Your browser version may not work well with NCBI's Web applications. More information here...
1: Lancet. 2002 Jun 22;359(9324):2168-70.Click here to read Links
Comment in:
Lancet. 2002 Nov 16;360(9345):1608.
Lancet. 2003 Jun 7;361(9373):1993-4.

Association between aplastic anaemia and mutations in telomerase RNA.

Vulliamy T, Marrone A, Dokal I, Mason PJ.

Department of Haematology, Division of Investigative Science, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine, Hammersmith Hospital, London W12 0NN, UK.

The main cause of aplastic anaemia remains elusive. Germline mutations in the gene encoding the RNA component of telomerase (hTR) have been seen in the autosomal dominant form of dyskeratosis congenita--an inherited syndrome characterised by aplastic anaemia. By screening the hTR gene, we identified mutations in two of 17 patients with idiopathic aplastic anaemia, three of 27 patients with constitutional aplastic anaemia, but in none of 214 normal controls (p<0.0001). Furthermore, patients with hTR mutations had significantly shorter telomeres than age-matched controls (p=0.027). These data indicate that, in a subset of patients with aplastic anaemia, the disorder might be associated with a genetic lesion in the telomere maintenance pathway.

PMID: 12090986 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]