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Chromosome 16 There are three main conditions that are associated with chromosome 16: Crohn’s Disease, Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF), and Polycystic Kidney Disease Type 1 (PKD1). Polycystic Kidney Disease Type 1 (PKD1) is a genetic disorder which is characterized by the growth of numerous cysts in the kidneys. These cysts are filled with fluid, growing out of nephrons, the tiny filtering units inside the kidneys. The cysts eventually separate from the nephrons and continue to enlarge. The kidneys enlarge along with the cysts (which can number in the thousands), while retaining roughly their kidney shape. In fully developed PKD, a cyst-filled kidney can weigh as much as 22 pounds. PKD cysts can slowly replace much of the mass of the kidneys, reducing kidney function and leading to kidney failure. When PKD causes kidneys to fail, the patient requires dialysis or kidney transplantation. About one-half of people with the major type of PKD progress to kidney failure. (PKD can also cause cysts in the liver and problems in other organs, such as the heart and blood vessels in the brain.) Some of the most common symptoms associated with PKD1 are: pain in the back and the sides (between the ribs and hips),