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The book will present the progress made since the last meeting in fall 2013 concerning the analysis of circulating extra-cellular nucleic acids. There are a modest number of laboratories involved in this field, nevertheless the number of papers published by researchers is extensive. The articles which will be published in this meeting report will be a valuable contribution for researchers and research students alike and will help them to stay on top of the developments in different research areas and to „cross borders“ between them.

DNA and RNA fractions can be isolated from a variety of body fluids including whole blood, serum, plasma, urine, saliva and cerebrospinal fluid from both patients and healthy individuals. Such isolates can be exploited in the early detection of clinical disorders, stratification of patients for treatment, treatment monitoring and clinical follow-up. In addition, the use in fetal medicine allows the early detection of fetal sex, Rh factor and aneuploid disorders as well as following both fetal and premature born infant development. This volume is intended as a primer for those who are interested in entering the field of circulating nucleic acids.The areas covered in this volume include:· Background and general biology of circulating nucleic acids· Methodology· Applications of circulating nucleic acids· Quality Assurance· Ethics

DNA and RNA fractions have been isolated from the whole blood, serum, plasma, the surface of blood cells, urine, saliva and spinal fluid from both healthy individuals and clinical patients. Recent developments are presented concerning the isolation, quantification and analysis of these molecules and their use in the identification of specific nucleic acid fragments related to a variety of clinical disorders thereby permitting their early diagnosis and prognosis.