BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutational spectrum in Maghrebian countries
What is it about?
The Maghreb is defined as much as most of the region of Northwest Africa, and includes six countries: Algeria, Mauritania, Morocco, Libya, Tunisia and territory of Western Sahara. The Maghrebian population is composed of Berber descent with Sub- Saharan, European and Middle Eastern elements. Genetics diseases studies are of interest in admixed populations . To date, there is a growing amount on information about the impact of BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes on hereditary breast/ovarian cancer in Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia. Many reports have shown that different populations in many countries have different BRCA1 and BRCA2 mutation spectrum and prevalence . It’s very important to know about the mutation spectrum of BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes of Maghrebian populations. This knowledge may help to develop an effective screening protocol and to provide to the patients and the families at risk, in the near future, more efficient approach for the personalization of genetic testing.
Why is it important?
The objective of this article was to collate available data published in Pubmed, Scopus, Cancerlit databases and present them in a review for a better knowledge of the mutational spectrum of BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes in Maghrebian countries.