Uterus in Biological News

March of Dimes provides $2.7 million in new funding for preterm birth research

... found a central mechanism for why the pregnant uterus usually stays quiet for nine months," Dr. Condon says. "Caspase-3 may be what prevents the uterus from contracting during a normal, healthy ... elimination of this enzyme from the pregnant uterus may be the cause of the onset of preterm labor." ...

Gap junction protein vital to successful pregnancy, researchers find

... of pregnancy implantation of the embryo in the uterus have found a protein that is vital to the growth ... differentiation and blood-vessel growth in the uterus during pregnancy, the researchers report. The ... cells. By deleting the Cx43 gene in the uterus immediately after pregnancy in mice, a technique ...

Continuous oral contraceptives better at easing pain, bleeding

... concept that both the ovary and the lining of the uterus are suppressed better and quicker with the ... there is no harmful effect on the lining of the uterus either," said Richard Legro, M.D., professor of ... in suppressing the ovary and the lining of the uterus gets a little bit thin and fragile so that from ...

Oh baby, interventional radiology makes childbirth safer

... condition when a woman's placenta (attached both to the wall of the uterus and to the baby's umbilical cord) grows or "invades" into the uterine ... of birthing today; it involves making a surgical incision in the mother's uterus to deliver the baby. Most C-sections are done when a vaginal delivery ...

Engineering bouncing babies, 1 at a time

... multiple births at the same time. "I am specifically studying how the uterus contracts before the embryo implants itself onto the uterine wall," he ... Physical positioning of the woman and the shape and size of her uterus also affect the results of IVF implantation, Prof. Elad says. His ...

Attitudes towards assisted reproduction and preimplantation genetic diagnosis

... artificial fertilization in order to select those to be implanted in the uterus of the future mother). Its use is widely accepted in all survey countries ... obtained from artificial fertilization before they are implanted in the uterus of the future mother is another biomedical advance that brings significant ...

Scientists find 'redesigned hammer' that forged evolution of pregnancy in mammals

... researchers have shown that the origin and evolution of the placenta and uterus in mammals is associated with evolutionary changes in a single regulatory ... by the maternal immune response. With the evolution of the uterus and placenta, it became possible for mammals to protect their growing ...

Pregnant mice block out unwelcome admirers to protect their pups

... of an alien male's urine prevents the implantation of her embryos into the uterus and brings her back into the ovulatory cycle. The scent affects pregnancy ... pregnancy. At this stage the embryos have already been implanted into the uterus and loosing them would bear a high cost for the female. Liliana ...

Human embryonic stem cells developed from 4-cell embryo; world first may lessen ethical concerns

... (the outermost layer of the embryo that attaches to the wall of the uterus and serves as a nutritive pathway). There was, until now, uncertainty ... into a blastocyst (five day embryo) which could be transferred into the uterus and develop into a healthy baby. "Currently, PGD is performed at the ...

More than words: childbirth training change improves safety, cuts unnecessary procedures

... the use of the hormone oxytocin which is given to mothers to make their uterus shrink and bleed less to manage the third stage of labor, when the placenta detaches and passes from the uterus and hemorrhaging may occur. At the start of the study, public ...

Stuff of stink bombs investigated for role in pregnancy

... the past decade, I have studied the role of hydrogen sulphide in the female reproductive tract. So far, hydrogen sulphide has been shown to relax the uterus and it can be produced by the placenta, uterine tissue and the amniotic sac." Dr Carson's interest is in the initiation of term labour, premature ...

Avoiding hysterectomy: Major interventional radiology E-collection info available

... Uterine fibroids are very common noncancerous growths that develop in the muscular wall of the uterus. Hysterectomy, surgical removal of the uterus performed by a gynecologist, is the most common treatment for symptomatic uterine fibroids. In fact, more than 200,000 women in the United States ...

Women with endometriosis need special care during pregnancy to avoid risk of premature birth

... Endometriosis is a chronic inflammatory disease, affecting up to 15% of all women of reproductive age, in which the endometrial cells that line the uterus are deposited in other areas. Such displacement of endometrial cells can lead to anatomical distortion and also the release of ...

Bisphenol A exposure in pregnant mice permanently changes DNA of offspring

... co-workers at Yale injected pregnant mice with a low dose of BPA on pregnancy days 9 to 16. After the mice gave birth, the scientists analyzed the uterus of female offspring and extracted DNA. They found that BPA exposure during pregnancy had a lasting effect on one of the genes that is responsible ...

Caltech researchers help unlock the secrets of gene regulatory networks

... biologists. The gene regulatory network studied by Sternberg and his colleagues controls the formation of the worm's vulva, which connects the uterus with the outside and allows the passage of sperm and eggs. ...

New research findings may enable earlier diagnosis of uterine cancer

... factors means that cancer is an extremely complex disease. Cancer of the uterus, or endometrial carcinoma, is no exception. Cancer of the uterus is the commonest gynaecological malignancy in the West and accounts for between five and six per cent of all cancers in Swedish women. However, the ...

Embryo biopsy does not affect early growth and risk of congenital malformations in PGD/PGS babies

... or medical outcomes." PGD/PGS is an invasive procedure that involves removing cells from the embryo before it is transferred to the mother's uterus and testing them for specific genetic disorders (such as cystic fibrosis and Duchenne muscular dystrophy). Doctors then select only the unaffected ...

