Noninvasive in vivo monitoring of tissue-specific global gene expression in humans.

ABSTRACT: Circulating cell-free RNA in the blood provides a potential window into the health, phenotype, and developmental programs of a variety of human organs. We used high-throughput methods of RNA analysis such as microarrays and next-generation sequencing to characterize the global landscape circulating RNA in a cohort of human subjects. By focusing on genes whose expression is highly specific to certain tissues, we were able to identify the relative contributions of these tissues to circulating RNA and to monitor changes in tissue development and health. As one application of this approach, we performed a longitudinal study on pregnant women and analyzed their combined cell-free RNA transcriptomes across all three trimesters of pregnancy and after delivery. In addition to the analysis of mRNA,

SUBMITTER: Koh W 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4034220 | biostudies-literature | 2014 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature