News & Updates

Compounds called defensins - known to prevent viruses from entering cells - appear to do so by preventing the virus from merging to cells' outer membrane, according to a study by researchers at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development and the National Heart Lung and Blood Institute, both of the National Institutes of Health, and the University of California at Los Angeles.

A drug first used to reduce the risk of stomach ulcers in people taking certain types of painkillers offers an alternative to surgery after miscarriage, according to a study by researchers at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health and other research institutions.

Teenage drivers--both males and females were more likely to tailgate and exceed the speed limit if there was a teenage male passenger in the front seat, according to a study by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health.

New to the report this year is a special section presenting five indicators of child well-being analyzed by family structure.

A special feature in the report, America's Children: Key National Indicators of Well-Being 2005 shows that nearly 5 percent, or an estimated 2.7 million children are reported by their parents to suffer from definite or severe emotional or behavioral difficulties, problems that may interfere with their family life, their ability to learn, and their formation of friendships.

The adolescent birth rate has reached another record low, the death rate for children between ages 1 and 4 is the lowest ever, young children are more likely to receive their recommended immunizations, and fourth graders are scoring better in math, according to a yearly compendium of statistics from federal agencies concerned with children.

Contrary to an earlier finding, inhaled nitric oxide therapy (a treatment for lung problems in premature infants) does not reduce the infant's chances for death or further lung problems, according to a study by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health.

Researchers from the National Institutes of Health have discovered the critical sequence of events by which insulin stimulates the entry of glucose into fat cells.

Mice found in a previous study to develop a Parkinson's-like deterioration when deprived of a gene for iron metabolism were also found to develop anemia and signs of a rare skin condition, according to a follow up study by researchers at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health.

Scientists in a federally sponsored global research network will undertake a new project that will train midwives and traditional birth attendants in resource poor countries on how to treat newborn asphyxia, a major cause of infant death. The treatment, developed in the United States, is the standard of care provided to infants born in this country.

A cellular enzyme appears to play a crucial role in the manufacture of a protein needed for long-term memory, according to a team of researchers led by scientists at the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health.

A new program reduces the likelihood that teens will drive under conditions that place them at the greatest risk for a car crash, according to a study from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, one of the National Institutes of Health.

Lower bone density appears to recover in adolescent females once they stop using the injected contraceptive depot medroxyprogesterone acetate (DMPA), according to a study funded by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health.

Prevention of abuse would help women foster stable long-Term relationships. Women who experienced physical or sexual abuse in childhood or as adults are less likely to be married or in a stable long-term relationship than are other women, according to a large study of low-income women funded by the federal government.

A substance found in the urine of pregnant women can be measured to predict the later development of preeclampsia, according to research from the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health.

The risks from vaginal delivery after a prior Cesarean delivery are low, but are slightly higher than for a repeat Cesarean delivery. This finding is from the largest, most comprehensive study of its kind ever conducted, undertaken by the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health.

In contrast to people who do not have autism, people with autism remember letters of the alphabet in a part of the brain that ordinarily processes shapes, according to a study from a collaborative program of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development of the National Institutes of Health.

Extremely low birth weight infants--the tiniest category of premature infants are much more likely to experience developmental impairments if they acquire an infection during the newborn period, according to a study by the Neonatal Research Network of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, one of the National Institutes of Health.

A team of researchers has determined that an enzyme in sperm is necessary for sperm movement. Mice bred to lack this enzyme produce sperm that cannot swim toward egg cells to fertilize them.

A team of researchers working with cells from mice has overcome a technical barrier and succeeded in growing sperm progenitor cells in laboratory culture.