Similarly, MYH9 mutations result in congenital thrombocytopaenia and increase the risk of developing kidney failure, cataracts and hearing loss at a later stage, while MPL mutations cause a congenital thrombocytopaenia that almost always evolves into deadly bone marrow failure.
These studies provide further support for the critical role of the MPL-THPO pathway in hematopoiesis and highlight the importance of accurate genetic diagnosis to inform treatment decisions for BMF.
We describe a CAMT patient with compound heterozygous mutations of the causative MPL gene (one being a previously unreported splice site mutation in intron 11) who developed pancytopenia within the first month of life.
Congenital amegakaryocytic thrombocytopenia (CAMT) is caused by the loss of thrombopoietin receptor-mediated (MPL-mediated) signaling, which causes severe pancytopenia leading to bone marrow failure with onset of thrombocytopenia and anemia prior to leukopenia.
Seven different mutations predicted to lead to a complete loss of function of the thrombopoietin receptor were found in 13 patients belonging to group CAMT I with persistently low platelet counts and a fast progression into pancytopenia.