{
  "id": 11493573,
  "title": "Tracing fetal DNA through maternal blood can help reduce prenatal testing errors",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/02/tracing-fetal-dna-through-maternal-blood-can-help-reduce-prenatal",
  "topic": "health",
  "section": "Health & Medicine",
  "published": "2026-10-02T18:00:19.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Medical Xpress",
    "slug": "medical-xpress",
    "url": "https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-10-fetal-dna-maternal-blood-prenatal.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Recent research published in Science Advances explores how fetal DNA travels in a pregnant woman's blood, a discovery that could revolutionize prenatal screening methods. An international team, led by Adelaide University, has conducted a comprehensive review of decades of scientific studies to clarify the origins, entry into the bloodstream, and associated structures of fetal DNA in maternal blood. This breakthrough could significantly enhance the accuracy of noninvasive prenatal testing (NIPT), a widely used blood test for detecting genetic conditions during pregnancy. Since its introduction in 2011, millions of women globally have opted for NIPT, which offers a safer alternative to invasive procedures like amniocentesis. However, NIPT still faces challenges, including a 47% rate of false positive high-risk results, leading to unnecessary stress and invasive diagnostic procedures. The study challenges the long-held belief that fetal DNA originates solely from the placenta, questioning the exact cell types responsible for releasing this DNA and whether it travels attached to extracellular vesicles or other molecular structures. Improving our understanding of these aspects could increase the \"fetal fraction\" — the amount of fetal DNA available for testing — a critical challenge in current prenatal screening technologies. The researchers emphasize that advancements in this biological understanding could lead to more reliable, comprehensive, and potentially affordable prenatal tests, capable of detecting a broader range of genetic disorders from a simple blood sample and possibly identifying complications like preeclampsia earlier.",
  "summary": "Understanding how fetal DNA travels in a pregnant woman's blood could unlock the next generation of prenatal screening, according to a new paper published in Science Advances.",
  "key_points": [
    "Fetal DNA travels in maternal blood, revolutionizing prenatal screening.",
    "Study challenges belief that DNA originates solely from placenta.",
    "Improvements could increase fetal fraction, detect more genetic disorders."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}