Infertility News and Research

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Infertility primarily refers to the biological inability of a person to contribute to conception. Infertility may also refer to the state of a woman who is unable to carry a pregnancy to full term.

FDA approves Watson's novel oral contraceptive

Watson Pharmaceuticals today announced the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of a novel oral contraceptive product – the first and only low dose oral contraceptive to combine 0.8 mg norethindrone and 0.025 mg ethinyl estradiol in chewable form, with four 75 mg ferrous fumarate (iron) placebo tablets. Taken orally, once daily, the product is proven effective in lowering the risk of pregnancy.

22 Dec 2010

Vitrolife receives FDA approval for RapitVit Blast and RapidWarm Blast vitrification products

Vitrolife has received approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, FDA, the equivalent of the Swedish Medical Products Agency, for the products RapitVit™ Blast and RapidWarm™ Blast. So-called 510(k) clearance has been obtained for these products, which are used for so-called vitrification, the rapid freezing and thawing of blastocysts (embryos days 5-7 after fertilization). Vitrolife has since before approved products for vitrification of embryos in an earlier stage of the fertilization (embryos day 2-3 after fertilization).

22 Dec 2010

Study: Chemotherapy can improve survival rate in older adolescents with leukemia

Research led by St. Jude Children-s Research Hospital investigators will likely impact how acute lymphoblastic leukemia is treated in young adults and shows older adolescent age does not dictate worse outcomes against the most common childhood cancer.

21 Dec 2010

Britain’s NHS falls short in providing services

British patients are being denied routine procedures varying from hip replacements, to cataract removal and wisdom tooth extraction as trusts are cutting back on surgeries and diagnostic procedures to save money. There is also a restriction preventing patients undergoing procedures for lifestyle reasons and those considered “low priority”. This includes obesity surgeries, mild varicose veins, fertility treatments, back injections for pain, hip and knee replacement in obese patients etc.

20 Dec 2010

Merck, sanofi-aventis enter global cancer research and development agreement

Merck Serono, a division of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, announced today that Merck, has signed a worldwide research and development agreement with sanofi-aventis U.S. Inc., under which Merck Serono and sanofi-aventis U.S. Inc. will collaboratively investigate novel experimental combinations of agents that could block specific pathways in cancer cells. This collaboration could deliver novel targeted oncology treatments with high therapeutic potential.

17 Dec 2010

Watson, PregLem enter licensing agreement to develop, market Esmya in the U.S. and Canada

Watson Pharmaceuticals, Inc. and Gedeon Richter Plc today announced that Watson's subsidiary, Watson Laboratories, Inc. has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with PregLem, S.A., ("Preglem") the wholly owned subsidiary of Richter, to develop and market Esmya™ (ulipristal acetate) in the U.S. and Canada.

16 Dec 2010

Women & Infants Hospital participates in new fertility drug study

The emotional and physical demands on a couple seeking fertility treatment can be daunting. Researchers are constantly on a quest to improve fertility to increase a couple's chances of becoming pregnant in the most time and cost efficient manner.

13 Dec 2010

Research identifies two genetic variants that increase risk of endometriosis

Research published today identifies two genetic variants that increase the risk of developing endometriosis, a common gynaecological disease. The study provides clues to the origin of this often very painful condition, which has a significant impact on the quality of life of sufferers.

13 Dec 2010

Bisphenol A tainted money and receipts

Bisphenol A (BPA) has been found in many household items and other common objects and is known to be an endocrine disruptor linked to infertility, genital abnormalities, cancer and more. Now it has been detected on ‘cash’. Since BPA is used to make plastic, manufacturers use about 8 billion pounds of BPA that is moulded, cooked or poured into toys, baby products and other merchandise each year. On these products BPA is chemically bonded but it is simply applied in a powdery film to paper, making it easy to rub off with a touch.

8 Dec 2010

Protein DEDD required for uterine decidualization during early pregnancy: Study

The mammalian embryo relies on physical connections to its mother to survive. After implantation into the wall of the uterus and before the placenta is established, a structure known as the decidua forms and is key to supporting embryonic development.

7 Dec 2010

Exposure to BPA during perinatal development impairs reproductive capacity of female offspring

Exposure to a ubiquitous environmental chemical during pregnancy may impair reproductive capacity of female offspring, according to a study published online in advance of print on December 2 in Environmental Health Perspectives. Fertility decreased over time in female mice that had been exposed during fetal and neonatal (perinatal) development to doses of bisphenol-A (BPA) that were lower than or equal to human environmental exposure levels.

2 Dec 2010

Debiopharm recognised with European Biopharmaceuticals company of the year award

The 2010 Frost & Sullivan Europe Company of the Year Award in Biopharmaceuticals is presented to Debiopharm Group™ (Debiopharm).

1 Dec 2010

New findings could drive medical advances in genetic disorders that cause infertility

A hormone responsible for the onset of puberty can end up stuck in the wrong part of the body if the nerve pathways responsible for its transport to the brain fail to develop properly, according to research funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).

30 Nov 2010

Ageing reversed in mice: Study

A scientific team at Harvard-affiliated medical centers genetically manipulated mice to age faster. Then they used gene therapy to lengthen telomeres. Telomeres are compounds found at the ends of strands of DNA that are related to age. This lengthening of telomeres reversed age-related problems such as decreased brain function and infertility.

29 Nov 2010

Serono Symposium to review options available for optimizing Assisted Reproductive Technologies

Serono Symposia International Foundation will gather a team of leading international experts meeting on November 26th in Montreal in order to review the different options currently available to optimize ART (Assisted Reproductive Technologies) outcomes during the event "Treating the Ovary to Obtain Better Eggs".

26 Nov 2010

Study suggests less than 10% of UK adults with CAH receive specialist endocrine care

A new study suggests that less than 10% of the estimated 3,591 adults in the UK with the genetic condition congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) receive specialist endocrine care, and that there is no standard treatment for these patients.

26 Nov 2010

Chlamydia alert for ‘Schoolies’

School leavers partying on the Gold Coast, Queensland may be at risk of serious sexually transmitted infections due to unprotected sex in the mood of celebration say health experts. Health specialists from the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) warn the youngsters in the 2010 Australian Chlamydia Conference in Brisbane.

24 Nov 2010

Erbitux development program featured in ASCO's Clinical Cancer Advances report for third consecutive year

For the third year in a row, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has included Erbitux® (cetuximab) research in its annual report, Clinical Cancer Advances, which features the most significant studies of 2010. The report cites as a notable advance this year the finding that BRAF mutation status is a prognostic, not predictive, marker for Erbitux efficacy in metastatic colorectal cancer (mCRC).

23 Nov 2010

Glenn Foundation awards $60,000 grant to Scripps' scientist for biomedical research

While scientists depend on grants for their research, applying for them is a long and frequently frustrating process. For one Scripps Research Institute scientist, however, the process was shorter.

19 Nov 2010

HSR Act applicable to LabCorp’s acquisition of Genzyme

Laboratory Corporation of America Holdings today announced that it has received early termination from the Federal Trade Commission of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act of 1976, or HSR Act, applicable to the acquisition of Genzyme Genetics, a business unit of Genzyme Corp. by LabCorp.