Mutations of the PKD2 gene in Taiwanese patients with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease

Background: Mutation analysis in the context of clinical phenotypes helps clarify the pathogenesis of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). Over 78 PKD2 gene mutations have been reported in the literature, but few have been described from an Asian population. This study attempted to characterize PKD2 mutations and their clinical implications among Taiwanese. Methods: Twenty unrelated ADPKD patients with uncharacterized genotypes were screened for mutations in the PKD2 gene via single-strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) of PCR products from genomic DNA, using previously reported PCR conditions and primers. Reesults: This study identified two novel mutations (C681A and 2136-2137delG) and one mutation (C2407T) previously reported in a Cypriot family. Overall, we found PKD2 mutations in 15% (three out of 20) of the ADPKD patients screened. The mutations included two nonsense mutations (Y227X and R803X) and one frameshift mutation (712-715X) that could all lead to premature termination of translation. The locations of mutations in this study spanned the entire PKD2 gene on exons 2, 11, and 13 without clustering and did not influence the renal disease severity. Conclusions: The study identified two novel mutations and one recurrent mutation of the PKD2 gene in 20 Taiwanese patients. The characteristics of the mutations in this study resemble those reported among Western populations.