Ancient protein offers clues to killer condition

... folded structure allows the smooth muscles to adjust to being different lengths so they can operate over a large distance, such as the bladder or the uterus expanding and contracting. In contrast, skeletal muscles operate over a narrow range, defined by how much joints can move. Professor Knight says: ...

Inherited cancer mutation is widespread in America

... cause in North America of Lynch syndrome, a hereditary cancer syndrome that greatly increases a persons risk for developing cancers of the colon, uterus and ovaries. The same investigators discovered the mutation in 2003. That research identified nine families with the mutation and concluded that a ...

Clues to ancestral origin of placenta emerge in Stanford study

... genetics. Baker is senior author of the study, which will be published in the May issue of Genome Research. The placenta grows inside the mother's uterus and serves as a way of exchanging gas and nutrients between mother and fetus; it is expelled from the mother's body after the birth of a baby. It is ...

MU researcher links hormone replacement therapy to breast cancer

... to the MPA. Since MPA is a synthetic hormone, it stays in the body longer, Hyder said. Unfortunately, while the drug is used to protect the uterus from the harmful effects of estrogens in HRT formulations, it is hurting the breast. The Womens Health Initiative estimated a 26 percent jump in ...

'Wildcat Power Cord' repairs cruciate ligament in dairy cow's knee

... and monitoring Wilhelmina for specific conditions dairy cows are at risk for developing. These include inflammation of the udder (mastitis) or of the uterus (metritis), a metabolic imbalance (ketosis), ulcers and displacement of the abomasum, the fourth compartment of a ruminant's stomach. "We worked ...

In-vitro fertilization improved with 3-D/4-D-guided embryo transfer and new placement target

... presented at the 63rd Annual Meeting of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine (ASRM). Placing embryos in the optimal location within the uterus is a key factor determining the success of in-vitro fertilization. The study's lead author, Robert Gergely, M.D., has identified a new embryo ...

Zebrafish to shed light on human mitochondrial diseases

... earned her doctorate in July and is now the veterinarian at the UO-based Zebrafish International Resource Center. "Because they develop outside of a uterus and are transparent in early stages, I was able to visualize the effects that molecular alterations have on cell biology, nervous system development, ...

Drug could improve pregnancy outcomes in wider range of women with insulin resistance

... an important energy source, and prevented the death of cells in the embryos. As a result, the embryos were more likely to successfully implant in the uterus and to continue growing. Moley's group also identified the molecular mechanism that accounts for metformin's positive effects. They found the drug ...

Heavy smoking cuts women's chance of pregnancy -- even with donated oocytes

... reduce female fertility by directly affecting the uterus ?making it less receptive and reducing the ... the most objective assessment of the role of the uterus in the outcome of IVF. The researchers ... negatively affects the receptiveness of the uterus independently of its effect on ovarian function, ...

Absence of critical protein linked to infertility

... factor protein C/EBPb must be present in the uterus for pregnancy to occur. The study appears online ... pregnancy to occur, stromal cells of the uterus must be transformed into decidual cells, which ... the uterus. "This gene is expressed when the uterus is ready for embryo attachment," said co-author ...

Sleeping Sickness Epidemic Spreading in Uganda

... and their doctors may choose to wait for the uterus to expel the tissue without additional medical ... may prefer not to wait. Occasionally, the uterus may fail to expel the remaining fetal tissue, and in some of these cases, the uterus may become infected. Within the last few ...

Drug Offers Alternative to Surgical Treatment After Miscarriage

... and their doctors may choose to wait for the uterus to expel the tissue without additional medical ... may prefer not to wait. Occasionally, the uterus may fail to expel the remaining fetal tissue, and in some of these cases, the uterus may become infected. Within the last few ...

Cloned stem cells prove identical to fertilized stem cells

... stage embryo consisting of no more than 100 or so cells. The scientist can then either remove the stem cells from this blastocyst, or place it into a uterus where it has the potential to develop into a fetus. Here's where things get complicated. The original donated nucleus may have come from, say, a ...

Researchers discover new route to hemoglobin synthesis

... current pregnant heroin users in the U.S., similar to Australian figures. Between 48 percent and 94 percent of infants exposed to opiates in the uterus develop clinical signs of withdrawal "The interesting information," Osborn says, "suggests that these infants can be treated without admission to ...

Opiates Better Than Sedatives For Treating Newborns In Withdrawal

... current pregnant heroin users in the U.S., similar to Australian figures. Between 48 percent and 94 percent of infants exposed to opiates in the uterus develop clinical signs of withdrawal "The interesting information," Osborn says, "suggests that these infants can be treated without admission to ...

Technique may allow cancer patients to freeze eggs, preserving fertility before starting treatment

... to become pregnant, the vitrified eggs would be warmed and then fertilized with male sperm. The fertilized eggs would then be transferred to the uterus in the same procedure that's used successfully when couples freeze embryos. When eggs are warmed after vitrification, fertilization rates with ...

Harmful chemicals may reprogram gene response to estrogen

... than those in genetically defective rats not receiving the DES treatment. "These data suggest that environmental exposures during development of the uterus can interact with a preexisting genetic susceptibility to increase the risk of disease," said Walker. "We are looking at a new kind of ...

Rats infected as newborns grew up vulnerable to memory problems during an immune challenge

... palsy; bacterial infection is a risk factor for Parkinson's disease. Up to 20 percent of pregnancies have complications involving infections of the uterus and its contents, a number that will rise as more children are born premature. In the study, a team led by Staci Bilbo, PhD, injected a group of ...