Non-invasive prenatal diagnosis (NIPD): current and emerging technologies

Prenatal testing is important for the early detection and diagnosis of rare genetic conditions with life-changing implications for the patient and their family. Gaining access to the fetal genotype can be achieved using gold-standard invasive sampling methods, such as amniocentesis and chorionic villus sampling, but these carry a small risk of miscarriage. Non-invasive prenatal diagnosis (NIPD) for select rare monogenic conditions has been in clinical service in England since 2012 and has revolutionised the field of prenatal diagnostics by reducing the number of women undergoing invasive sampling procedures. Fetal-derived genomic material is present in a highly fragmented form amongst the maternal cell-free DNA (cfDNA) in circulation, with sequence coverage across the entire fetal genome. Cell-free fetal DNA (cffDNA) is the foundation for NIPD, and several technologies have been clinically implemented for the detection of paternally inherited and de novo pathogenic variants. Conversely, a low abundance of cffDNA within a high background of maternal cfDNA makes assigning maternally inherited variants to the fetal fraction a significantly more challenging task. Research is ongoing to expand available tests for maternal inheritance to include a broader range of monogenic conditions, as well as to uncover novel diagnostic avenues. This review covers the scope of technologies currently clinically available for NIPD of monogenic conditions and those still in the research pipeline towards implementation in the future.