Abstract
Chromosomal microarray (CMA) testing, used to identify DNA copy number variations
(CNVs), has helped advance knowledge about genetics of human neurodevelopmental disease
and congenital anomalies. It has aided in discovering new CNV syndromes and uncovering
disease genes. It has discovered CNVs that are not fully penetrant and/or cause a
spectrum of phenotypes, including intellectual disability, autism, schizophrenia,
and dysmorphisms. Such CNVs can pose challenges to genetic counseling. They also have
helped increase knowledge of genetic risk factors for neurodevelopmental disease and
raised awareness of possible shared etiologies among these variable phenotypes. Advances
in CMA technology allow CNV identification at increasingly finer scales, improving
detection of pathogenic changes, although these sometimes are difficult to distinguish
from normal population variation. This paper confronts some of the challenges uncovered
by CMA testing while reviewing advances in genetics and the clinical use of this test
that has replaced standard karyotyping in most genetic evaluations.
Keywords
aCGH - copy number variation - microarray - microdeletion - microduplication - molecular
cytogenetics