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Single Sputnik V vaccine dose elicits robust immune response in previously infected individuals

A new preprint research paper posted to the medRxiv server describes successful immunization of the vaccinated population with a single dose of the Russian-made Sputnik V vaccine.

29 Mar 2021

Stem cell depletion could be an important factor behind miscarriage

Depletion of a certain type of stem cell in the womb lining during pregnancy could be a significant factor behind miscarriage, according to a study released today in STEM CELLS.

27 Mar 2021

Children in low- and middle-income countries face an increased risk of delayed development

Child development can be vastly improved by providing pregnant women and caregivers of children with an integrated intervention that consists of improved water, sanitation, hygiene (WASH), nutrition, mental health care and lead exposure prevention, says a study conducted in Bangladesh.

26 Mar 2021

First model of early human embryo generated from skin cells

In a discovery that will revolutionise research into the causes of early miscarriage, infertility and the study of early human development - an international team of scientists led by Monash University in Melbourne, Australia has generated a model of a human embryo from skin cells.

22 Mar 2021

New report calls for comprehensive smoke-free policies

A new WHO report, Tobacco Control To Improve Child Health And Development, calls for raising awareness among practitioners and policymakers about the importance of strong tobacco control measures for protecting the health and development of children, including banning tobacco advertising, implementing 100% smoke-free environments and raising taxes on tobacco.

16 Mar 2021

Eight hallmarks of environmental exposures that contribute to disease

A new review of existing evidence proposes eight hallmarks of environmental exposures that chart the biological pathways through which pollutants contribute to disease: oxidative stress and inflammation, genomic alterations and mutations, epigenetic alterations, mitochondrial dysfunction, endocrine disruption, altered intercellular communication, altered microbiome communities, and impaired nervous system function.

5 Mar 2021

Extreme rainfall associated with climate change in Amazonia causes adverse birth outcomes

Extreme rainfall associated with climate change is causing harm to babies in some of the most forgotten places on the planet setting in motion a chain of disadvantage down the generations, according to new research in Nature Sustainability.

1 Mar 2021

One in seven people in England show SARS-CoV-2 antibodies, finds study

The REal-time Assessment of Community Transmission-2 (REACT-2) program completed its fifth round of community surveys in the days between January 26 and February 8, 2021. The findings appear in a new article in the BMJ on February 25, 2021, showing that natural infection and vaccination together account for around 14% seropositivity rates in England at present.

1 Mar 2021

New rodent model helps identify pregnant women whose prior kidney injury also affects babies

Young pregnant women, who appear to have fully recovered from an acute injury that reduced their kidney function, have higher rates of significant problems like preeclampsia and low birthweight babies, problems which indicate their kidneys have not actually fully recovered.

22 Feb 2021

Eating low-quality diet during pregnancy is linked to late-childhood obesity

Eating a low quality diet, high in foods and food components associated with chronic inflammation, during pregnancy may be associated with an increased risk of obesity and excess body fat in children, especially during late-childhood. The findings are published the open access journal BMC Medicine.

21 Feb 2021

Uninherited genetic mutations can cause spina bifida

Genetic mutations which occur naturally during the earliest stages of an embryo's development can cause the severe birth defect spina bifida, finds a new experimental study in mice led by UCL scientists.

19 Feb 2021

At-home, mail-in testing kit can accurately test sperm up to 52 hours after sample collection

Some 15% of couples struggle with infertility. When couples fail to conceive, guidelines recommend both the man and woman undergo a tandem fertility evaluation.

12 Feb 2021

Zinc supplements can improve infertility issues during COVID-19 pandemic

Wayne State University School of Medicine researchers have reported that zinc supplements for men and women attempting to conceive either naturally or through assisted reproduction during the COVID-19 pandemic may prevent mitochondrial damage in young egg and sperm cells, as well as enhance immunity against the virus.

5 Feb 2021

Plants depend on LEAFY protein that enables cells to change their fate

Cells don't express all the genes they contain all the time. The portion of our genome that encodes eye color, for example, doesn't need to be turned on in liver cells. In plants, genes encoding the structure of a flower can be turned off in cells that will form a leaf.

28 Jan 2021

Machine learning identifies patterns of maternal autoantibodies associated with autism

Using machine learning, researchers at the UC Davis MIND Institute have identified several patterns of maternal autoantibodies highly associated with the diagnosis and severity of autism.

26 Jan 2021

Patients with schizophrenia have increased risk of Parkinson's disease, shows study

A new study conducted at the University of Turku, Finland, shows that patients with a schizophrenia spectrum disorder have an increased risk of Parkinson's disease later in life.

15 Jan 2021

Heat treatment during chemotherapy is more effective at destroying cancer cells

Heating up cancer cells while targeting them with chemotherapy is a highly effective way of killing them, according to a new study led by UCL researchers.

5 Jan 2021

Study: Exposure to metals may disrupt a woman's hormones during pregnancy

Exposure to metals such as nickel, arsenic, cobalt and lead may disrupt a woman's hormones during pregnancy, according to a Rutgers study.

21 Dec 2020

Maternal stress may lead to preterm births, accelerate child's biological aging

Why do some people age faster than others? One potential answer, a new UCLA-led study indicates, is that a mother's stress prior to giving birth may accelerate her child's biological aging.

30 Nov 2020

Researchers receive $8.3 million NIH grant to illuminate the causes of spina bifida

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, in collaboration with Rady Children's Institute for Genomic Medicine, have been awarded a five-year, $8.3 million grant from the National Institutes of Health's Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development to further illuminate the causes of spina bifida, the most common structural defect of the central nervous system.

20 Nov 2020