You can test for genetic disorders of a baby still in the womb with a procedure called amniocentisis. A small amount of the fluid surrounding the fetus is taken out with a needle and then sent away for genetic testing. Testing for things like Downs Syndrome, Spina Bifida and also the sex of the baby can be found out this way. It is usually done in the second trimester of the pregnancy, when the fetus is less likely to be harmed by the procedure.
Renee answered this one really well…It is pretty amazing that doctors can test the DNA of an unborn baby before they are born. I spent some time in a lab where they were doing doing these tests, it’s really amazing. Basically after the fluid is removed from around the baby, it is sent to a laboratory where the fetal cells can be separated from everything else in the fluid. Then the scientists have to put in a cell culture medium and grown in order to have the cells in the right stage of growth and also enough cells for the analysis. And finally, once there are enough cells in the right stage, the scientists can do the required analysis – usually by examining the chromosomes using various stains to look for major abonormalities (the structures that our DNA are organized into; here’s http://www.news-medical.net/health/What-is-a-Chromosome.aspx; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karyotype ) or sequencing the DNA to uncover abnormalities or differences in the actual DNA sequence.
And the puncture wound heals quickly, with the fluid being replaced with 24-48hours.
You can test for genetic disorders of a baby still in the womb with a procedure called amniocentisis. A small amount of the fluid surrounding the fetus is taken out with a needle and then sent away for genetic testing. Testing for things like Downs Syndrome, Spina Bifida and also the sex of the baby can be found out this way. It is usually done in the second trimester of the pregnancy, when the fetus is less likely to be harmed by the procedure.
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Renee answered this one really well…It is pretty amazing that doctors can test the DNA of an unborn baby before they are born. I spent some time in a lab where they were doing doing these tests, it’s really amazing. Basically after the fluid is removed from around the baby, it is sent to a laboratory where the fetal cells can be separated from everything else in the fluid. Then the scientists have to put in a cell culture medium and grown in order to have the cells in the right stage of growth and also enough cells for the analysis. And finally, once there are enough cells in the right stage, the scientists can do the required analysis – usually by examining the chromosomes using various stains to look for major abonormalities (the structures that our DNA are organized into; here’s http://www.news-medical.net/health/What-is-a-Chromosome.aspx; http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karyotype ) or sequencing the DNA to uncover abnormalities or differences in the actual DNA sequence.
And the puncture wound heals quickly, with the fluid being replaced with 24-48hours.
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Renee had the best answer.
🙂
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