Even as classic cytogenetics has given way to molecular karyotyping, and as new deletion and duplication syndromes are identified almost every day, the fundamental role of the genetics clinic remains mostly unchanged. Genetic counselors and medical geneticists explain the "unexplainable," helping families understand why abnormalities occur and whether they're likely to occur again. Chromosome Abnormalities and Genetic Counseling is the genetics professional's definitive guide to navigating both chromosome disorders and the clinical questions of the families they impact. Combining a primer on these disorders with the most current approach to their best clinical approaches, this classic text is more than just a reference; it is a guide to how to think about these disorders, even as our technical understanding of them continues to evolve. Completely updated and still infused with the warmth and voice that have made it essential reading for professionals across medical genetics, this edition of Chromosome Abnormalities and Genetic Counseling represents a leap forward in clinical understanding and communication. It is, as ever, essential reading for the field.

First edition published in 2002. Second edition published in 2008.

Infertility affects more than one in ten couples worldwide and is related to highly heterogeneous pathologies sometimes only discernible in the germ line. Its complex etiology often, but not always, includes genetic factors besides anatomical defects, immunological interference, and environmental aspects. Nearly 30% of infertility cases are probably caused only by genetic defects. Thereby experimental animal knockout models convincingly show that infertility can be caused by single or multiple gene defects. Translating those basic research findings into clinical studies is challenging, leaving genetic causes for the vast majority of infertility patients unexplained. Nevertheless, a large number of candidate genes have been revealed by sophisticated molecular methods. This book provides a comprehensive overview on the subject of infertility written by the leading authorities in this field. It covers topics including basic biological, cytological, and molecular studies, as well as common and uncommon syndromes. It is a must-read for human geneticists, endocrinologists, epidemiologists, zoologists, and counsellors in human genetics, infertility, and assisted reproduction.

This new edition now titled “Human Chromosome Variation: Heteromorphism, Polymorphism and Pathogenesis” provides the reader with an up-to-date overview of microarrays, fragile sites, copy number variations and whole genome sequencing. Greatly expanding the discussion of microarray analysis in the previous edition of the book, are new chapters on microarray and genomic analysis, plus comprehensive tables on the subtle microdeletions and microduplications that are found on each chromosome, including 235 recurring copy number variants that are associated with well-established or emerging chromosomal syndromes. The current edition features concise information on cytogenetic methods and applications, extending these discussions to DNA analysis and genome sequencing. Sections on euchromatin, heterochromatin, FISH pattern, fragile site, copy number, and DNA sequence variation are integrated with actual clinical examples from cytogenetic laboratories and from clinical practice. The principles that allow for the distinction between benign chromosome / DNA variation and pathogenic heteromorphisms / polymorphisms are discussed and include references to the latest organizational guidelines and genomic or population databases. The two previous incarnations of this book: the ‘Atlas of Human Chromosome Heteromorphism’, and ‘Human Chromosome Variation: Heteromorphism and Polymorphism’ have been standard reference works in most cytogenetic laboratories, used by laboratory directors and clinicians all around the world. While widely used sections from the previous edition on cytogenetic technologies and heteromorphisms are retained intact the present volume adds extensive material on copy number variations (polymorphisms detected by microarray analysis), fragile sites in disease and cancer, and practical views on interpreting emerging technologies, including whole exome sequencing. This book should be of interest to clinicians, technicians and students who are or will be exposed to DNA and/or chromosome analysis and the data derived from these continuously developing techniques. This fully updated book volume will bring the reader up to speed on the latest technologies, their applications, benefits and drawbacks and as such, is a must read for anyone with an interest in DNA and chromosome analysis and the distinction between benign variation and pathogenic mistakes.

Human Chromosome Variation: Heteromorphism and Polymorphism was formerly printed under the title “Atlas of Human Chromosome Heteromorphism”. The Atlas has become a standard reference book in most cytogenetic laboratories and is cited as a significant reference in ISCN 2009. This revised version has updated and retained the most useful pictorial sections of the first edition, including the comprehensive review of normal and “not-so-normal” variations of the human karyotype with summaries and extensive reference lists organized by chromosome number. This updated edition features concise background information on chromosome methods and applications, essential information on heteromorphism frequencies in normal and clinical populations as well as new listing and discussions of euchromatic, subtelomeric and FISH variants. The addition of two new sections make this an even more valuable reference than before. A section on common and rare fragile sites includes a short historical discussion, definitions and an extensive table of officially recognized sites that includes the HUGO name, chromosomal location, methods of induction, genes and references to the most recent molecular characterization. A new section on array CGH discusses the clinical challenge of interpreting copy number variations (CNVs) revealed by this newest technology, gives examples of various levels of interpretation and lists the several most common websites used in this interpretation.

Chromosome Identification—Technique and Applications in Biology and Medicine contains the proceedings of the Twenty-Third Nobel Symposium held at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in Stockholm, Sweden, on September 25-27,1972. The papers review advances in chromosome banding techniques and their applications in biology and medicine. Techniques for the study of pattern constancy and for rapid karyotype analysis are discussed, along with cytological procedures; karyotypes in different organisms; somatic cell hybridization; and chemical composition of chromosomes. This book is comprised of 51 chapters divided into nine sections and begins with a survey of the cytological procedures, including fluorescence banding techniques, constitutive heterochromatin (C-band) technique, and Giemsa banding technique. The following chapters explore computerized statistical analysis of banding pattern; the use of distribution functions to describe integrated profiles of human chromosomes; the uniqueness of the human karyotype; and the application of somatic cell hybridization to the study of gene linkage and complementation. The mechanisms for certain chromosome aberration are also analyzed, together with fluorescent banding agents and differential staining of human chromosomes after oxidation treatment. This monograph will be of interest to practitioners in the fields of biology and medicine.

The Causes and Consequences of Chromosomal Aberrations explores one of the most dramatic examples of genomic instability-chromosomal aberrations. It describes some of the more recent techniques used to map genes within the human genome, study chromosomal aberrations at the cellular level, and define the organization of the interphase nucleus. General overviews are provided to build a conceptual framework for understanding the generality and specificity of chromosomal aberrations. The Causes and Consequences of Chromosomal Aberrations also explores the role of recombinases and topoisomerases in the development of chromosomal aberrations. It contains studies of chromosomal aberrations, which offer separate instructive treatises on specific malignancies. The Causes and Consequences of Chromosomal Aberrations is useful to medical and graduate students, physicians, molecular biologists, and cytogeneticists. It will benefit anyone interested in the concepts, contributions, and development in the field of molecular cytogenetics.