Tests that measure DNA in a pregnant woman’s blood work well for telling the sex of a baby after seven weeks’ gestation without posing danger to the foetus, a US study has said.
The meta-analysis of previous studies on the topic suggests that using cell-free foetal DNA from the mother’s blood is more accurate than a urine test or sonogram and is safer than amniocentesis.
It can also be done earlier than an ultrasound, which is usually accurate from 11 to 14 weeks, or amniocentesis, which samples fluid from the sac surrounding the foetus and carries a small risk of miscarriage.
“The availability of a reliable non invasive alternative to determine foetal sex wou-ld reduce unintended foetal losses and would presumably be welcomed by pregnant women carrying foetuses at risk for disorders,” the study in the Journal of the American Medical Association said on Tuesday.
The review included 57 studies, representing 3,524 male-bearing pregnancies and 3,017 female-bearing pregnancies, and found an accuracy rate of 95 to nearly 99 per cent.
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Rare parrot is seized from boat
Manila: Philippine authorities have seized a specimen of one of the world’s rarest parrots after boarding a boat suspected of being involved in illegal wildlife trading, the coast guard said Wednesday.
The critically-endangered red-vented cockatoo, a foot-long white parrot found only in the Philippines, was seized along with 71 hill mynahs and 42 blue-nape parrots from a boat at the resort of El Nido.
Coastguard and environmental protection officers boarded the vessel on Saturday before it was set to sail for Manila and found the birds, a coastguard statement said.
The authorities are seeking the owners of the cargo, while the boat captain was fined for carrying prohibited goods, the coastguard statement added.
The International Union for the Conservation of Nature classifies the red-vented cockatoo, Cacatua haematuropygia, as critically endangered and estimates there are only 1,000 left in the wild.
It also classifies the blue-nape parrot, Tanygnathus lucionensis, another bird found only in the Philippines, as near-threatened due to trapping and loss of forest habitat. —AFP