News & Updates

The brain’s pineal gland has two kinds of pinealocytes—cells that make melatonin—the hormone that regulates the body’s sleep and wake cycles, according to a rodent study conducted by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. The findings have the potential to inform future research on disorders that involve melatonin, such as jet lag and seasonal affective disorder.

Contrary to results from earlier studies, the vitamin-like substance myo-inositol does not appear to prevent a potentially blinding complication of preterm birth and may even reduce rates of survival among preterm infants, suggests a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.

NICHD’s mission includes understanding child development and behavior. Check out these scientific advances related to Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder.

Delaying pushing during the second stage of labor—when the cervix is fully dilated at 10 centimeters—is a common practice at many U.S. hospitals, but it may have no effect on whether pregnant women deliver spontaneously (without a cesarean section or other intervention), according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.

Three national centers to develop best practices for prevention, intervention and treatment.

NIH led task force submits recommendations on research needs for pregnant and nursing mothers

The National Institutes of Health has awarded $7.5 million for an international research program to prevent and treat HIV infection among adolescents and young adults in seven African countries and Brazil.

The latest report features statistics from U.S. government agencies on the status of at-risk children and youth.

The severity of birth defects caused by Zika virus infection may be influenced by natural variations in a pregnant woman’s genes for a key enzyme, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions.

Neurons absorb and release water when they relay messages throughout the brain, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions. Tracking this water movement with imaging technology may one day provide valuable information on normal brain activity, as well as how injury or disease affect brain function.

Findings from a study on twins may help explain factors that activate or silence genes.

Researchers from the National Institutes of Health and other institutions have deciphered the role of a key protein that the malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum uses to obtain nutrients while infecting red blood cells. Their study appears in Nature Microbiology.

A blood test conducted as early as the 10th week of pregnancy may help identify women at risk for gestational diabetes, a pregnancy-related condition that poses potentially serious health risks for mothers and infants, according to researchers at the National Institutes of Health and other institutions.

Healthy first-time mothers whose labor was induced in the 39th week of pregnancy were less likely to deliver by cesarean section, compared to those who waited for labor to begin naturally, according to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health.

New findings in zebrafish help explain how the brain filters information from the environment and may improve our understanding of neurological disorders.

Sequencing the fetal DNA that circulates in a pregnant woman’s blood holds promise for modern genomic medicine, according to a review article by NICHD Director Diana W. Bianchi, M.D., and a colleague. Fetal DNA sequencing improves the accuracy of prenatal screening tests for genetic conditions and at times has led to the diagnosis of maternal conditions that may have otherwise gone undetected.

NICHD researchers find that sexual minority men are more likely to have lived in three or more different places in the past year.

The study seeks to determine if exposure poses a risk for neural tube defects.

A protein found only in mouse embryos and not in adult mice is important for fetal neurodevelopment, according to NICHD researchers.

To reach their adult proportions, bones mature on separate time scales, with the long bones like those in the arms and legs maturing much more slowly than shorter bones, like those in the fingers and toes, according to a study by researchers at the National Institutes of Health. The study results may lead to new insights and potential treatments for disorders in which bones fail to grow normally.