Reproduction News and Research

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Researchers look at genetic dynamics of inbreeding depression

Researchers have taken a first look at the broad genetic changes that accompany reproductive declines in inbred populations.

12 Mar 2009

AMP-activated protein kinase essential contributor to brain growth

An enzyme researchers have studied for years because of its potential connections to cancer, diabetes, heart disease, hypertension and stroke, appears to have yet another major role to play: helping create and maintain the brain.

12 Mar 2009

AMP-activated protein kinase is unexpected contributor to brain growth

12 Mar 2009

New perspective on what part of the brain controls fear

Mice lose their fear of territorial rivals when a tiny piece of their brain is neutralized, a new study reports.

10 Mar 2009

Obesity and infertility in women

Obese women have alterations in their ovaries which might be responsible for an egg's inability to make an embryo, according to a new study accepted for publication in The Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM).

3 Mar 2009

Mathematical method helps to select human embryos

A team of researchers from the University of the Basque Country (UPV-EHU) have developed a mathematical classification which makes it possible to select human embryos for use in assisted reproduction treatments. Scientists have used the morphology of embryos to select the best candidates for implantation in the woman's uterus.

24 Feb 2009

Parents 'avoid pregnancy' rather than face testing choices

Parents of children with genetic conditions may avoid the need to choose whether to undergo pre-natal testing or to abort future pregnancies by simply avoiding subsequent pregnancy altogether, a study has found.

15 Feb 2009

Genetic interactions are the key to understanding complex traits

In recent years, genetic studies have uncovered hundreds of DNA variations linked to common diseases, such as cancer or diabetes, raising the prospect that scientists can gauge disease risk based on information in an individual's genome.

23 Jan 2009

HPS files world patent for mood-enhancing compound from sea coral

Human Pheromone Sciences, Inc. has announced that it has filed a Comprehensive Patent Application with the International Bureau of the World Patent Office for the use of its innovative and previously undeveloped compound with its origin in sea coral, which has significant emotional impacts on both men and women, enhancing feelings of positive social relationships, personal well-being and social attraction.

19 Jan 2009

Stem cells from human testes can change into other body tissues

Scientists at the Stanford University School of Medicine and at UC-San Francisco have succeeded in isolating stem cells from human testes.

5 Jan 2009

Researchers identify clockwork that drives a powerful virus nanomotor

Peering at structures only atoms across, researchers have identified the clockwork that drives a powerful virus nanomotor.

30 Dec 2008

Human Pheromone Sciences files patent for mood enhancing compound derived from sea coral

Human Pheromone Sciences, Inc. has announced that it has filed a Comprehensive Patent Application with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for the use of an innovative and previously undeveloped compound with its origin in sea coral, which has significant emotional impacts on both men and women, enhancing feelings of positive social relationships, personal well-being and social attraction.

17 Dec 2008

Attitudes towards assisted reproduction and preimplantation genetic diagnosis

According to an international survey by the BBVA Foundation conducted this year, citizens in advanced societies view assisted reproduction techniques in general and in vitro fertilization in particular as firmly acceptable alternatives for people with fertility problems (over 7 points on an acceptance scale from 0 to 10 in twelve of the fifteen survey countries).

17 Dec 2008

Good news for young male cancer patients

"Young men undergoing treatment for cancer often want to know how the disease and its treatment affect their chances of fathering healthy children. Our large-scale study shows that there is a slightly higher risk of deformities, but the actual risk of having a child with deformities is nevertheless extremely low. I think this is good news!"

14 Dec 2008

Researchers visualize three-dimensional structure of protein, Mcm10

For the first time, structural biologists have managed to obtain the detailed three-dimensional structure of one of the proteins that form the core of the complex molecular machine, called the replisome, that plant and animal cells assemble to copy their DNA as the first step in cell reproduction.

10 Dec 2008

Aggression linked to status and sex

Have you ever wondered why it seems like the littlest things make people angry? Why a glance at the wrong person or a spilled glass of water can lead to a fist fight or worse? University of Minnesota researcher Vladas Griskevicius has three words to explain why people may be evolutionarily inclined to make a mountain out of molehill: aggression, status and sex.

8 Dec 2008

C. elegans worms may hold key to new treatments for obesity in humans

A previously unknown mutation discovered in a common roundworm holds the promise of new treatments for obesity in humans, McGill University researchers say.

8 Dec 2008

Light cigarettes may be more toxic than traditional cigarettes

Typically, tobacco companies market harm-reduction cigarettes as being safer than traditional "full-flavored" brands, leading many smokers to conclude that the use of harm-reduction brands lowers their exposure to toxicants.

8 Dec 2008

Vitamin D enhances placental innate immunity

In a paper available at the online site of the journal Biology of Reproduction, a team of UCLA researchers reports for the first time that vitamin D induces immune responses in placental tissues by stimulating production of the antimicrobial protein cathelicidin.

1 Dec 2008

Chemical used in antifouling paints may promote obesity

Tributyltin, a ubiquitous pollutant that has a potent effect on gene activity, could be promoting obesity, according to an article in the December issue of BioScience.

1 Dec 2008