Twins News and Research

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Study with twins shows COVID-19 symptoms have genetic contribution

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv from King's College, London, suggests that an individual's genetic makeup may contribute to how much a person is likely to be affected by COVID-19, or whether they are likely to be infected at all.

29 Apr 2020

Study highlights biases and social implications in COVID-19 crisis

The biases individuals harbor against people they see as physically dirty emerge in children as young as five years old and persist into adulthood, according to a new study by researchers from Boston College and Franklin & Marshall College, who found these prejudices extend to the sick and may hold implications for people diagnosed with Covid-19.

29 Apr 2020

Pregnancy and fetal outcomes with COVID-19

A new study published preprint in the non-peer-reviewed journal medRxiv in April 2020 provides a systematic review of maternal and fetal outcomes in pregnancy affected by COVID-19, as well as the risk of vertical transmission of the virus.

16 Apr 2020

‘I wasn’t eating’: Senior twin sisters battle pandemic anxiety together

Ethel Sylvester dialed 911, trembling with fear. The 92-year-old felt hot. She thought turning off her thermostat could fix the problem. That didn't help.

16 Apr 2020

Short-term exposure to even low levels of air pollution can affect gene expression

New data from a landmark study done by Monash University researchers in Australia raises significant concerns that even short-term exposure to low level air pollution can affect gene expression, leaving us at risk of other diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular and respiratory diseases.

8 Apr 2020

Loss of smell hints at coronavirus infection

The most common signs and symptoms of coronavirus disease (COVID-19) include fever, dry cough, and difficulty of breathing. But patients who were infected recall another bizarre symptom tied to the coronavirus infection – loss of smell.

2 Apr 2020

Teen marijuana use associated with insomnia later on

Smoke a lot of weed as a teenager, and when you reach adulthood you'll be more likely to have trouble falling or staying asleep, according to a new University of Colorado Boulder study of more than 2,000 twins.

31 Mar 2020

Family ties and traits key to survival in parasitic organisms

New research by Texas A&M University biologist Dr. Charles Criscione and collaborators in Canada shows that family ties and traits such as manipulation, sacrifice and selflessness are just as key to survival in parasitic organisms as they are in cognitive species like humans.

10 Mar 2020

What is the best week for the birth of twins?

A new study published in the journal JAMA Pediatrics indicates that the optimal time of birth for twins is at 37 completed weeks of pregnancy.

9 Mar 2020

Slightly increased risk of death for babies conceived by IVF

A new study published in the journal Fertility and Sterility in February 2020 reports a higher risk for mortality in children who were conceived by the in vitro fertilization (IVF) technique followed by freezing of the embryos, compared to those naturally conceived, but only in the first few weeks of life.

18 Feb 2020

Taller body height in young men linked to lower risk of dementia in old age

Men who are taller in young adulthood, as an indicator of early-life circumstances, may have a lower risk of dementia in old age, suggests a study published today in eLife.

11 Feb 2020

Study: Environment changes can impact stability landscape of the gut microbial community

Your fingerprints stay the same all your life. But what about the "fingerprint" of microbial strains that are shared in the guts of childhood twins?

9 Jan 2020

Prison sentences given to scientists who gene-edited babies

The three scientists responsible for the creation of three gene-edited babies have received prison sentences.

6 Jan 2020

Identical twins with ASD have large differences in symptom severity

Identical twins with autism spectrum disorder often experience large differences in symptom severity even though they share the same DNA, according to an analysis funded by the National Institutes of Health.

28 Dec 2019

Battling the bullets from the operating room to the community

Dr. Laurie Punch plunged her gloved hands into Sidney Taylor's open chest in a hospital’s operating room here, pushing on his heart to make it pump again after a bullet had torn through his flesh, collarbone and lung. His pulse had faded to nothing. She needed to get his heart beating.

12 Dec 2019

Study highlights lack of psychological support for people dealing with infertility in the UK

Psychological support for those dealing with infertility and its treatment is received by only just half of those who want it in the UK - with many left to suffer with anxiety, depression, or suicidal thoughts, according to a new study published in Human Fertility.

6 Dec 2019

Lung imaging studies of non-identical twins with asthma deepen understanding of the disease

Two lung imaging studies from Western University, including one performed in non-identical twin patients with life-long asthma, have shown that airway defects in the lungs of asthmatic patients are like thumbprints - they have a unique pattern and maintain that pattern over time.

4 Dec 2019

Experts condemn CRISPR babies research as original manuscript is made public

Scientists have criticized the gene-editing of the Chinese twins last year, following the first public release of the research.

4 Dec 2019

Cesarean delivery of twins increases threefold in Victoria, Australia

The proportion of twins born by cesarean delivery in Victoria, Australia increased threefold, from 24% to 71% of all twin births, during 1983–2015, despite high-level evidence that routine cesarean delivery of twins does not benefit mothers or babies, according to the authors of research published online today by the Medical Journal of Australia.

4 Dec 2019

Mystery surrounds gene edited babies one year on

A year back Chinese scientist He Jiankui was in the news for all the wrong reasons. He had helped create the world’s first genetically edited human babies. After a year the world is still in dark about the whereabouts and health of the babies he had created and he himself has been not seen since January this year.

27 Nov 2019