BELOW ZEROExperts move closer to identifying best embryosScientists in Australia and Greece appear to be moving closer to identifying genes that determine which test-tube embryos stand the best chance of implanting in the womb and growing into healthy babies. There is currently no way of telling which embryos are likely to develop into successful pregnancies from those that fail to even attach themselves in the womb.As such, couples often opt to have more than one embryo implanted to increase chances of pregnancy. But this can result in multiple pregnancies that can be dangerous to both the mother and the babies. Writing in the journal Human Reproduction, scientists in Australia said they may have obtained a better idea of the profile of embryos that stand a better chance of developing into healthy babies. “Now, embryos are chosen on the basis of appearance, shape and regularity,” wrote researchers from Monash Immunology and Stem Cell Laboratories. If the predictive value can be increased by just 20 per cent, it will be a massive bonus to encourage people to accepting (single) embryo transfer without a loss of pregnancy outcome.”ZERO TO 20Mother’s mental health tied to child’s developmentEvaluating the emotional health and social connectedness of pregnant women may help determine if their children will need extra help to meet developmental goals later on. If children get this assistance early, there’s a good chance they will do just fine, said researchers from the University of Calgary in Alberta. Children were more likely to be at high risk for developmental problems if they were male, had ear infections, came from a low-income environment, or had a mother with poor mental health during the prenatal period and after the child was born. Problems typically included depression, a history of abuse and a poor level of contentment, said the report, published online in BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth.20 TO 40Vitamin D may lower breast cancer riskBreast cancer patients with lower levels of vitamin D were far more likely to die and far more likely to have their cancer spread than women with normal levels, Canadian researchers reported at an upcoming meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology. Women deficient in the “sunshine vitamin” when they were diagnosed with breast cancer were 94 per cent more likely to have their cancer spread and were 73 per cent more likely to die than women with adequate vitamin D levels. More than three-quarters of women with breast cancer had a vitamin D deficiency, reported the researchers from Mount Sinai Hospital in Toronto.40 AND ABOVEEnvironmental factors can trigger arthritis A number of environmental exposures, including trauma, are associated with the onset of inflammatory arthritis in patients with psoriasis, findings published in the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases indicate. Psoriatic arthritis is “inflammatory arthritis on a background of pre-existing or future development of psoriasis,” reported researchers from University of Manchester, UK. Usually arthritis post-dates, often by several years, the onset of psoriasis, they note. So for patients with psoriasis, it is would be helpful to know what factors increase their risk of developing this condition.
