Amniotic fluid stem cells and the cell source repertoire for non-invasive prenatal testing.
Margit RosnerThomas KolbeViktor VoroninMarkus HengstschlägerPublished in: Stem cell reviews and reports (2021)
Cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA)-based non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) is considered to be a very promising screening tool for pregnant women with an increased risk of fetal aneuploidy. Already millions of women worldwide underwent NIPT. However, due to the observed false-positive and false-negative results, this screening approach does not fulfil the criteria of a diagnostic test. Accordingly, positive results still require risk-carrying invasive prenatal testing, such as amniocentesis or chorionic villus sampling (CVS), for confirmation. Such hurdles need to be overcome before NIPT could become a diagnostic approach widely used in the general population. Here we discuss new evidence that besides the placenta amniotic fluid stem cells (AFSCs) could also represent an origin of cffDNA in the mother's blood. A comprehensive picture of the involved cell source repertoire could pave the way to more reliable interpretations of NIPT results and ameliorate counselling of advice-seeking patients.
Keyphrases
- stem cells
- cell free
- pregnant women
- cell therapy
- single cell
- circulating tumor
- end stage renal disease
- ejection fraction
- newly diagnosed
- mental health
- prognostic factors
- chronic kidney disease
- polycystic ovary syndrome
- pregnancy outcomes
- human immunodeficiency virus
- insulin resistance
- hepatitis c virus
- bone marrow
- skeletal muscle
- breast cancer risk
- men who have sex with men
- hiv testing
- high throughput sequencing