News & Updates

Allowing your child to play is a must! A healthy balance between children playing on their own and having structured play with parents is important for early learning and development.

Scientists have demonstrated how an investigational drug works against a rare, fatal genetic disease, Niemann-Pick type C1 (NPC1).

How children visually engage with others in social situations is a heritable behavior that is altered in children with autism, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have discovered a key step in the process that HIV uses to inject its genetic material into cells.

Hydroxychloroquine, a drug approved by the Food and Drug Administration to treat malaria and certain autoimmune diseases in pregnant women, appears to reduce transmission of Zika virus from pregnant mice to their fetuses, according to a study funded in part by the National Institutes of Health.

The National Institutes of Health has launched a study to determine the potential risks that infection with the Zika virus might pose for pregnancies in which the mother is also infected with HIV.

NICHD Director Dr. Diana Bianchi and colleagues from other NIH Institutes discuss this valuable research resource.

Blood samples from infants who died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) had high levels of serotonin, a chemical that carries signals along and between nerves, according to a study funded in part by the National Institutes of Health.

A conversation with Dr. Marian Willinger before her retirement. Dr. Willinger helped launch NICHD’s Safe to Sleep campaign and led research efforts on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome, stillbirth and infant health.

NICHD Director Dr. Diana Bianchi discusses how human-animal interactions influence child health and behavior.

Brain proteins known as neuregulins are important for establishing normal brain activity, according to recent studies led by researchers at the National Institutes of Health.

Infants born to mothers in poverty had a greater chance of developing neurological problems within the first year of life, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and Harvard University.

Experts convened for an NICHD workshop identified research gaps and opportunities to improve outcomes for women affected by opioid use disorder, their newborn infants and their families.

PregSource is a research project led by NICHD that aims to improve knowledge of pregnancy by collecting information directly from pregnant women.

An imaging technique called fcMRI may predict which high-risk, 6-month old infants will develop autism spectrum disorder by age 2 years, according to an NICHD-funded study.

A new task force created by the 21st Century Cures Act and led by NICHD will advise the Secretary of Health and Human Services on research needed to optimize therapies for pregnant women and nursing mothers. The first meeting will be held on August 21-22, 2017 at NIH.

Children born to women with gestational diabetes whose diet included high proportions of refined grains may have a higher risk of obesity by age 7, compared to children born to women with gestational diabetes who ate low proportions of refined grains, according to results from a National Institutes of Health study.

Children born to women who had gestational diabetes and drank at least one artificially sweetened beverage per day during pregnancy were more likely to be overweight or obese at age 7, compared to children born to women who had gestational diabetes and drank water instead of artificially sweetened beverages, according to a study led by researchers at the National Institutes of Health.

A small study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health suggests that mutations in the gene CABLES1 may lead to Cushing syndrome, a rare disorder in which the body overproduces the stress hormone cortisol. The study appears online in Endocrine-Related Cancer.

NICHD research aims to improve understanding of diseases and conditions that affect women.