The true panel of cystic fibrosis mutations in the Sicilian population

Background The aim was to establish the true risk of having an affected child with Cystic Fibrosis (CF) in the Sicilian infertile population. Methods A longitudinal CFTR screening of 1279 Sicilian infertile patients for all CFTR mutations sequencing the entire gene by Next Generation Sequencing (NGS) was performed from patient's blood. Results One patient out of 16 was a carrier of a CFTR mutation. Twenty-four mutations were found. Theoretically one couple out of 256 was at risk of CF transmission. Conclusions The risk of CF transmission is unexpectedly high in Sicily and with a high heterogeneity. Sequencing an entire and long gene such as CFTR makes accessible the true panel of mutations in a specific population and helps better to understand the true risk of having an affected child.