Plasma DNA

Human blood is composed of blood cells (Red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets) and blood fluid.The red color of blood is color of red blood cells which, after centrifugation, the bright yellow color of blood fluid will be clearly separated from the blood cells. This part of your blood is called plasma.Plasma contains sugar, protein, fat, minerals, coagulants,hormones, vitamins, enzymes, antibodies and also genetic material (DNA and RNA).

When cells die either by cellular senescence or other causes (infection, damaged, apoptosis or programmed cell death, necrosis, or autophagy), cells will release DNA and RNA into the bloodstream.The DNA and RNA found in the blood plasma (Plasma DNA and Plasma RNA) canbe a trace of cell status in our body.Normally, except gamete cells (eggs and sperm), DNA sequence of all cells in our body are identical. However, when cells are damaged by either toxins, stress, or infection, DNA begins to mutate. The mutant cell begins to change its shape and function accordingly.Cells with mutant DNA will become uncontrolled cells which is no longer function and could be further developed to tumor and eventually cancer cells, if mutations occur on proto-oncogenes or tumor suppressor-genes, such as TP53, EGFR, or KRAS.

When cells turned abnormal, the body will response by eliminating the abnormal cells using immune cells (Natural Killer; NK cells) and releasing mutant DNA to bloodstream. With technology nowadays, we can detect mutations in cancer-related genes from plasma DNA (and/or Plasma RNA) which represent mutant DNA belong to abnormal cells. Hence, early detection of your abnormal cells using plasma DNA will warn you for future cancer development and thus help you manage your health with early prevention. This should be better than cancer detection in helpless late stage.

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ภาพจากกล้องจุลทัศน์ ติดตามการทำงานของเซลล์ภูมิคุ้มกัน (Natural Killer cells) ทำลายเซลล์ที่มีดีเอ็นเอกลายพันธุ์

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Plasma DNA is a trace of cancer which could help you plan for health management properly in order to deal with the abnormal cells before these cells get developed to become aggressive cancer which is mostly and/or hopelessly difficult to treat.