The Chief of NICHD’s Perinatology Research Branch and his colleagues recently held a news briefing to describe a prototype treatment for an animal model of cerebral palsy. The researchers injected a bacterial toxin into the uteruses of pregnant rabbits. Like human patients with cerebral palsy, the baby rabbits developed a severe disability affecting their ability to move. When injected with nanoparticles carrying an anti-inflammatory drug, the baby rabbits recovered much of their movement ability.
An audio recording of the briefing is available at http://www.nichd.nih.gov/news/releases/Documents/Cerebral_palsy_treatment_briefing.mp3 (MP3 - 4.35 MB), and a transcript of the recording is available at http://www.nichd.nih.gov/news/resources/links/Pages/transcript042612-nanoprobe.aspx.
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About the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD)
The NICHD sponsors research on development, before and after birth; maternal, child, and family health; reproductive biology and population issues; and medical rehabilitation. For more information, visit the Institute’s Web site at http://www.nichd.nih.gov/.
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