The aims of our research involved to investigate DYS-14 copy number variations in healthy males, to quantify extracellular DNA in maternal circulation in normal versus complicated pregnancies, and to study variations in the DYS-14 copy number in extracellular male fetal DNA. Fifty-five healthy males, 43 uncomplicated male singleton pregnancies (23 sampled at the 16th week and 20 sampled at the 36th week), and 15 pregnancies with placental insufficiency (PI)-related complications (mean 34.1 weeks) were analyzed using real-time PCR with DYS-14 sequence, sex determining region Y (SRY), and beta-globin (GLO) genes used as markers. Increased levels of extracellular DNA were detected in PI-related complications relative to gestational age-matched controls (SRY, p < 0.001; DYS-14, p = 0.007; GLO, p < 0.001). When the mean + 2SD (standard deviation) of controls was used as a cutoff, SRY, DYS-14, and GLO achieved 91.7%, 68.8%, and 94.4% accuracy, respectively, for differentiation between normal and complicated pregnancies. Considerable variations in the DYS-14 copy number in healthy males (mean 52.6) and extracellular DNA were found. A lower DYS-14 copy number was observed in PI-related complications (mean 83.5) compared to uncomplicated pregnancies (16th week: mean 114.2, p = 0.02; 36th week: mean 142.8, p = 0.04). The DYS-14 copy number was higher in extracellular DNA throughout gestation relative to healthy males. We concluded that, regarding interindividual copy number variations, the DYS-14 sequence is not an optimal marker for extracellular fetal DNA quantification for differentiation between normal and complicated pregnancies.

Department of Molecular Biology and Cell Pathology 3rd Medical Faculty Charles University Prague Czech Republic

Citace poskytuje Crossref.org