In Utero News and Research

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Mouse models of Zika virus infection in pregnancy provide basis to develop vaccines, treatments

Two mouse models of Zika virus infection in pregnancy have been developed by a team of researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. In them, the virus migrated from the pregnant mouse's bloodstream into the placenta, where it multiplied, then spread into the fetal circulation and infected the brains of the developing pups.

12 May 2016

UCLA study shows anti-nausea drug does not increase risk of birth defects

Women suffering from extreme morning sickness often take Zofran (ondansetron) to combat their debilitating nausea and vomiting. However, two studies have found that the drug may increase risk of heart defects and cleft palate in children exposed in utero.

10 May 2016

Researchers find way to selectively deliver drugs to placenta without harming fetus

Nearly 10 percent of babies born in the United States are born premature, according to the March of Dimes. The underlying cause of many complications during pregnancy is often a poorly functioning placenta, the organ that nourishes and maintains the fetus.

9 May 2016

High-fructose diet during pregnancy may affect fetal growth

Consuming a high-fructose diet during pregnancy may cause defects in the placenta and restrict fetal growth, potentially increasing a baby's risk for metabolic health problems later in life, according to research in mice and people by a team at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

5 May 2016

Infant daughters may show early signs of PCOS from mothers

The infant daughters of women with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS) show a higher level of an enzyme that activates testosterone and may be an early sign of developing the complex genetic disease, according to a new Northwestern Medicine study.

7 Apr 2016

Researchers develop mouse model for testing vaccines, therapeutics to battle Zika virus

A research team at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis has established a mouse model for testing of vaccines and therapeutics to battle Zika virus.

6 Apr 2016

Monetary incentives aid smoking cessation among pregnant, post-partum women

Smoking during pregnancy is the leading preventable cause of poor pregnancy outcomes. Studies further indicate that in-utero smoke exposure contributes to respiratory and cardiac illnesses later in life.

6 Apr 2016

Mom needs to get more vitamin D during second trimester to reduce child's asthma risk

The best way to reduce a child's chances of developing asthma might be making sure Mom had enough vitamin D during the second trimester, a new study from the University of Kansas shows.

31 Mar 2016

FDA announces required class-wide safety labeling changes for IR opioid pain medications

In a continuing effort to educate prescribers and patients about the potential risks related to opioid use, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced required class-wide safety labeling changes for immediate-release (IR) opioid pain medications. Among the changes, the FDA is requiring a new boxed warning about the serious risks of misuse, abuse, addiction, overdose and death.

23 Mar 2016

Enhanced diet helps slow progression of hereditary deafness

An enhanced diet helped reduce hearing loss in mice with the genetic mutation most commonly responsible for childhood deafness, new research suggests.

11 Mar 2016

Findings offer novel way for creating drugs to stop mitochondria from destroying cells during stress

Malfunctioning mitochondria — the power plants in cells — are behind the damage caused by strokes, heart attacks, and neurodegenerative diseases, but little has been known about how to stop these reactors from melting down, destroying cells and tissue. Mitochondria also take up calcium, which regulates energy production.

11 Mar 2016

Low levels of arsenic may influence fetal growth

Fetal growth may be impacted by low levels of arsenic that pregnant women consume in drinking water and food, a Dartmouth College study finds.

9 Mar 2016

Zika virus can cause a range of abnormalities in pregnant women, study finds

New research presents strong evidence that the Zika virus can indeed cause a range of abnormalities in pregnant women infected with the virus -- with the effects manifesting any time during pregnancy. Some of the abnormalities noted have not been reported in connection with the virus.

7 Mar 2016

Preventing the spread of Zika: an interview with Professor John Oxford

The link between the Zika virus and Guillain-Barré on the one hand, and pregnancy and the virus affecting the fetus in terms of microcephaly on the other, is still not confirmed conclusively.

1 Mar 2016

CHLA cardiologists perform rare fetal cardiac intervention procedure

Last August, when Children's Hospital Los Angeles cardiologists confirmed that the heart of a 27-week-old fetus suffered from a critical cardiac condition that prevented blood returning from the fetus's lungs from circulating back into the body, they told the parents that their child faced certain open-heart surgery after birth. Even worse, babies born with this very rare condition—hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS) with restrictive atrial septum—have a 50 percent neonatal mortality rate.

27 Feb 2016

NAU researcher calls for greater public awareness of cytomegalovirus

As the Zika virus continues to spread across the globe, and gain worldwide attention for its' potential birth defects, an NAU researcher is calling for greater public awareness of cytomegalovirus—the most common viral cause of birth defects in the United States.

16 Feb 2016

Variations in Tie2 gene play significant role in patient responses to infections

Major infections such as influenza and bacterial sepsis kill millions of people each year, often resulting fro dangerous complications that impair the body's blood vessels. But the reasons why some patients experience these dramatic responses to infections -- and others don't -- have been unclear.

16 Feb 2016

UTHealth researchers demonstrate new way to reduce preterm birth

Using nanoparticles to engineer a special drug, a team of researchers from McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston has demonstrated in pre-clinical trials a new way to both reduce preterm birth and avoid the risks of medication in pregnancy to unborn babies.

5 Feb 2016

Height affects risk of major non-communicable diseases

Height is largely genetically determined, but in recent decades the height of children and adults has steadily increased throughout the world: In adulthood the children are almost always significantly taller than their parents.

3 Feb 2016

Children born to obese women with diabetes at higher risk of developing autism

Children born to obese women with diabetes are more than four times as likely to be diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder than children of healthy weight mothers without diabetes, new Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health research suggests.

30 Jan 2016