Objective: To identify the genetic cause for a Chinese Han family affected with hereditary multiple osteochondromas.
Methods: Two patients, five unaffected relatives of the family and 100 unrelated healthy controls were collected. The coding sequences and intron/exon boundaries of EXT1 gene were amplified with polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and sequenced.
Results: A heterozygous c.600G>A (p.Trp200X) mutation in exon 1 of the EXT1 gene was detected in the patients. The same mutation was not found in unaffected family members and 100 healthy controls.
Conclusion: The hereditary multiple osteochondromas in the family is caused by a nonsense mutation (p.Trp200X) in the EXT1 gene.