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Clinical Applications of the Latest Molecular Diagnostics in Noninvasive Prenatal Diagnosis

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Book cover Chemical Diagnostics

Part of the book series: Topics in Current Chemistry ((TOPCURRCHEM,volume 336))

Abstract

The presence of cell-free fetal DNA in the plasma of pregnant women has opened up the possibility of noninvasive prenatal diagnosis. With the advances in molecular techniques of microfluidics and massive parallel sequencing, an increasing number of fetal genetic diseases/conditions can be noninvasively detected using maternal plasma DNA analysis. Remarkably, it has recently been shown that the genome-wide genetic map of an unborn fetus can be constructed through extensive sequencing of maternal plasma DNA. In this chapter the different qualitative and quantitative approaches and related methodology for the analysis of fetal DNA in maternal plasma are discussed.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong, China

    K. C. Allen Chan

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  1. K. C. Allen Chan
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Correspondence to K. C. Allen Chan .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. of Chemical Pathology and Lab. of Genetics of Disease Suscept., The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, People's Republic of China

    Nelson L.S. Tang

  2. Department of Paediatrics and Proteomics Laboratory, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, People's Republic of China

    Terence Poon

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© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Chan, K.C.A. (2012). Clinical Applications of the Latest Molecular Diagnostics in Noninvasive Prenatal Diagnosis. In: L.S. Tang, N., Poon, T. (eds) Chemical Diagnostics. Topics in Current Chemistry, vol 336. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/128_2012_352

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