Application of a DNA Deafness Microarray for Detecting Mutations in the Deaf in Vietnam

Object: To identify the presentation of deafness-related gene caused non-syndromic hearing loss in Vietnamese children.Methods: Apply DNA microarray to 250 hearing-impaired and 250 normal children in Hanoi to screen nine mutational hot spots of four deafness genes, namely GJB2, GJB3, SLC26A4, and 12S rRNA.Results: there are 16 hearing loss participants carried mutations, account for 6.4% in comparison with 0 % of control group. The carrier rates of GJB2, GJB3, SLC26A4, 12S rRNA mutations were 4.4%, 0%, 1.2% and 0.8% respectively.Conclusion: Early detection of common deafness mutations is a factor for diagnosing and rescuing, helping hearing-loss children to develop their language and awareness normally. Microarray testing is a helpful and instrumental screening method in the diagnosis of genetic hearing loss.