Unlike other SARS-CoV-2 variants, the Delta variant can attach to copies of itself, forming larger aggregations, or clumps, of viral particles, suggests a study by scientists at the National Institutes of Health. The researchers theorize that this linking property may have played a role in the ability of the Delta variant to spread more rapidly than all the variants that preceded it.
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.
Spotlight: Scientific advances from the Division of Intramural Research
The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.
Science Update: Youth suicides increased in first year of the pandemic, NIH-funded study suggests
The stresses of the pandemic may have contributed to an increase in adolescent suicides, suggests a study of 14 states funded by the National Institutes of Health. Although the number and proportion of youth suicide varied among individual states, when all the states were considered together, researchers saw an increase in the number of suicides among youth 10 to 19 years of age and in the proportion of youth suicides compared to the overall population.
Science Update: NIH-funded researchers develop non-surgical method to treat endometriosis
Technique adapted from cancer treatment shows promise in mouse study.
Spotlight: Small Business Success Stories
NICHD-funded small business programs have led to innovations for patients, healthcare providers, researchers, and more. Learn about these success stories.
Spotlight: Ovarian tissue freezing offers hope for future fertility
NICHD researchers are evaluating ovarian tissue cryopreservation as a potential option to preserve fertility among young girls with Turner syndrome and other rare conditions that compromise ovarian function. The team also aims to determine the causes of ovarian problems in these girls.
Media Advisory: Asthma, allergy risk may be higher for children conceived with infertility treatment
Children conceived with infertility treatment may have a higher risk for asthma and allergies, suggests a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health.
Science Update: Scientists develop noninvasive method to predict congenital CMV infection
Researchers have developed a calculator to estimate the risk that cytomegalovirus (CMV) will pass to a fetus during pregnancy. By offering a noninvasive way to predict the chance of congenital CMV based on individual characteristics, this tool may help healthcare providers counsel pregnant people with CMV.
Science Update: COVID-19 vaccine appears to be safe after MIS-C, small NIH-funded study suggests
Vaccination against COVID-19 appears to be safe for children who have had multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children (MIS-C) and does not appear to increase the risk for inflammation of the heart or other organs, suggests a small study funded by the National Institutes of Health. MIS-C, a serious inflammation of the heart, lungs, kidneys, brain, skin, eyes, gastrointestinal organs or other body parts, occurs in children about 4 to 6 weeks after COVID-19.
Science Update: Digital tool to increase youth HIV testing shows promise in NIH-funded study
Youth aged 13 to 24 years who were offered HIV testing by a digital health tool on a tablet computer were at least as likely to accept as those who were offered testing face-to-face, according to an NICHD-funded study.
Science Update: Fertility treatments may increase risk for preterm birth, NIH-funded study suggests
Infertility treatments with ovulation drugs or intrauterine insemination—in which sperm is placed directly into the uterus—are associated with a higher likelihood of preterm birth, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.
Director's Corner: The Power of Networks
Clinical research networks bring together scientists, clinicians, and community stakeholders to identify important clinical questions and design and conduct high-quality studies to answer them. Scientific evidence generated by such studies can impact clinical care, as several recent findings from NICHD’s networks demonstrate.
Science Update: No differences in neurological impairment by second year for infants treated with dextrose for low blood sugar, NIH-funded study finds
Treating newborns at risk for hypoglycemia (low blood sugar) with a preventive oral dose of the sugar dextrose does not appear to increase their overall risk for neurological or sensory impairment at age 2, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. However, compared to a similar group of at-risk infants treated with a placebo, children treated as infants had a slightly higher risk of motor delay and slightly lower scores on a test of cognitive, language, and motor skills. The authors concluded that the study may not have included enough participants to detect an increased risk for adverse effects. They urged caution in treating infants at risk for hypoglycemia preventively with dextrose gel and called for future evaluations of the study participants later in childhood.
Science Update: NIH-funded researchers explore potential links between diabetes drug metformin and birth defects
Findings from study highlight importance of preconception health for fathers.
Item of Interest: Rohan Hazra appointed director of NICHD’s Division of Extramural Research
Dr. Hazra, an expert in pediatrics and pediatric infectious diseases, brings a wealth ofexperience as a researcher, clinical trialist, and science administrator to his new role.
Media Advisory: Amygdala overgrowth that occurs in autism spectrum disorder may begin during infancy
The amygdala—a brain structure enlarged in two-year-old children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD)—begins its accelerated growth between 6 and 12 months of age, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health. The amygdala is involved in processing emotions, such as interpreting facial expressions or feeling afraid when exposed to a threat. The findings indicate that therapies to reduce the symptoms of ASD might have the greatest chance of success if they begin in the first year of life, before the amygdala begins its accelerated growth.
Spotlight: Scientific advances from the Division of Intramural Research
The Division of Intramural Research provides fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems through basic, clinical, and population-based research.
Media Advisory: Hydrocortisone does not prevent lung complication in extremely preterm infants
Hydrocortisone is no more effective than placebo at preventing damage that can result from oxygen and ventilator therapy necessary to keep preterm infants alive, according to research funded by the National Institutes of Health. The study of a potential treatment for the condition, known as bronchopulmonary dysplasia, appears in the New England Journal of Medicine.
Spotlight: Decoded: Data-Driven Solutions to Optimize Health and Outcomes for First-time Mothers
To help spur innovation against a growing maternal health crisis, NICHD launched the Decoding Maternal Morbidity Data Challenge last year. Learn about the winning proposals.
Science Update: NIH-funded researchers develop prototype genetic test to predict women’s risk for fibroids
Researchers funded by the National Institutes of Health have developed a prototype genetic test with the potential to predict the development and eventual severity of uterine fibroids—benign, but sometimes painful and debilitating tumors of the uterus. The test could be used to identify fibroid cases early and to better understand how they develop and how to treat them.