Prenatal Paternity Testing
DNA Diagnostics is pleased to announce that, in collaboration with our colleagues at FGI, we are able to offer prenatal paternity testing using a blood sample from Mum instead of an invasive procedure.
During pregnancy, the baby's DNA can be found in the mother's blood, allowing for non-invasive prenatal paternity testing. This method is safe for both the mother and the unborn child and only requires a blood sample from the mother and a cheek swab from the alleged father. It is highly accurate, testing for over 5000 genetic markers with a reported accuracy of >99.999999%, known as Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs), to determine paternity. Multiple alleged fathers can also be tested for an additional cost.
This non-invasive prenatal paternity test is validated from 7 weeks of gestational age, but optimal testing is recommended at 10 weeks of pregnancy to ensure sufficient fetal DNA for accurate results. If the sample is collected too early or if gestational age is miscalculated, there may not be enough fetal DNA for a result, necessitating a later recollection.
Once the samples are received at the laboratory, results are typically available within 10-15 working days.
The test analyzes Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) to determine paternity. A match in the number of variations between the child's and the alleged father's SNPs indicates a biological relationship.
An express service is available however that comes with an increased cost.
Alternatively, you could wait until the baby is born and have a sample taken then - which for the baby will be a cheek swab. If however you are considering a termination on the basis of the results, you would of course need to explore the other options.
Cost of prenatal paternity testing:
- $2000 (Standard service)
- $2500 (Express service)
How does paternity testing work?
A child inherits half of its DNA from their father and half their DNA from their mother. The test compares the DNA profile of the child with the DNA profile of their alleged parents. Wherever possible, we prefer to include the mother in the test to achieve the highest degree of certainty for the results.
A Positive Result
We compare the DNA between the alleged father and the child on each chromosome and from this a paternity index value is calculated. It's important to note that, while DNA paternity testing is extremely accurate, there is no such thing as a one hundred per cent positive paternity test.
What is the Paternity Index Value?
The Paternity Index Value is a measure of the statistical likelihood that the alleged father is the child's biological father.
A Negative Result
If the alleged father's DNA does not match the child's paternal DNA at more than 2 of the places tested, the alleged father cannot be the biological father. A paternity index cannot be calculated for a negative result.