Frequency of the cystic fibrosis mutation ΔF508 in Algeria

We report here the Delta F508 frequency in 24 unrelated young Algerian CF patients born of Algerian parents, and native to this country, using an allele-specific polymerase chain reaction. Of the 48 CF chromosomes screened, 21 are Delta F508, and the frequency of the mutation is 0.43. This frequency, which is lower than that estimated for North European populations (The Cystic Fibrosis Genetic Analysis Consortium 1990), in again comparable to data presented for Spanish and Italian populations.