Abstract
Phenylketonuria (PKU) is an autosomal recessive metabolic disorder caused by deficiency of phenylalanine hydroxylase (PAH). The major molecular defects causing PKU are missense mutations of PAH gene. Large deletions of exon 5 (EX5del955 and EX5del4232ins) were first reported by the Czech study and were later found also in the Polish, Slovak, Slovenian and Italian PKU-patients. These observations demonstrate the existence of a common subset of this mutation predominantly among Central European populations of Slavic descent. That is why we suggest that EX5del1955 and EX5del4232ins268 mutations might be frequent causes of PKU in Ukrainian patients. EX5del955 and EX5del4232ins268 mutations were analyzed in 106 unrelated PKU patients negative for PAH gene mutations on one or both alleles from our previous analysis. The simultaneous detection of EX5del4232ins268 and EX5del955 mutations was performed by PCR amplification of mutant alleles. EX5del955 mutation was not detected in the Ukrainian patients. This relative alleles frequency of EX5del4232ins268 mutation in the Ukrainian PKU population was determined as 1,66%. Our findings can be the one more evidence of Central European Slavic origin of EX5del4232ins268 mutation, suggested previously. This finding is important for the improvement of DNA diagnosis necessary for the management of PKU patients from Ukraine.