Tag: Pregnancy
Progesterone signalling is involved in marsupial pregnancy
Marsupials have a notoriously short pregnancy, and, for many years, researchers believed that progesterone played no part in this process. However, Professor Yolanda Cruz from Oberlin College, Ohio, USA, has studied pregnancy in the lab opossum (Monodelphis domestica) most of her career and believes this is not the case. The researcher unveiled a critical period between day 5 and day […]
Preterm birth and danger-associated molecular patterns
Preterm birth is the leading cause of infantile mortality. Dr Claire Kendal-Wright from the Chaminade University of Honolulu works on human extra-embryonic membranes. More specifically, she studies danger-associated molecular patterns, or DAMPs, and examines how these molecules contribute to the prelabour rupture of the membranes that leads to birth. Understanding the mechanisms involved in healthy pregnancy could eventually allow the […]
Gestational diabetes: A novel detection strategy
Gestational diabetes is a complication arising in pregnancy that can lead to serious and lifelong health concerns for the mother and child. Currently all pregnant women undergo screening for gestational diabetes, a time-consuming and demanding procedure. However, diagnosis often comes late in pregnancy, leaving limited time for intervention. Dr Jonatan Dereke and his fellow researchers at Lund University, Sweden are […]