question: Give examples of next-generation sequencing applications in mutation screening?
answer: Next generation sequencing data for a particular genomic region can be seen as the summation of all the individual sequences (reads) obtained for that region and no longer as the mean of this sum as it is the case for traditional Sanger sequencing. NGS is introduced to an increasing number of mutation screening applications. An NGS based mutation screening procedure allowing the detection of inherited Alu insertions within any predefined sequence was used for the case of c.1739_1740insAlu in BRCA1 and c.156_157insAlu in BRCA2. Another NGS study screened BRCA1 and BRCA2 resulting in  overall sensitivity for SOLiD and PGM of 97.8% (95% CI = 94.7 to 100.0) and 98.9% (95% CI = 96.8 to 100.0) respectively. The specificity for the SOLiD platform was high, at 100.0% (95% CI = 99.3 to 100.0). PGM correctly identified all 3 indels, but 68 false-positive indels were also called. Genes known to cause deafness were sequenced by the Illumina NGS platform. Results demonstrated that targeted exons captured by our approach achieved specificity, multiplexicity, uniformity, and depth of coverage suitable for accurate sequencing applications by the NGS systems. Reliable genotype calls for various homozygous and heterozygous mutations were achieved. In the context of von Willebrand disease 43 mutations, including 36 substitutions, 2 intronic splice site mutations, 2 indels, and 3 deletions were screened on the next-generation sequencing instrument. This demonstrated that at least 350 patients and relatives per run can be simultaneously analyzed in a fast, inexpensive manner. The Alport syndrome is caused by mutations in three key genes namely COL4A3, COL4A4 and COL4A5, each of which consists of approximately 50 exons, thus rendering mutations screening a highly time consuming and expensive endeavor. NGS is now being established for the simultaneous, fast and cost-effective detection of all possible variants in these three genes. NGS has also been used screening EGFR, KRAS and BRAF for mutations associated with cancer diagnosis and/or response to several anticancer therapies. NGS has also been used in mutation screening for hereditary spastic paraplegias, X linked leucoencephalopathy, retinitis pigmentosa,  inherited urea cycle disorders, as well as the Marfan (MFS), Loeys-Dietz (LDS) and Meckel syndromes.