Clinical Disease Among Patients Heterozygous for Familial Mediterranean Fever

Objective. To define the molecular basis of familial Mediterranean fever (IMF) in patients with only I mutation in the MEFV gene. Methods. Genetic analysis was performed in 20 IMF patients, including full sequencing of complementary DNA (cDNA) samples and multiplex ligation-dependent probe amplification analysis. In patients with first-degree relatives with IMF, haplotype analysis was also performed. Results. A second mutation was found in 2 patients. In the other 18 patients, we could not identify additional mutations, large genomic deletions, or duplications. Analysis of single-nucleotide polymorphisms along the cDNA ruled out a lack of expression of I of the alleles. In 2 of the 3 families in which more than I sibling had IMF, we showed that the affected siblings inherited a different MEFV allele from the parent who did not have the MEFV mutation. Conclusion. These findings are highly consistent with the existence of a clinical phenotype among some patients who are heterozygous for IMF and could explain the vertical transmission in some families. A single mutation in the MEFV gene may be much more common than was previously thought and may include up to 25% of patients who are diagnosed as having FMF.