A Novel Mutation in the Thyroglobulin Gene Resulting in Neonatal Goiter and Congenital Hypothyroidism in an Eritrean Infant

Eve Stern*, Nadia Schoenmakers, Adeline K. Nicholas, Eran Kassif, Orit Pinhas Hamiel, Yonatan Yeshayahu

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

7 Scopus citations

Abstract

Congenital hypothyroidism (CH) due to dyshormonogenesis may occur due to mutations in any of the key genes involved in thyroid hormone biosynthesis (TG, TPO, DUOX2, DUOXA2, SLC5A5, IYD, SLC26A4 and SLC26A7). Mutations in the thyroglobulin gene (TG) are frequently associated with goiter, which may present fetally or neonatally, although a spectrum of phenotypes is reported. We present the case of a woman of Eritrean origin who presented in the third trimester of pregnancy in the early stages of labor. Ultrasound at presentation revealed a fetal neck swelling consistent with a goiter. Following delivery by Caesarian section with minimal respiratory support, the infant was found to be hypothyroid with undetectable serum levels of thyroglobulin. Sequencing of the TG revealed a homozygous donor splice site pathogenic variant (c.5686+1delG) not previously described in the literature. Levothyroxine treatment resulted in normal growth and psychomotor development. Goitrous CH with inappropriately low thyroglobulin has previously been reported in patients harbouring homozygous single nucleotide substitutions at the same TG donor splice site, which result in exon skipping and retention of malformed thyroglobulin by the endoplasmic reticulum. We conclude that the TG c.5686+1delG pathogenic variant is the likely basis for our patient’s fetal goiter and CH, and that the clinical phenotype associated with TG c.5686+1delG is comparable to that seen with single nucleotide substitutions at the same site.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)221-226
Number of pages6
JournalJCRPE Journal of Clinical Research in Pediatric Endocrinology
Volume14
Issue number2
DOIs
StatePublished - 2022

Keywords

  • Congenital goiter
  • case report
  • hypothyroidism
  • novel mutation
  • thyroglobulin

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