Politics
Friday March 21, 2003
ADVANCES IN FETAL SCREENING IMPLY MORE ABORTIONS
Defective embryo search and destroy efforts now more efficient
TODAY'S HEADLINES
E-MAIL
PRINT
LONDON, March 21, 2003 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A new prenatal test reveals which genes are "switched on" in the placenta, enabling doctors to identify Down's Syndrome and other conditions better than ever before. The tests are being described as "safer and less invasive" -- although that is not true for the unborn child unfortunate enough to be diagnosed.
"While DNA is the genetic blueprint, RNA will tell you which genes are actually being expressed," says team leader Dennis Lo at the Chinese University of Hong Kong. "And many diseases, genetic or otherwise, might be associated with abnormalities in RNA expression."
Meanwhile new research in the UK, published in The Lancet, says a new quadruple blood test has only a 7% false-positive rate, compared to 14% using the age of the mother as a reason to screen for birth defects.
Prof. Nicholas Wald told the BBC: "Our results, from a routine screening service, confirm the value of early second trimester serum screening over screening by use of maternal age alone, in contradiction to recent opinion, and lend support to the decision of the UK government to offer serum screening to all pregnant women.
For the Hong Kong research visit Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences, or:
http://www.newscientist.com/news/news.jsp?id=ns99993510
For the new "accurate" quadruple blood test for Down's:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/2828735.stm
Back to TopLatest Headlines
- Cardinal Rigali: You Can't Claim to be "Reducing Abortions" but Publicly Funding them in D.C.
- General Electric to Use Embryonic Stem Cells for Testing, Phase out Lab Rats
- Ohio Supreme Court Allows Planned Parenthood to Conceal Abortion Records in Sexual Abuse Case
- LifeSiteNews Canada Day and Independence Day Message. Taking a few days off. LSN returns Monday July 6
- Heroically Pro-Life Brazilian Archbishop's Resignation Accepted Under Cloud of Vatican Newspaper Misrepresentation
- Pro-Life Groups Announce New Colorado Personhood Initiative
- Judge Puts Kibosh on DC Gay "Marriage" Referendum
- Al Franken Win Hands Supermajority to Senate Democrats
- Group Funded by Canadian Bishops' D&P Joins with Others to Denounce the "Natural Family" and "Family Rights"
- Financially Troubled Planned Parenthood of El Paso Closes Doors
- Abortion Linked to Subsequent Pre-Term Births, New Research Again Confirms
- New Orleans Homosexual Couple Ask Fed. Court to Overturn Marriage Amendment
- Slim Hope Of New Ontario Progressive Conservative Party Leader Promoting Pro-Life, Pro-Family Issues
- Pope Accepts Resignation of Bishop Caught Involved in Homosexual Encounters
- Young Children Removed from UK Schools for "Inappropriate Sexual Behaviour"
- Northern Ireland Politician Cleared of Wrongdoing after Reiterating Christian Teaching on Homosexual Acts
- UK Conservative Leader Speaks at Gay Pride Fundraiser
- More Letters to the Editor on Canadian Catholic Development and Peace Scandal (July 1)
- Letters to the Editor - Readers Respond to Development and Peace Scandal
- Watch This Dramatic New Video on Catholic Bishops Conference Funding of Pro-Abortion Groups
Most Read this Week
- Homosexual Duke U. Director Charged with Offering Adopted 5-Year-Old for Sex
- Famed Fr. Corapi Calls Canadian Bishops' Dissent from Humanae Vitae "Catastrophic"
- Pope: It is a Childish Faith to Oppose the Church Teaching on Life and Family
- Heroically Pro-Life Brazilian Archbishop's Resignation Accepted Under Cloud of Vatican Newspaper Misrepresentation
- General Electric to Use Embryonic Stem Cells for Testing, Phase Out Lab Rats
- LifeSiteNews Detailed Response to Canadian Bishops' Whitewash Report on Development and Peace
- Young Children Removed from UK Schools for "Inappropriate Sexual Behaviour"
- Is Pro-Choice the New Pro-Life?
- Swedish Parents Won't Tell if Child is Boy or Girl as Gender Experiment
- Cardinal Rigali: You Can't Claim to be "Reducing Abortions" but Publicly Funding them in D.C.
MORE NEWS: 
LifeSiteNews.com Home Page Last 10 Days Archives Special Reports
Copyright © LifeSiteNews.com. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-No Derivatives License. You may republish this article or portions of it without request provided the content is not altered and it is clearly attributed to "LifeSiteNews.com". Any website publishing of complete or large portions of original LifeSiteNews articles MUST additionally include a live link to www.LifeSiteNews.com. The link is not required for excerpts. Republishing of articles on LifeSiteNews.com from other sources as noted is subject to the conditions of those sources.