carriers for X-linked recessive genetic diseases. Following genetic counseling, seven couples had accepted prenatal diagnosis, and 3 affected fetuses were diagnosed.


CONCLUSION
The disease types and pathogenic variants of Chenzhou region have differed from previously reported. Further research is required to validate the above finding with a larger populations.