Preservation of fetal nucleic acids in maternal plasma

摘要

A product for preserving and processing fetal nucleic acids located within maternal plasma is disclosed, whereby a sample of maternal blood containing fetal nucleic acids is treated to reduce both cell lysis of the maternal blood cells and deoxyribonuclease (DNase) and ribonuclease (RNase) activity within the fetal nucleic acids. Use of the product increases the amount of fetal nucleic acids that can be identified and tested while maintaining the structure and integrity of the fetal nucleic acids.