In Utero News and Research

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UM SOM researchers to study adaptive immune responses of infants with HIV exposure in utero

The University of Maryland School of Medicine's Institute for Global Health and the Institute of Human Virology have been awarded a $2 million five-year grant from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to study the impact exposure to HIV has on the immune systems of infants in utero and how those changes impact the ability of infants to fight off infections after birth.

2 Aug 2017

Proposed machine learning-based framework predicts FGR pregnancies with high accuracy

During the millions of pregnancies that occur in the United States every year, expectant moms learn oodles about their developing fetuses over months of gestation.

31 Jul 2017

Study identifies potential treatment for fetal alcohol spectrum disorder

Two commonly used drugs erased the learning and memory deficits caused by fetal alcohol exposure when the drugs were given after birth, thus potentially identifying a treatment for the disorder, reports a new Northwestern Medicine study.

18 Jul 2017

Language development may start in utero, study suggests

A month before they are born, fetuses carried by American mothers-to-be can distinguish between someone speaking to them in English and Japanese.

18 Jul 2017

High maternal pre-pregnancy BMI linked to behavioral problems in boys

Maternal obesity and child neurodevelopmental problems have both increased in the U.S. and scientists have suggested a possible link.

13 Jul 2017

Maternal consumption of alcohol could produce transgenerational effects

Soon-to-be mothers have heard the warning - don't drink while pregnant. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has issued numerous statements about the dangers of alcohol consumption during pregnancy, as it can lead to Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) in newborns.

7 Jul 2017

Major study to examine clinical outcomes of children infected with Zika virus after birth

Researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus and the Baylor College of Medicine will join with Guatemalan investigators in a major study examining the clinical outcomes of children infected with the Zika virus after being born, focusing on long-term brain development.

19 Jun 2017

Penn/CHOP research helps to better understand cause of pediatric and treatment-related leukemias

Certain pediatric leukemias share a common underlying cause with treatment-related secondary leukemias.

16 Jun 2017

Fetal alcohol exposure reduces taste system's responsiveness to bitter flavor and burning sensation

A new study suggests that fetal alcohol exposure reduces the taste system's responsiveness to the bitter flavor and burning sensation of many varieties of alcoholic beverages.

18 May 2017

Prenatal cocaine exposure linked to increased risk of drug use among teens

While the crack cocaine epidemic peaked in the late 1980's, its effects are still causing harm to an estimated 3 million teenagers and young adults exposed to the stimulant in the womb.

3 May 2017

UC San Diego researchers identify pathways that regulate pancreatic beta cell growth

Pancreatic beta cells help maintain normal blood glucose levels by producing the hormone insulin -- the master regulator of energy (glucose). Impairment and the loss of beta cells interrupts insulin production, leading to type 1 and 2 diabetes.

2 May 2017

Low and high birth weights linked to severity of liver disease in children

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with a cohort of clinical collaborators from across the United States, have demonstrated the impact of low and high birth weights in developing Non Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD), a chronic disease that often leads to a need for organ transplantation.

4 Apr 2017

Parents can pass damaging effects of nighttime light exposure to offspring, study finds

Animals can pass the damaging effects of nighttime light exposure to their offspring, a new study has found, adding to a growing body of evidence that there's a health cost to our increasingly illuminated nights.

31 Mar 2017

Cleveland-based study to explore how childhood obesity can be prevented before conception

A Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and MetroHealth System researcher, along with Cleveland Clinic's director of metabolic research, have received federal funding to determine if childhood obesity can be prevented before women become pregnant.

29 Mar 2017

First national survey reveals high burden of iodine deficiency among Israelis

62% of school-age children and 85% of pregnant women in Israel have low iodine intakes, according to the country's first national iodine survey. Government funding and legislation, and a government-regulated program of salt or food iodization, are essential to reducing the deficiency, which poses a high risk of impaired neurological development.

27 Mar 2017

Researchers describe set of observable characteristics linked to congenital Zika syndrome

Even as the Zika virus becomes more prevalent — the Centers for Disease Control reports that the number of U.S. infants born with microcephaly and other birth defects is 20 times over the normal rate — researchers are still trying to fully pin down the identifying consequences of the viral infection.

24 Mar 2017

Study identifies potential risks for mothers who are cancer survivors

For young women facing a new cancer diagnosis, fertility preservation can be an important consideration in treatment planning. Now a University of North Carolina Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center-led study has identified potential risks for mothers who are cancer survivors -- risks for their newborns' health.

23 Mar 2017