Schizencephaly is a rare malformation of cortical development characterized by congenital clefts extending from the pial surface to the lateral ventricle that are lined by heterotopic gray matter. The clinical presentation is variable and can include motor or cognitive impairment and epilepsy. The causes of schizencephaly are heterogeneous and can include teratogens, prenatal infection, or mate...

Congenital hearing loss continues to be a devastating and disabling affliction in our society. In an effort to promote early recognition and treatment of hearing impairment in children, the Joint Committee on Infant Hearing has established a series of risk factors that place a newborn or infant at risk for hearing loss. These factors have been selected based on either genetic evidence of inheri...

Serum proteins of pregnant rats were analyzed by paper electrophoresis following administration of the teratogenic disazo dyes trypan blue, Evans blue, Niagara blue 4B, Niagara sky blue 6B, Congo red, and Niagara blue 2B. Sera were obtained from blood taken by cardiac puncture just before dye injection, 48 hours after dye injection, and again at autopsy. All of the dyes tested caused a reductio...

OBJECTIVE(S) This study aimed to find out whether the chick cardiomyocyte micromass (MM) system could be employed to predict the teratogenecity of common environmental factors. Different multivitamins and over the counter drugs were used in this study. MATERIALS AND METHODS White Leghorn 5-day-old embryo hearts were dissected and trypsinized to produce a cardiomyocyte cell suspension in Dulbe...

I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners. I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public. Abstract The teratogenic drugs cytochalasin B and valproic acid have been shown to alter F-actin polymerization, an effect that is crucial in forming micr...

Steroidal alkaloids from Veratrum californicum (Durand) are known to exert teratogenic effects (e.g., cyclopia, holoprosencephaly) by blocking the Hedgehog (Hh) signaling pathway, which plays a considerable role in embryonic development and organogenesis. Most surprisingly, recent studies demonstrate that this complex signaling network is active even in the healthy adult organism, where it seem...

Aplasia cutis congenita (ACC) is a rare inborn lesion, presenting with absence of skin. The etiology is unknown and is probably not attributable to a single cause but to a combination of genetic factors. Multiple causes have been suggested for ACC: syndromes and teratogens, intrauterine infection--varicella zoster virus, herpes simplex virus--fetal exposure to cocaine, heroin, alcohol, or antit...

The developing central nervous system (CNS) is the organ system most frequently observed to exhibit congenital abnormalities. While the developing CNS lacks a blood brain barrier, the characteristics of known teratogens indicate that differential doses to the developing vs mature brain are not the major factor in differential sensitivity. Instead, most agents seem to act on processes that occur...

Cancer is one of the leading causes of deaths worldwide. The agents capable of causing damage to genetic material are known  as genotoxins and, according to their mode of action, are classified into mutagens, carcinogens or teratogens. Genotoxins are  involved in the pathogenesis of several chronic degenerative diseases including hepatic, neurodegenerative and cardiovascular  disorders, diabete...

Valproate (VPA) is one of several effective anti-epileptic and mood-stabilizing drugs, many of which are also potent teratogens in humans and several other mammalian species. Variable teratogenicity among inbred strains of laboratory mice suggests that genetic factors influence susceptibility. While studying the genetic basis for VPA teratogenicity in mice, we discovered that parental factors i...