Interstitial deletion, del(4)(q12q21.1), owing to de novo unbalanced translocation in a 2 year old girl: further evidence that the piebald trait maps to proximal 4q12.

A very short, microcephalic, and mentally retarded 2 year old girl showed minor anomalies including prominent occiput, delayed closure of the anterior fontanelle, high frontal hairline, prominent ears, upward slanting palpebral fissures, a small nose with bulbous tip, delayed tooth eruption and bone maturation, and short and tapering fingers and toes. She did not have a white forelock. Cytogenetic investigation disclosed a de novo unbalanced translocation between chromosomes 4 and 18 with deletion of 4q12-->q21.1. Molecular investigation showed lack of a paternal allele for the microsatellite markers D4S392 and D4S398. This case shows indirect evidence that the piebald gene maps to proximal 4q12.