47,XY,+del(X)(q21.31)/46,XY mosaicism in prenatal diagnosis - case report of a rare event

OBJECTIVES: Aneuploidies involving the sex chromosomes are the most common anomalies in humans. In many cases these anomalies are present in mosaic and may involve either the whole chromosome or just part of it. These anomalies constitute a challenge in prenatal diagnosis because it is generally very difficult to establish a reliable genotype-phenotype correlation. Here we report a rare event of a mosaic in which one cell line carries an additional abnormal X chromosome, with a terminal deletion at q21.31 region, and a normal XY constitution in the majority of the cells. METHODS: A healthy 36-year-old G1P1 woman was referred for prenatal diagnosis at 11+5 weeks of gestation for increased nuchal translucency. Chorionic villus biopsy was performed and molecular rapid aneuploidy result indicated an anomalous situation for the X chromosome in a male fetus. As the material was not sufficient to establish a culture an amniocentesis was performed at 17+3 weeks and karyotyping and microarray were performed in order to characterize the anomalous result. RESULTS: The results obtained indicated the presence of a mosaic involving an extra X chromosome with a terminal deletion, [47,XY,+del(Xq)/46,XY.arr[GRCh37] Xp22.33q21.31(169921_89283237)x1~2], which is compatible with a Klinefelter syndrome variant. CONCLUSIONS: Pregnancies affected by X chromosome aneuploidies diagnosed prenatally are at an increased risk of adverse fetal and neonatal outcomes. High quality information is critical for informed decision-making in pregnancy following a prenatal diagnosis of sex chromosome aneuploidy. The participant shall be able to understand the importance of breakpoints definition and the impact that a mosaicism situation have in prenatal diagnosis.N/