Prenatal News and Research

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Scientists identify brain molecule that triggers schizophrenia-like behaviors, brain changes

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have identified a molecule in the brain that triggers schizophrenia-like behaviors, brain changes and global gene expression in an animal model. The research gives scientists new tools for someday preventing or treating psychiatric disorders such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder and autism.

8 Apr 2015

Natera raises $55.5 million in funding led by Sofinnova Ventures

Natera, Inc., a leader in non-invasive genetic testing, today announced that it has raised approximately $55.5 million in funding led by Silicon Valley life sciences investment firm Sofinnova Ventures. This financing round also includes participation from Capital Research and Management, Franklin Templeton Investments, Jennison Associates, RA Capital Management, Healthcor Partners and OrbiMed Advisors.

From Natera 6 Apr 2015

Findings of Ariosa's non-invasive prenatal testing study published online in NEJM

Results from the largest clinical trial to date, comparing non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT) using the Harmony Prenatal Test with conventional first trimester combined screening (FTS) in a general pregnancy population have been published online in The New England Journal of Medicine.

6 Apr 2015

Researchers analyze false-positive results from new prenatal genetic screens

Prenatal blood screening for extra or missing chromosomes in the fetus might give false-positive results if the mother's genome contains more than the usual number of certain DNA segments.

6 Apr 2015

New prenatal test introduced for detecting Down’s Syndrome

A new prenatal test for Down’s Syndrome may be more effective at diagnosing the condition than the standard screening that is currently used, suggests a study published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

2 Apr 2015

Women with a history of depression at risk for developing diabetes during pregnancy

A history of depression may put women at risk for developing diabetes during pregnancy, according to research published in the latest issue of the Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing by researchers from Loyola University Chicago Marcella Niehoff School of Nursing.

1 Apr 2015

Researchers find strong relationship between prenatal PAH exposure and behavioral impairment

Researchers at the Institute for the Developing Mind at Children's Hospital Los Angeles and colleagues at Columbia University's Center for Children's Environmental Health have found a powerful relationship between prenatal PAH exposure and disturbances in parts of the brain that support information processing and behavioral control.

30 Mar 2015

Study quantifies long-term effects of nutrition deprivation at different stages of pregnancy

A study by researchers at Columbia University's Mailman School of Public Health and colleagues in the Netherlands evaluated the relationship between nutritional conditions in very early life and adult health, and found that famine exposure during the first pregnancy trimester was associated with increases in mortality from a variety of causes other than cancer or cardiovascular disease.

30 Mar 2015

LifeCodexx announces promising results from proof-of-principle study of qPCR-based NIPT assay

LifeCodexx AG today reports the successful outcome of a proof-of-principle of its novel assay for non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT assay) based on quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR). This NIPT assay, designed to determine fetal aneuploidies from maternal blood, will offer significant advantages, such as enhanced test performance at affordable prices, over other prenatal examination methods.

27 Mar 2015

Position statement on promise, challenges of non-invasive prenatal testing

Two of the world's largest professional societies of human geneticists have issued a joint position statement on the promise and challenges of non-invasive prenatal testing (NIPT), a new procedure to test blood drawn from pregnant mothers for Down syndrome and other chromosomal disorders in the fetus.

26 Mar 2015

Expecting mothers may soon receive perinatal depression screenings using mHealth technology

Pregnant women and new mothers at one central Illinois public health clinic will soon receive depression screenings using mobile health - also called mHealth - technology.

20 Mar 2015

Kalorama Information: Budding market for digital PCR reached 175 million in 2014

Kalorama Information estimated the budding market for digital PCR reached 175 million in 2014. The market research publisher said companies will be looking to provide products to increase research and diagnostics in diseases like cancer and neurological disorders.

13 Mar 2015

BU study explores birth outcomes for women who receive fertility treatment

Birth outcomes for babies whose mothers used assisted reproductive technology (ART) are better in some cases, and worse in others, than for subfertile women who did not use ART, according to a first-of-its-kind study led by Boston University School of Public Health researchers.

12 Mar 2015

Yoga could help reduce depression in pregnant women

In a small pilot study, researchers at Brown University, Butler Hospital, and Women & Infants' Hospital have found evidence suggesting that yoga could help pregnant women with significant depression reduce the severity of the mood disorder.

12 Mar 2015

Researchers study effects of pregnancy weight gain on childhood obesity risk among multi-ethnic youth

Unhealthy weight gain in pregnancy has been linked with infant size and body composition but until now little was known about its long-term association with childhood obesity among low-income and multi-ethnic youth.

10 Mar 2015

New study finds that fetus exposed to tobacco smoke faces diabetes risk in adulthood

A fetus exposed to tobacco smoke may be at increased risk for diabetes in adulthood, a new study of adult daughters finds.

9 Mar 2015

Rare, aggressive subtype of pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia has surprisingly few mutations

The St. Jude Children's Research Hospital--Washington University Pediatric Cancer Genome Project reports that a highly aggressive form of leukemia in infants has surprisingly few mutations beyond the chromosomal rearrangement that affects the MLL gene. The findings suggest that targeting the alteration is likely the key to improved survival.

9 Mar 2015

Exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals estimated to cost EU €157 billion a year

A new economic analysis found exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals likely costs the European Union €157 billion ($209 billion) a year in actual health care expenses and lost earning potential, according to a new series of studies published in the Endocrine Society's Journal of Clinical Endocrinology and Metabolism.

6 Mar 2015

Phthalate exposure in pregnancy adversely affects masculinization of male genitals in babies

Exposure to hormone-altering chemicals called phthalates - which are found in many plastics, foods and personal care products - early in pregnancy is associated with a disruption in an essential pregnancy hormone and adversely affects the masculinization of male genitals in the baby, according to research led by the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.