Father’s Sperm Delivers Much More Complex Material Than Previously Thought

“Our findings show that the father plays an active role in packaging his genome to help ensure a healthy baby,” says study co-leader Brad Cairns, Ph.D., investigator with HCI and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and professor of oncological sciences at the University of Utah. “However, they also raise the possibility that a man’s aging, health and lifestyle may alter this packaging and negatively affect fertility and embryo development.” read more…

Bisphenol A Exposure In Pregnant Mice Permanently Changes DNA Of Offspring

“Exposure during pregnancy to the chemical bisphenol A, or BPA, found in many common plastic household items, is known to cause a fertility defect in the mother’s offspring in animal studies, and now researchers have found how the defect occurs.” read more…

Some Neural Tube Defects In Mice Linked To Enzyme Deficiency

“Women of childbearing age can reduce the risk of having a child born with a neural tube defect such as spina bifida by eating enough folate or folic acid. However, folate prevents only about 70 percent of these defects. New research using mice at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis confirms the importance of another nutrient, inositol, to protect against the development of neural tube defects.” read more…

Low Levels Of Vitamin B12 May Increase Risk For Neural Tube Defects

“Children born to women who have low blood levels of vitamin B12 shortly before and after conception may have an increased risk of a neural tube defect, according to an analysis by researchers at the National Institutes of Health, Trinity College Dublin, and the Health Research Board of Ireland.” read more…

Low Dose Of Caffeine When Pregnant May Damage Heart Of Offspring For A Lifetime

“A new study shows that the equivalent of one dose of caffeine (just two cups of coffee) ingested during pregnancy may be enough to affect fetal heart development and then reduce heart function over the entire lifespan of the child.” read more…

Zinc Supplements During Pregnancy May Counteract Damage From Early Alcohol Exposure

“New rodent findings are the first to show that dietary zinc supplements throughout pregnancy can reduce some alcohol-related birth defects.” read more…

Low birth weight ups risk of infant skin tumors

“The incidence of reddish skin tumors called infantile hemangiomas has grown in recent years, and low birth weight is the leading risk factor driving the increase, new research suggests.” read more…

Hairspray exposure during pregnancy linked to birth defect in boys

“Researchers found that women who come into contact with the hair product during early pregnancy more than double their chances of giving birth to a son with hypospadias, a genital deformity.” read more…