The popular view is that DNA and genes control everything of importance in biology. The genome rules all of life, it is thought. Increasingly, however, scientists are realizing that among the diverse forms of RNA, a kind of mirror molecule derived from DNA, many interact with each other and with genes directly to manage the genome from behind the scenes.
Eighty-six percent of the recent decline in U.S. teen pregnancy rates is the result of improved contraceptive use, while a small proportion of the decline (14%) can be attributed to teens waiting longer to start having sex, according to a report by John Santelli, MD, MPH, department chair and professor of Clinical Population and Family Health at the Mailman School of Public Health and published in the January issue of the American Journal of Public Health.
The advisory committee of the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists confirms that the antidepressant Paxil (paroxetine) may cause fetal cardiac malformations. Obstetricians suggested to shun the antidepressants in pregnancy, if possible.
A protein called NMNAT protects against nerve cell degeneration in fruit flies and mice. The finding begs the question if a drug might be developed that could stimulate extra protein production and thus neuronal protection — both in injured cells and in those degenerating because of disease.
Researchers at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found the mechanism by which the B vitamin folate — a crucially important nutrient — is absorbed by the intestinal tract. Their findings solve a longstanding mystery as to how folates in the diet are absorbed and pave the way for a genetic test that can save the lives of infants who lack the ability to absorb folate.
Pregnant women who develop an infection of the placenta or nearby membranes in their first pregnancy have twice the risk of getting it in their second pregnancy, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.
On the occasion of World Aids Day 2006 Boehringer Ingelheim stated that its patent rights to Viramune (nevirapine) do not prevent access to this medication in low income countries.
Two fish that share much in common genetically appear to have markedly different abilities to grow, a finding that could provide a new way to research such disparate areas as muscle wasting disease and fish farming. Because the zebrafish and giant danio are closely related and the zebrafish’s genome has already been mapped, scientists hope they can more easily identify the genetic keys to the difference in growth potential between them.
The teen birth rate in the United States fell to its lowest level ever in 2005, according to the latest birth statistics for the nation, released today by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Janssen-Ortho Inc., in consultation with Health Canada, wishes to highlight important new safety information pertaining to Evra. The Evra transdermal system marketed in Canada contains 6.0 mg norelgestromin (NGMN) and 0.60 mg ethinyl estradiol (EE) and is approved for use in contraception (prevention of pregnancy).