Autosomal recessive hearing impairment with postlingual onset is rare. Exceptions are caused by mutations in theTMPRSS3gene, which can lead to prelingual (DFNB10) as well as postlingual deafness (DFNB8).TMPRSS3mutations can be classified as mild or severe, and the phenotype is dependent on the combination ofTMPRSS3mutations. The combination of two severe mutations leads to profound hearing impairment with a prelingual onset, whereas severe mutations in combination with milderTMPRSS3mutations lead to a milder phenotype with postlingual onset. We characterized a Chinese family (number FH1523) with not only prelingual but also postlingual hearing impairment. Three mutations inTMPRSS3, one novel mutation c.36delC [p.(Phe13Serfs⁎12)], and two previously reported pathogenic mutations, c.916G>A (p.Ala306Thr) and c.316C>T (p.Arg106Cys), were identified. Compound heterozygous mutations of p.(Phe13Serfs⁎12) and p.Ala306Thr manifest as prelingual, profound hearing impairment in the patient (IV: 1), whereas the combination of p.Arg106Cys and p.Ala306Thr manifests as postlingual, milder hearing impairment in the patient (II: 2, II: 3, II: 5), suggesting that p.Arg106Cys mutation has a milder effect than p.(Phe13Serfs⁎12). We concluded that different combinations ofTMPRSS3mutations led to different hearing impairment phenotypes (DFNB8/DFNB10) in this family.
Novel Compound Heterozygous Mutations in CERKL Cause Autosomal Recessive Retinitis Pigmentosa in a Nonconsanguineous Chinese Family
