News

Brain images of youth who have a variation in a gene associated with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) revealed an altered pattern of in the brain's connective wiring, according to researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Parents and caregivers can take steps to reduce the risks of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) during the colder months, when infants are at higher risk, according to the National Institutes of Health.

Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health concluded that programs to boost the academic achievement of children from low income neighborhoods would be more successful if they simultaneously provided adult literacy education to parents.

SIDS is the sudden, unexplained death of an infant younger than one year of age. It is the leading cause of death in children between one month and one year of age. In 2006, more than 2,300 infants died of SIDS in the United States.

National Institutes of Health researchers have discovered a key step in how the dengue virus infects a cell. The discovery one day may lead to new drugs to prevent or treat the infection.

The NICHD joins other agencies and organizations in examining existing research, supporting new research, and helping put an end to bullying.

The NICHD has embarked on a process to develop a scientific vision that sets an ambitious agenda to inspire the NICHD, its many partners and the research community to achieve critical scientific goals and meet pressing public health needs.

Recently the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) warned against the use of so-called "sleep positioner" products because of the dangers they pose to infants. These warnings serve as timely reminders during this SIDS Awareness Month that although we have learned a great deal about SIDS—the sudden, unexplained death of an infant younger than one year of age—we still have more to learn.

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health have found that variations in a gene for an enzyme involved in cell energy metabolism appear to increase the risk for prostate cancer.

The National Children's Study has initiated recruitment at 30 study locations around the United States. The Study is the largest long-term study of children's health ever conducted in the United States, and will follow 100,000 children from before birth to age 21 to learn how the environment influences children's health, development, and quality of life. Study researchers seek to enroll women who are pregnant or may become pregnant in the next few years.

Unlike traditional forms of bullying, youth who are the targets of cyber bullying at school are at greater risk for depression than are the youth who bully them, according to a survey conducted by researchers at the National Institutes of Health.

As agencies, schools, organizations, and communities work together to take a stand against bullying, they are finding that this seemingly simple problem is actually very complex. For example, new research published in the Journal of Adolescent Health found that those bullied electronically—sometimes called cyber bullying, such as by computer or cell phone—are at high risk for depression .

The global elimination of smallpox is one of the best known public health triumphs. Smallpox was a disfiguring and deadly disease caused by a very contagious virus. According to some health experts, smallpox was responsible for more deaths throughout history than all other infectious diseases combined.

Using high-resolution microscopy, researchers at the National Institutes of Health have shown how insulin prompts fat cells to take in glucose in a rat model. The findings were reported in the Sept. 8 issue of the journal Cell Metabolism.

Researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions have found that exposure to lead in childhood may delay the onset of puberty in young girls, with higher doses increasing the chance for later maturation.

Spina bifida, which literally means "split spine," is a complex birth defect that affects three to four out of every 10,000 live births. It occurs when part of the spinal column—which includes the spinal cord, associated nerves, spinal bones, and overlying muscle and skin—does not fully develop or close completely. The most frequent and severe form of spina bifida is called myelomeningocele, which is one of the most common birth defects causing lifelong disability.

Women who report feeling stressed early in their monthly cycle were more likely than those who were less stressed to report more pronounced symptoms before and during menstruation, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions. The association raises the possibility that feeling stressed in the weeks before menstruation could worsen the symptoms typically associated with premenstrual syndrome and menstruation.

People with a particular kind of knee alignment have a greater chance of developing osteoarthritis than do those with other types of leg alignment, reported researchers supported by the National Institutes of Health.

A study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and the University of Oxford supports the widespread belief that stress may reduce a woman's chance of becoming pregnant. The study is the first of its kind to document, among women without a history of fertility problems, an association between high levels of a substance indicative of stress and a reduced chance of becoming pregnant.

National Institutes of Health researchers have shown that women's cholesterol levels correspond with monthly changes in estrogen levels. This natural variation, they suggest, might indicate a need to take into account the phases of a woman's monthly cycle before evaluating her cholesterol measures. On average, the total cholesterol level of the women in the study varied 19 percent over the course of the menstrual cycle.