A non-invasive test which allows faster, cheaper, and less risky prenatal genetic screening was announced by Australian researchers at the International Genetics Congress in Melbourne today.
The new test can also be performed much earlier in pregnancy, say its developers Dr Ian Findlay and Mr Darryl Irwin of the Australian Genome Research Facility in Brisbane. It should open the opportunity of prenatal genetic testing to a wider group of women. “This test will focus conventional prenatal testing much more effectively,” said Dr Findlay.
The new test is based around PAP smears of the type normally taken for cancer screening. Cells from the foetus are isolated, genetically identified, and screened for a wide range of abnormalities such as Down syndrome and cystic fibrosis.
Niall Byrne | Internat. Congress of Genetics
Further information:
http://www.geneticsmedia.org/Pap_smears.htm
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