HIV/AIDS continues to be a serious public health concern. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more than 290,000 women were living with HIV in the United States in 2008.
News
NICHD issues News Releases and Media Advisories to the news media. Spotlight and Research Feature articles explain NICHD research findings and public health issues to the general public. An Item of Interest is a short announcement of relevant information, such as a notable staff change.
NIH Coordinating Group Seeks Comments on Fragile X Research Plan
The NIH Fragile X Research Coordinating Group invites all who are interested to comment on the current National Institutes of Health Research Plan on Fragile X syndrome and associated disorders.
Release of the 2011 Division of Intramural Research (DIR) Annual Report
The newly released 2011 DIR Annual Report reviews the latest basic, clinical, and translational research being pursued by the staff scientists within DIR at the NICHD. Contributing to this effort are 79 tenured and tenure-track investigators and approximately 1,200 administrative and research staff. In 2011, DIR project areas ranged from vaccine development to genomics, from reproduction to regenerative medicine, and from the neurosciences and early human development to biophysics and imaging.
Vitamin D shrinks fibroid tumors in rats
Treatment with vitamin D reduced the size of uterine fibroids in laboratory rats predisposed to developing the benign tumors, reported researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Genomic Medicine Series Provides Convenient Reference on Ethics, Potential of New Field
A recently completed series on medical genomics--the study of how genes interact with each other and with various non-genetic factors--provides a reference for physicians and scientists. The series, appearing in the New England Journal of Medicine, was edited by W. Gregory Feero, M.D., Ph.D., Special Advisor to the Director for Genomic Medicine at the National Human Genome Research Institute and Alan E. Guttmacher, M.D., Director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Variation in Brain Development Seen in Infants with Autism
Patterns of brain development in the first two years of life are distinct in children who are later diagnosed with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), according to researchers in a network funded by the National Institutes of Health. The study results show differences in brain structure at 6 months of age, the earliest such structural changes have been recorded in ASDs.
NIH Conference on Phenylketonuria (PKU) Research Advances
Phenylketonuria (PKU) is a rare genetic disorder that prevents the body from breaking down phenylalanine, an amino acid found in many proteins. As a result, phenylalanine can build up in body tissues of those with PKU and lead to intellectual disability.
NIH Study Links High Levels of Cadmium, Lead in Blood to Pregnancy Delay
Higher blood levels of cadmium in females, and higher blood levels of lead in males, delayed pregnancy in couples trying to become pregnant, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other academic research institutions.
Research on Concussions: Keeping Your Head in the Game
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1.6 million to 3.8 million sports- and recreation-related concussions occur each year in the United States. Rather than just a bump on the head, a concussion is actually a mild form of traumatic brain injury (TBI).
Hirschfeld Named Director of National Children's Study
Steven Hirschfeld, M.D., Ph.D., has been named Director of the National Children’s Study. He has served as the study's Acting Director since August 2009.
NIH Study Shows Caffeine Consumption Linked to Estrogen Changes
Asian women who consumed an average of 200 milligrams or more of caffeine a day--the equivalent of roughly two cups of coffee--had elevated estrogen levels when compared to women who consumed less, according to a study of reproductive age women by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions.
The Long-Lasting Effects of Preterm Birth
A research group funded in part by the NICHD Pregnancy and Perinatology (PP) Branch recently released results from several studies that examined longer-term effects of pain and stress in infants born very preterm.
High Animal Fat Diet Increases Gestational Diabetes Risk
Women who consumed a diet high in animal fat and cholesterol before pregnancy were at higher risk for gestational diabetes than women whose diets were lower in animal fat and cholesterol, according to researchers at the National Institutes of Health and Harvard University.
NIH Announces Funding for New Learning Disabilities Research Centers
Funding for four centers to conduct research on the causes and treatment of learning disabilities in children and adolescents has been provided by the National Institutes of Health.
Public Comment Period Opens for Research Plan on Vulvodynia
The draft Research Plan on Vulvodynia is now available for public comment. Those who have comments can e-mail them directly to NICHDVulvodynia@mail.nih.gov.
NICHD Director's Lecture Series: "Pharmacogenomics: Beyond Biomarkers"
Dr. Richard M. Weinshilboum will initiate the 2012 NICHD Director’s Lecture Series with a lecture on Pharmacogenomics: Beyond Biomarkers.
NICHD Posts Map of State-by-State Funding for Research
An interactive map with information about NICHD funding for research projects in the United States is now available on a new page of the NICHD Web site,at: http:// www.nichd.nih.gov/about/overview/approp/Pages/fundstate.aspx.
Vitamin D May Improve Bone Health in those Taking Anti-HIV Drug
Vitamin D may help prevent hormonal changes that can lead to bone loss among those being treated for HIV with the drug tenofovir, according to the results of a National Institutes of Health network study of adolescents with HIV.
NIH Study Shows HIV-Exposed Children at High Risk of Language Delay
Children exposed to HIV before birth are at risk for language impairments, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions.
Audio Briefing: Annual Cost of Fibroid Tumors in the United States
Uterine fibroids are common non-cancerous tumors that affect the majority of American women at some point in their lives. Fibroids may be painful and result in such reproductive problems as infertility, miscarriage, and early labor.