Alarm over the prospect that prenatal diagnostic techniques, which permit identification of fetal sex and facilitate abortion of healthy but unwanted female fetuses has led some to urge their outright prohibition. This article argues against that response. Prenatal diagnosis permits timely action to preserve and enhance the life and health of fetuses otherwise endangered, and, by offering assur...

In most mammals, male development is triggered by the transient expression of the SRY gene, which initiates a cascade of gene interactions ultimately leading to the formation of a testis from the indifferent fetal gonad. Mutation studies have identified several genes essential for early gonadal development. We report here a molecular study of the SRY, DAX1, SF1 and WNT4 genes, mainly involved i...

Over the past 25 years the rate of twin and higher - order multifetal birth have increased between 1980 and 2005. The twining rate rose from 18.9 to 32.1 per 1000 live birth. Multifetal gestations are at high risk of fetaland complication such as; growth restricted fetal death, LBW and cerebral palasy. Maternal complication are that also increased such as: preeclampsia, diabetes, maternal death...

OBJECTIVE To provide a preliminary assessment of obstetric healthcare provider opinions surrounding implementation of cell-free fetal DNA testing. METHODS A 37-question pilot survey was used to address questions around the translation and use of non-invasive prenatal testing using cell-free fetal DNA. The survey was distributed and collected at a Continuing Medical Education course on obstetr...

Sex determination is an intriguing system in trioecious papaya. Over the past seven decades various hypotheses, based on the knowledge and information available at the time, have been proposed to explain the genetics of the papaya's sex determination. These include a single gene with three alleles, a group of closely linked genes, a genic balance of sex chromosome over autosomes, classical XY c...

Sex-determination is commonly categorized as either "genetic" or "environmental"-a classification that obscures the origin of this dichotomy and the evolution of sex-determining factors. The current focus on static outcomes of sex-determination provides little insight into the dynamic developmental processes by which some mechanisms acquire the role of sex determinants. Systems that combine "ge...