Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), the worst pandemic to date, continues its deadly course in contributing to the substantial increase in the number of people contracting the infection every year. As per the reports of UNAIDS, The United Nations Joint Program on HIV/AIDS, the year 2008 had approximately 33.4 million people living with HIV. Among these, half of the cases have been reported in women, especially those of childbearing age; thereby proposing an increased risk for mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of the condition. Continue Reading

The dependence of various cancer cells on the glycolytic pathway for their energy requirements has also been correlated with the aggressiveness of different types of tumors. Now, a recent study has found a novel glycolysis inhibitor, 3-BrOP that lowers the growth of neuroblastoma by 75% in xenograft models. The results of the study have been presented at the 22^nd annual meeting of the American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology held at San Diego, California, during April 22-25, 2009. Continue Reading

A recent study, published in the Current Opinion in Psychiatry has reported that neonatal abstinence syndrome occurs in 55-94% of neonates following intrauterine opioid exposure, with nearly 60% of them requiring treatment. Now, researchers at the Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia have reported that sublingual buprenorphine is a safe and effective treatment option for neonatal abstinence syndrome. The study results have been published in the September issue of Pediatrics. Continue Reading

The susceptibility to develop cardiovascular diseases in later life may be linked to the oxygen availability during intrauterine life, according to a study presented at the annual Society for Endocrinology, British Endocrine Society meeting, held at Harrogate, United Kingdom, during 7-10 April, 2008. Continue Reading

A recent collaborative study, conducted by researchers at the University of California and the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, has found that low dietary intake of folate in healthy males is linked to higher rates of chromosomal aberrations in sperms.

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Human embryonic stem cells have the potential to treat a wide range of clinical conditions, including heart failure, spinal injuries, diabetes, and Parkinson disease. However, the ongoing ethical debate over the use of human embryos to derive embryonic stem cells has slowed down the progress of stem cell research. The ethical concerns associated with the use of embryonic stem cells have forced scientists to search for alternative sources of easily harvested adult stem cells. Now, researchers at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Maryland, USA, have found that the stem cells present in adult testes could be an alternative to embryonic stem cells for organ regeneration.

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In a recent article in the British Medical Journal, Dr. Andrew Weeks, a practicing obstetrician and scientist from the School of Perinatal & Reproductive Medicine, University of Liverpool, recommends a 3-minute delay in cutting the umbilical cord after birth in both full term and premature babies, and a minutes delay in newborns requiring immediate supportive care.

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A recent study by a team of investigators led by Dana Dolinoy, PhD from the Duke University Medical Center, U.S.A, has revealed that in-utero exposure of the fetus to a compound called bisphenol A (BPA), commonly found in plastics, can result in the hypomethylation of nucleotides in certain regulatory areas of the DNA. This results in a change in the phenotype of the affected offspring. The researchers found that such changes were consistent in all the three germ cell layers, indicating that exposure to BPA early in development affects the epigenetic patterning.

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Until recently, it was believed that hyaluronic acid was the receptor to which Plasmodium falciparum infected red blood cells attached themselves in the human placenta. Now, in a study headed by Dr. A. Muthusamy from the Departments of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, scientists have proven that chondroitin sulfate proteoglycans are the receptors to which the malarial parasite infected red blood cells bind in the placenta.

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While the detrimental effects of smoking during pregnancy have been undoubtedly established, the various pathways and manners in which maternal smoking affects the fetus is still being unravelled. A new study reports a definite association between maternal smoking and a reduced growth of the fetal head.

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