Establishment of a Flexible Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction-Based Platform for Detecting Prevalent Deafness Mutations Associated with Variable Degree of Sensorineural Hearing Loss in Koreans

PLoS One. 2016 Sep 1;11(9):e0161756. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0161756. eCollection 2016.

Abstract

Many cutting-edge technologies based on next-generation sequencing (NGS) have been employed to identify candidate variants responsible for sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL). However, these methods have limitations preventing their wide clinical use for primary screening, in that they remain costly and it is not always suitable to analyze massive amounts of data. Several different DNA chips have been developed for screening prevalent mutations at a lower cost. However, most of these platforms do not offer the flexibility to add or remove target mutations, thereby limiting their wider use in a field that requires frequent updates. Therefore, we aimed to establish a simpler and more flexible molecular diagnostic platform based on ethnicity-specific mutation spectrums of SNHL, which would enable bypassing unnecessary filtering steps in a substantial portion of cases. In addition, we expanded the screening platform to cover varying degrees of SNHL. With this aim, we selected 11 variants of 5 genes (GJB2, SLC26A4, MTRNR1, TMPRSS3, and CDH23) showing high prevalence with varying degrees in Koreans and developed the U-TOP™ HL Genotyping Kit, a real-time PCR-based method using the MeltingArray technique and peptide nucleic acid probes. The results of 271 DNA samples with wild type sequences or mutations in homo- or heterozygote form were compared between the U-TOP™ HL Genotyping Kit and Sanger sequencing. The positive and negative predictive values were 100%, and this method showed perfect agreement with Sanger sequencing, with a Kappa value of 1.00. The U-TOP™ HL Genotyping Kit showed excellent performance in detecting varying degrees and phenotypes of SNHL mutations in both homozygote and heterozygote forms, which are highly prevalent in the Korean population. This platform will serve as a useful and cost-effective first-line screening tool for varying degrees of genetic SNHL and facilitate genome-based personalized hearing rehabilitation for the Korean population.

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • DNA Mutational Analysis
  • Deafness / genetics*
  • Female
  • Hearing Loss, Sensorineural / genetics*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Mutation*
  • Real-Time Polymerase Chain Reaction
  • Republic of Korea

Grants and funding

This research was supported by the Daejeon IRPE (Institute for Regional Program Evaluation Promotion) Project (R0004264) through the Research and Development for Regional Industry of the MOTIE (Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy) Republic of Korea. This study was also supported by funding from the Korean Healthcare Technology R&D Project, Ministry of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs, Republic of Korea (HI14C1867 and H12C0014 to BYC). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.