Fertilization News and Research

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Some fertility treatments may raise Kawasaki disease risk in children

A large-scale study in Japan, led by researchers from the University of Osaka and the Osaka Women's and Children's Hospital, has found that certain fertility treatments are associated with an increased risk of Kawasaki disease before age five, although the association differed by treatment type.

3 Sep 2026

Hidden sperm structures may offer new clues to male fertility

Researchers at VIB, VUB, and the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology (UK) have discovered a hidden feature of human sperm cells.

2 Sep 2026

Paternal sperm epigenetics may help explain early pregnancy loss

When a pregnancy ends early and unexplained, the search for answers usually begins with the mother. Lacey Luense, Ph.D., wants to know what the father's sperm might have to do with it.

28 Aug 2026

Book reframes pregnancy loss as a natural trial-and-error process

According to a new book from University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign anthropology professor Kate Clancy, pregnancy is necessarily fraught, involving a series of tests of egg, embryo and reproductive system viability, with potential losses at every stage.

24 Aug 2026

Childhood overweight linked to lower childbirth rates later in reproductive life

Women with childhood overweight or obesity trajectories had lower hazards of childbirth from their mid-20s onward, with the strongest associations emerging after age 30. Childhood BMI trajectories were generally not associated with diagnosed infertility, suggesting that biological infertility alone may not explain the reduced childbirth rates.

11 Aug 2026

Experts call for better trials as IVF preparation techniques show unproven results

Preparation techniques used before embryo transfer, considered the most critical step in the IVF process, show no proven effect on pregnancy rates and remain inconclusive due to limited or low-quality data, a new Cochrane review finds.

6 Aug 2026

Genetic study explains global spread of invasive longhorned ticks

The Asian longhorned tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis, spreads serious pathogens, including severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) virus, Rickettsia, and Theileria, and its bite can cause a meat allergy in humans.

4 Aug 2026

Cooperative sperm may improve fertilization success across diverse arthropods

Fertilization is often imagined as a frantic race, with millions of sperm competing for a single prize. But new research by a team of evolutionary biologists from Syracuse University, University of Siena, Italy, and University of Szeged, Hungary, reveals a more surprising reality, where success can depend less on competition and more on cooperation.

31 Jul 2026

Could IVF affect heart health after pregnancy?

Women with IVF-conceived pregnancies exhibit higher large artery stiffness, indicating potential cardiovascular risks that warrant further investigation.

7 Jul 2026

Japan aligns human embryo model research with updated ethical oversight

Human embryo models can help researchers study early human development and infertility without relying solely on human embryos.

2 Jul 2026

Fertility challenges may influence children's behavioral and developmental outcomes

Difficulty conceiving a pregnancy may be associated with small differences in children's learning and behavior, according to a new study funded by the Environmental influences on Child Health Outcomes (ECHO) Program at the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

9 Jun 2026

ISTA researchers prove keratin is indispensable for coherent cell migration

Hair, nails, and horns, all made up of keratin, are some of the hardest and most resilient structures in animals. Inside zebrafish cells, keratin plays a distinct role, giving them the strength they need to move together as a coherent tissue while modulating the driving forces behind their movement during early development. But what happens when keratin is missing?

22 May 2026

UC Davis scientists identify protein key to male fertility

The causes of male infertility can be hard to diagnose, with many tests failing to detect genetic defects. Sometimes, infertility doesn't even involve the genes themselves.

19 May 2026

Endometriosis increases risk of some birth defects in infants

Research indicates women with endometriosis may face a higher risk of congenital anomalies in infants, emphasizing the need for further investigation.

13 May 2026

Loss of X chromosome linked to female infertility risk

Chromosomes carry genetic information for biological sex, which generally assigns women two X chromosomes and men XY chromosomes.

12 May 2026

Calla Lily Clinical Care doses first patients in clinical trial for intravaginal drug delivery platform for threatened miscarriage

Calla Lily Clinical Care, a women’s health-focused medical technology company, today announced dosing of the first patients in the FREEDOM clinical trial.

6 May 2026

Research suggests randomness behind rare cases of twin ovulation

Each month during a woman's menstrual cycle, an ovary prepares 10-20 antral follicles, fluid filled sacs that hold immature eggs, for maturation.

22 Apr 2026

Stem cell model recreates early human embryo with yolk sac

For the first time, a stem cell model has produced a structure resembling an early human embryo with a yolk-sac-like structure, from a single starting stem cell population and without direct genetic manipulation.

21 Apr 2026

As US birth rate falls, feds’ response may make pregnancy more dangerous

The number of babies born in the United States fell again last year.

17 Apr 2026

New cell atlas reveals biological links to pregnancy complications

The biological connection between a pregnant woman and her developing baby has been mapped in unprecedented detail by UC San Francisco scientists, revealing new cell types and insights into conditions such as preeclampsia, preterm birth, and miscarriage.

8 Apr 2026