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Parental exposure to PFOA may increase risk of obesity in their daughters

The levels of the environmental pollutant perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) that mothers had in their blood during pregnancy increased the risk of obesity in their daughters at 20 years of age.

22 Feb 2012

Low dose carbon monoxide therapy can prevent fetal death

Heme oxygenase-1 is essential for the growth of blood vessels in the placenta and in establishing blood flow in the umbilical cord. Too little HO-1 can lead to a restriction in the growth of the fetus and even in fetal death and miscarriage. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal Medical Gas Research has shown that low dose carbon monoxide therapy is able to restore placental function and prevent fetal death in mice, without any detrimental effects.

19 Feb 2012

Most women underestimate effect of asthma during pregnancy

Many pregnant women who suffer from asthma are putting their unborn child's health at risk by failing to use the right medication, according to a University of Adelaide researcher.

18 Feb 2012

Chemotherapy during pregnancy for cancer does not necessarily harm the baby: Study

When a pregnant woman is diagnosed with cancer, she and her family and doctors are faced with difficult decisions about her health and that of her unborn child. It is known that giving chemotherapy in the first 12 weeks, when the baby's organs are still forming, raises the chances of birth defects. Postponing the treatment, however, could allow the cancer to spread. Over the last decade, doctors have been more willing to use chemotherapy after the first trimester, but there have been worries that the child's brain and heart could suffer damage.

13 Feb 2012

Early MSC transplantation can help repair neonatal brain damage

In a study to be presented today at the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine's annual meeting, The Pregnancy Meeting -, in Dallas, Texas, researchers will report that early transplantation of human placenta-derived mesenchymal stem cells into the lateral ventricles of neonatal rats with birth-related brain damage is possible, and that the donor cells can survive and migrate in the recipient's brain.

13 Feb 2012

Chromosomal microarray provides more information about fetal abnormalities

A nationwide, federally funded study has found that testing a developing fetus' DNA through chromosomal microarray (CMA) provides more information about potential disorders than does the standard method of prenatal testing, which is to visually examine the chromosomes.

10 Feb 2012

Researchers derive vessel-forming stem cells from amniotic fluid

Researchers at Rice University and Texas Children's Hospital have turned stem cells from amniotic fluid into cells that form blood vessels. Their success offers hope that such stem cells may be used to grow tissue patches to repair infant hearts.

7 Feb 2012

Older women who become pregnant from egg donation not at greater risk than younger counterparts

Although women over age 50 who become pregnant via egg donation are at an elevated risk for developing obstetrical complications, their complication rates are similar to those of younger recipients, according to a study by Columbia University Medical Center researchers to be published in the February 2012 issue of the American Journal of Perinatology.

1 Feb 2012

Fish intake can help pregnant women improve their progeny's intelligence

Can pregnant women improve their progeny's intelligence by eating fish? A study recently submitted to the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition and coordinated by the University of Granada professor Cristina Campoy Folgoso revealed that infants born to mothers who consumed more fish during pregnancy score higher in verbal intelligence and fine motor skill tests, and present an increased prosocial behavior.

1 Feb 2012

Study examines impact of maternal obesity on inflammatory responses

A number of different immunological mechanisms ensure the successful establishment and maintenance of pregnancy. Imbalance in these mechanisms is associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes.

11 Jan 2012

Researchers produce chimeric monkeys with six distinct genomes

Researchers have produced the world's first chimeric monkeys. The bodies of these monkeys, which are normal and healthy, are composed of a mixture of cells representing as many as six distinct genomes.

6 Jan 2012

New information about how early ESCs develop and form primate species

Newly published research by scientists at Oregon Health & Science University provides significant new information about how early embryonic stem cells develop and take part in formation of the primate species.

6 Jan 2012

Study hopes to explain premature births and failed inductions of labour

New research hopes to explain premature births and failed inductions of labour. The study by academics at the University of Bristol suggests a new mechanism by which the level of myosin phosphorylation is regulated in the pregnant uterus.

22 Dec 2011

Many maternal deaths from pre-eclampsia in the UK linked with substandard care

An editorial published this week in the Lancet online highlights the shocking fact that many maternal deaths in the UK are associated with substandard care and are potentially preventable.

17 Dec 2011

Vaginal progesterone decreases odds of premature delivery in women

A new study co-authored by the University of Kentucky's Dr. John O'Brien found that applying vaginal progesterone to women who are at a high risk of preterm birth significantly decreased the odds of a premature delivery.

16 Dec 2011

Vaginal progesterone safe and effective in preventing preterm birth

Women with a short cervix should be treated with vaginal progesterone to prevent preterm birth, according to a landmark study by leading obstetricians around the world. Vaginal progesterone decreased the rate of preterm birth by 42%, and significantly reduced the rate of respiratory distress syndrome and the need for mechanical ventilation, as well as a composite of several complications of premature newborns.

15 Dec 2011

Vaginal progesterone reduces rate of preterm birth and neonatal complications

A team of investigators of the National Institutes of Health housed at the Detroit Medical Center (DMC) and Wayne State University (WSU) published today that performing a cervical ultrasound in all pregnant women and treating those with a short cervix with vaginal progesterone reduces the rate of preterm birth and neonatal complications.

15 Dec 2011

Half of all stillbirths result from pregnancy disorders, placental conditions

Half of all stillbirths result from pregnancy disorders and conditions affecting the placenta, according to results reported by a National Institutes of Health research network established to find the causes of stillbirth as well as ways to prevent or reduce its occurrence.

15 Dec 2011

Influenza shot boosts immune response in pregnant women, protects neonatal babies

The researchers studied the immune response of 107 pregnant women after they were injected with a single dose of non-adjuvant H1N1 vaccine. They concluded that the influenza shot boosted the immune response in pregnant women and at the same time protected neuronatal babies via the antibodies that transferred through the placenta.

8 Dec 2011

Scientists identify a pattern that predicts which pregnant women likely to have complications

Poor mental health before pregnancy predicts which pregnant women are most likely to have a pregnancy complication and give birth to a low birth-weight baby, a new nationwide survey reveals.

6 Dec 2011