Prenatal diagnosis of β-thalassemia with cell-free fetal DNA in maternal plasma

Abstract

The aim of this study was to explore the feasibility of non-invasive prenatal genetic diagnosis of β-thalassemia with small fragments of cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA) in peripheral blood of pregnant women. It was an observational study carried out at Department of Obstetrics, The People's Hospital of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Nanning, Guangxi, China, from January 2016 to March 2018. A total of 40 pregnant women, who were likely to give birth to babies with severe β-thalassemia, were selected, and β-globin genotype of the fetus was non-invasively detected by cffDNA in peripheral blood of their mothers. Small fragments of cffDNA from all specimens were successfully amplified. Compared with the results of traumatic prenatal diagnosis, 37 cases (92.50%) were diagnosed and 3 cases (7.50%) were misdiagnosed. The cffDNA in maternal plasma can be used for non-invasive prenatal genetic diagnosis of β-thalassemia, and is worthy of promotion.