A group of scientists at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research Institute of Microelectronics in Singapore have developed a microchip that could help spot fetal genetic abnormalities at earlier stages than before by filtering the fetal red blood cells of an expecting mother.
According to Asia Research News, the new method permitted by the microchip requires the extraction of a few milliliters of blood from a woman at as early as the eighth week after conception, which is much earlier than modern tests allow.
Not only would the new technique allow for earlier testing, but it would also provide a safer method for analysis. Tests that are currently carried out by medical professionals, like amniocentesis, which requires the extraction of the fluids that surround the fetus, and chorionic villus sampling, which requires the sampling of fluids from the side of the placenta where the fetus is located, are invasive. These practices can also cause miscarriages, injury to the fetus or mother, infection, or early labor, though the chances of these tragedies occurring is miniscule.
The microchip features a circular microfilter membrane that consists of thousands of microslits. This system gathers the fetal red blood cells while allowing the mother’s platelets and red blood cells, which are smaller, to pass through without being drawn.
Once gathered, the fetal red blood cells are exposed to dyes that differentiate them from other cells, and then they are tested for genetic deficiencies.
The method involving the institute’s microchip could also be used to keep track of the tumor cells that move through cancer patients. If the treatments that the cancer patients have undergone are working, the report reasons, fewer tumor cells will be found in the blood.
The scientists are slated to continue testing for preclinical validation of the technique until June. After these experiments are completed, the scientists are hopeful that they will be able to define the amount of genetic issues that can be spotted through the use of the microchip.
The institute has received additional funding to help bring the technology to market faster. The source of the funding was not shared in the report.
