DNA Diagnostics-All You Need to Know
DNA diagnostics is an upcoming field of diagnosis, where the DNA of a patient is completely analyzed and scrutinized in order to diagnose a disease or for a paternity or maternity test. Additionally DNA diagnostics will also give information on which disease one is susceptible to thanks to the genes inherited from ones parents.
As the cost of sequencing DNA keeps decreasing and the rate of processing them keeps increasing, this technology will become mainstream and help in the diagnosis of cancer, rare genetic diseases etc.
DNA Diagnostics – What is DNA?
When looking at DNA diagnostics, we must first consider what is DNA. DNA or Deoxyribonucleic Acid is the blueprint of life for most known living organisms. The DNA contains the information required to allow an organism to grow and proliferate. The DNA is basically a double helix, made of two complementary strands of DNA which are coiled around each other.
Based on your DNA sequence, proteins will be produced and these proteins control everything in the body from skin color to metabolism to the immune system. DNA is made up of four building blocks known as nucleotides:
- Adenosine
- Cytosine
- Guanine &
- Thymine
Together these four nucleotides will bind using phosphate bonds through a sugar phosphate backbone to produce a linear sequence. Different sequences give different proteins. The human genome contains 3 billion such nucleotides. For these 99% remain common in all human beings.
The Science behind DNA Diagnosis
In DNA diagnostics the scientist will first sequence your entire DNA. Following the sequencing, your DNA will be analysed for any abnormalities.
Most sequences are now known thanks to the Human Genome Project. When they compare your genes with a database of known gene sequences, if any changes are present in your DNA it will be found. These changes in the DNA cause diseases or increase ones susceptibility to a specific disease. As they say prevention is better than cure, DNA diagnostics will allow you to gain a complete picture of your health. Thus you can make the necessary life changes such as a change to a low fat diet or increasing the amount of exercise.
The best part of DNA diagnostics is that there is no need for expensive tests and you also do not need to spend much time. All it will take is some blood or a buccal swab to collect some cells.
Procedure of DNA diagnostics
- A buccal swab will be done to collect some loose cheek cells
- These cells will then be lysed to release their contents
- All the cellular components other than the DNA will be separated and discarded
- The DNA isolated will be cleaned and purified
- Then your DNA will be amplified using a PCR machine
- The amplified DNA will be sequenced
- And DNA probes will be used to help in DNA diagnostics
Applications of DNA Diagnostics
DNA diagnostics can be applied for different uses such as:
- Screening at Birth: Screening of the DNA of your child while still in the embryonic stage is an excellent method of diagnosing possible genetic diseases. Many genetic diseases are present which can cause mental retardation, muscle degeneration and death in early childhood. These diseases occur due to a mutation in the DNA of the child, if found early it can be treated using genetic therapy.
- Parental Testing: Screening of your DNA to check if you parents are your biological parents is very easy thanks to DNA diagnosis. For this test they will compare your DNA and your parents for specific markers. Within a few days you can find out in an accurate and discrete manner if your DNA matches the DNA of your mother and father.
- Predictive Diagnostic Testing: DNA diagnostics also plays a major role in diagnosis diseases and medical conditions for which you are susceptible. After analyzing your DNA, if they find that you have a predisposition for heart problems then you can take preventive measures such as regulating your diet and exercising.
- For Pharmacogenomics: Pharmacogenomics is the study of how your genes will affect the efficacy of drugs. Once it is determined, in the future drugs can be tailor made to have the highest efficiency and efficacy in your body i.e. personalized medicine.
Risks of DNA Diagnostics
DNA diagnostics is rapidly evolving and growing as a field all over the world. But as with any new technology it has its share of risks such as:
v Misuse of information
v Emotional and psychological stress
v Financial consequences
v Social consequences
But thankfully no physical risks exist for procedures in DNA diagnostics, since only a buccal smear or a little blood is required.
Related Articles: