Mutations in Gap Junction Beta 2 (GJB2) (the gene encoding the protein Connexin 26) have been found to be a major cause of non-syndromic sensorineural recessive deafness.
We show that in the Czech Republic the Delta(GJB6-D13S1830) is not the second most common causal factor in deafness patients heterozygous for a single GJB2 mutation, and that Delta(GJB6-D13S1830) is very rare in central Europe compared to reports from Spain, France and Israel.
Previous studies have described two missense mutations in the human pejvakin gene that cause nonsyndromic recessive deafness (DFNB59) by affecting the function of auditory neurons.
The essential function of one of these claudins in the inner ear was established by identifying mutations in CLDN14 that cause nonsyndromic recessive deafnessDFNB29 in two large consanguineous Pakistani families.
Our findings revealed a unique phenotype with highly penetrant deafness, posterior embryotoxon, and congenital heart defects but with variable expressivity in a large kindred, which demonstrates that mutation in JAG1 can cause hearing loss.
Our findings revealed a unique phenotype with highly penetrant deafness, posterior embryotoxon, and congenital heart defects but with variable expressivity in a large kindred, which demonstrates that mutation in JAG1 can cause hearing loss.