Report that delayed motherhood decreases life expectancy of mouse offspring
The June 2005 issue of Biology of Reproduction includes a special paper by a team of Spanish scientists indicating that delayed motherhood in mice results in shorter life expectancy and reduced body weight in their offspring. Negative effects of late maternal age in women, such as abnormal numbers of chromosomes in their children, are well known. However, other potential negative effects o...Males with elevated levels of testosterone lead shorter lives but have more success siring offspring
Comparative studies have studied testosterone levels and related them to mating systems and aggression, but very few studies have attempted to relate testosterone to fitness, that is, the combination of lifetime reproductive success and survival, in the wild or experimentally. Over nine breeding seasons, Wendy Reed (North Dakota State University) and her colleagues followed a group of dark-eyed j...'Empty nester' parent birds use recruitment calls to extend offspring care
By studying a habituated population of pied babblers (Turdoides bicolor) in the Kalahari Desert, researchers have discovered a surprising new way in which parent birds can extend the period of their care of offspring. The findings are reported by Andrew Radford of the University of Cambridge and Amanda Ridley of the University of Cape Town and appear in the September 5th issue of Current Biology,...The price of vanity: Mating with showy males may reduce offspring's ability to fight off pathogens
In many animals, males advertise to potential mates with showy traits, many of which are linked to testosterone levels. However, a new study suggests that, in fish, choosing a flashier mate may cause future generations to be more susceptible to pathogens. In the January 2007 issue of The American Naturalist, a new study by Judith Mank (Uppsala University, Sweden) finds that mating with ma...Cigarette smoke alters DNA in sperm, genetic damage could pass to offspring
Canadian researchers have demonstrated in mice that smoking can cause changes in the DNA sequence of sperm cells, alterations that could potentially be inherited by offspring. The results of their study are published in the June 1 issu...Offspring's birth weight affected by father's diabetes
A recent study published in the British Medical Journal suggests that there is an association of diabetes in fathers, to the birth weight of their offspring. In contrast to overweight children given birth by women with diabetes, children born to men with// diabetes are likely to weigh less than other children. Children born to men with diabetes weigh on an average 186 grams less than ot...Breathing Cancer Causing Compounds During Pregnancy Found To Affect Offspring
Based on findings of a recent study researchers have linked breathing cancer-causing compounds during pregnancy // to an increased risk of childhood cancer among offspring. They also believe that nearly all childhood cancers can probably be traced back to a mother’s inhalation of noxious substances. The study compared a chemical emissions map with all children age 15 and younger who died...Where Mother's Skin Turns Into Food For Offspring
Scientists have discovered a worm that feasts on its mother's skin - a practice they have never before seen in animals.// Mark Wilkinson, a zoologist at the Natural History Museum in London and his team uncovered the bizarre form of parental care in Kenya, reported the online edition of the National Geographic channel. The researchers observed the young of a caecilian, a...Whole Wheat, Wholesome for Pregnant Women and Their Offspring
A new study has established the wholesomeness of whole wheat as a diet for pregnant women, capable of reducing breast cancer risk in the offspring.// Dr Leena Hilakivi-Clarke of Georgetown University in Washington DC and her colleagues examined the benefits of dietary changes on pregnant rodents and studied its implictions on the babies’ health. These results could well mimic the occu...Risk Of Breast Cancer Lowered In Offspring Of Mothers Who Eat Whole Wheat
Women who eat lots of whole wheat during pregnancy may lower the risk of breast cancer in their baby girls, according to a study published //in the Nov 15, 2006 issue of International Journal of Cancer. Lead researcher Dr. Leena Hilanivi-Clarke from Georgetown University in Washington DC and her colleagues conducted their study in rats which revealed that daughters of mother rats t...