PGD

As with recurrent miscarriage, PGD (preimplantation genetic diagnosis) seeks to understand whether an embryo has inherited unwelcome genetic material from one, or both, parents.

In the case of PGD the concern is that the embryo will inherit a gene that is associated with a potentially life threatening illness. This may be a recessive gene present in both otherwise healthy parents, for example HBB (Sickle Cell Anaemia), or a dominant gene present in one parent, for example BRCA1 (Hereditary Breast Cancer).

PGD involves screening DNA from the embryo to ensure the disease gene is absent. Due to its high representation and low allele drop out SurePlex is ideally suited to this application and is increasingly used for PGD applications.

PGD is complex and expensive and may result in several embryos which are suitable for implantation. At this point a further aliquot of the DNA that was originally amplified for the purposes of PGD may used in combination with 24sure to ensure that the resulting embryo is euploid.