About the Authors

Macy M. S. Heung

Affiliations Centre for Research into Circulating Fetal Nucleic Acids, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China, Department of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China

Shengnan Jin

Affiliations Centre for Research into Circulating Fetal Nucleic Acids, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China, Department of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China

Nancy B. Y. Tsui

Affiliations Centre for Research into Circulating Fetal Nucleic Acids, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China, Department of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China

Chunming Ding

Affiliation Stanley Ho Centre for Emerging Infectious Diseases, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China

Tak Y. Leung

Affiliation Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China

Tze K. Lau

Affiliation Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China

Rossa W. K. Chiu

Affiliations Centre for Research into Circulating Fetal Nucleic Acids, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China, Department of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China

Y. M. Dennis Lo

loym@cuhk.edu.hk

Affiliations Centre for Research into Circulating Fetal Nucleic Acids, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China, Department of Chemical Pathology, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Prince of Wales Hospital, Shatin, Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China

Competing Interests

S.J., N.B.Y.T., C.D., R.W.K.C. and Y.M.D.L. hold patents and have filed patent applications on aspects of the use of fetal nucleic acids in maternal plasma for noninvasive prenatal diagnosis, a proportion of which has been licensed to Sequenom, Inc. Y.M.D.L. holds equities in and is a consultant for Sequenom Inc. The author confirms that their patent position does not alter their adherence to all of the PLoS ONE policies.

Author Contributions

Conceived and designed the experiments: CD RWKC YMDL. Performed the experiments: MMSH SJ NBYT. Analyzed the data: MMSH SJ NBYT RWKC YMDL. Contributed reagents/materials/analysis tools: TYL TKL. Wrote the paper: MMSH RWKC YMDL. Recruitment of study participants: TYL TKL.