Ask A Scientist General Science Archive

name         Joseph Van L.
status       student
age          14

Question -   What type of fetal cells are shed into the surrounding
fluid?
What type of fetal cells are shed into the surrounding fluid?


The fetal cells in the amniotic fluid are skin cells, fibroblasts. Most are
dead cells, like the dead cells on your own skin when it is dry. But a few
of them are alive. The fetus also urinates into the amniotic fluid so some
cells might perhaps come from inside the bladder.


When a pregnant woman has an amniocentesis, some of the amniotic fluid is
sampled. Those cells that are alive can be grown in the lab to study the
chromosomes of the developing fetus, or to extract DNA for genetic testing.


Sarina Kopinsky, MSc, H.Dip.Ed., CGC
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