Pediatrics

La Jolla, CA — How do the lungs develop after taking their first breaths outside the womb? What cellular events and changes early in life give rise to lung malfunction and disease? To help answer these questions, scientists have constructed the first single-cell atlas of postnatal lung development in humans and mice. The research could […]

Chapel Hill, NC – The amygdala is a small structure deep in the brain important for interpreting the social and emotional meaning of sensory input – from recognizing emotion in faces to interpreting fearful images that inform us about potential dangers in our surroundings. Historically the amygdala has been thought to play a prominent role […]

Burlington, VT — In a first-of-its-kind study, research from the University of Vermont Cancer Center has linked phthalates, commonly called the “everywhere chemical,” to higher incidence of specific childhood cancers. Phthalates are chemical additives used to enhance the durability or consistency of plastics and a wide range of consumer products. Humans are routinely exposed to […]

Medford, MA — New research from scientists at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University suggests opioid use before pregnancy—even if not used during pregnancy itself—could result in a higher likelihood that a mother’s male offspring will develop type 2 diabetes and metabolic syndrome, conditions that increase the risk of heart disease and stroke. The current […]

Belgium — Smoking by mothers during the period immediately before and after conception is linked to a delay in embryonic development, smaller foetuses at the time of the 20-week ultrasound scan, and lower birth weight. The study, which is published today (Wednesday Feb. 23) in Human Reproduction, a reproductive medicine journals, followed 689 women with singleton […]

Blacksburg, VA — Every time you chew, talk, yawn, or sense the zap of a toothache, cranial nerve cells are shuttling electrochemical signals to your brain. Some of these neurons detect pain, while others sense facial muscle movements or sensations in the skin. Now, in a new study published in Disease Models & Mechanisms, Fralin […]

Memphis, TN — When acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) relapses, it is more difficult to treat and outcomes are dismal. Scientists at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital have discovered a mutation in paediatric AML that physicians can use to identify high-risk patients and better guide treatment. A paper on the work appeared Feb. 16 in Blood Cancer Discovery, a […]

Augusta, GA — Newborns in respiratory failure who require the life-sustaining support of ECMO also require transfusion of red blood cells. But a new study indicates that the higher volume of these oxygen-carrying blood cells the babies receive, the higher their mortality rate.     “In order for the baby to survive on ECMO, they need red […]

Buffalo, NY — A simple balance and gait assessment many therapists and athletic trainers use to detect subtle impairments in children and teens who have sustained a concussion may help identify whether they are ready to return to normal activities or athletic competition. But being able to drill down deeper and identify which of the […]

Chapel Hill, NC — UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers have demonstrated that a novel combination of two drugs that act as targeted inhibitors, delivered in a nanoparticle formulation, extend the survival of mice with medulloblastoma. The research team believes this laboratory success could be translated into a less toxic treatment for medulloblastoma, the most […]

Bethesda, MD — A clinical trial funded by the National Institutes of Health has found that giving peanut oral immunotherapy to highly peanut-allergic children ages 1 to 3 years safely desensitized most of them to peanut and induced remission of peanut allergy in one-fifth. The immunotherapy consisted of a daily oral dose of peanut flour […]

Kuopio, Finland — Arterial stiffness may be a novel risk factor to be targeted in the prevention and treatment of insulin resistance and dyslipidaemia from a young age, a new study published in Hypertension today (Jan. 18) suggests. Researchers from the University of Eastern Finland, the University of Exeter, Cardiovascular Engineering, and the University of […]