Dennis Lo is a chemical pathologist who completely changed thinking on prenatal diagnosis by discovering that it was possible to pick up an unborn baby’s DNA and RNA in cell-free form from maternal blood. This development created a paradigm shift in prenatal medicine.
He was able to elucidate the fundamental biology of this phenomenon. He then developed multiple prenatal tests based on this technology that are now in widespread use around the world, including tests that allow robust prenatal and noninvasive testing for trisomy 21 — the chromosomal disorder responsible for Down syndrome. More recently, Dennis has shown that the foetal genome, methylome and transcriptome can all be sequenced from maternal blood.
Director, Li Ka Shing Institute of Health Sciences, Chinese University Of Hong Kong
Interest and expertise
Subject groups
Health and human sciences
Molecular medicine
Keywords
Clinical genetics, Prenatal diagnosis, Molecular pathology, Pathology and laboratory medicine, Cancer detection and diagnosis
Awards
Royal Medals
For the discovery of foetal DNA in maternal plasma, developing non-invasive prenatal testing, and making foundational contributions for other types of liquid biopsies. He has made a major impact on pre-natal diagnosis.