BACKGROUND Ethanol is a potent teratogen. Its adverse neural effects are partly mediated by disrupting fetal neurogenesis. The teratogenic process is poorly understood, and vulnerable neurogenic stages have not been identified. Identifying these is a prerequisite for therapeutic interventions to mitigate effects of teratogen exposures. METHODS We used flow cytometry and qRT-PCR to screen feta...

background: the discovery of circulating fetal dna in maternal blood led to the discovery of new strategies to perform noninvasive testing for prenatal diagnosis. objective: the purpose of the study was to detect fetal aneuploidy at chromosomes 13, 18, 21, x, and y by analysis of fetal cell-free dna from maternal blood, without endangering pregnancy. materials and methods: this retrospective st...

a full termed local ewe with the history of continuous straining with labored breathing for last 24 hours was presented. the animal was disinclined to move with tense and round abdomen which developed rapidly during last two weeks. caesarean section revealed hydrallantois accompanied by multiple fetal congenital abnormalities. the ewe was under observation for four weeks. metritis developed 12 ...

Spontaneous preterm birth (PTB, <37 weeks gestation) is a major public health concern, and children born preterm have a higher risk of morbidity and mortality throughout their lives. Recent studies suggest that fetal DNA methylation of several genes varies across a range of gestational ages (GA), but it is not yet clear if fetal epigenetic changes associate with PTB. The objective of this study...

Tryptophan (Trp) requirements in pregnancy are several-fold: (1) the need for increased protein synthesis by mother and for fetal growth and development; (2) serotonin (5-HT) for signalling pathways; (3) kynurenic acid (KA) for neuronal protection; (4) quinolinic acid (QA) for NAD(+) synthesis (5) other kynurenines (Ks) for suppressing fetal rejection. These goals could not be achieved if mater...

Synopsis Tryptophan (Trp) requirements in pregnancy are several-fold: (1) the need for increased protein synthesis by mother and for fetal growth and development; (2) serotonin for signaling pathways; (3) kynurenic acid for neuronal protection; (4) quinolinic acid for NAD synthesis (5) other kynurenines for suppressing fetal rejection. These goals could not be achieved if maternal plasma [Trp] ...

The fetal intestinal mucosa is characterized by elevated Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) expression, which can lead to the development of necrotizing enterocolitis (NEC)--a devastating inflammatory disease of the premature intestine--upon exposure to microbes. To define endogenous strategies that could reduce TLR4 signaling, we hypothesized that amniotic fluid can inhibit TLR4 signaling within the ...

T na m What Is Depleted Uranium? Depleted uranium is created as a byproduct during the processing of natural uranium to make it suitable for use as fuel in nuclear power plants or as a component in nuclear weapons. In natural uranium, 99.27% of the mass consists of atoms of uranium-238. About 0.72% of the mass consists of atoms of uranium-235, and a very small amount (0.0055% by mass) is uraniu...