Smoking, lack of exercise, bad diet and our genes are all well-known risk factors for heart disease, cancer and diabetes. But, as researchers are beginning to understand, the environment in the womb as we first begin to grow may also determine our future.
Scientists at the University of Cambridge will this week begin studying sheep that have been genetically modified to carry the mutation that causes Huntington’s disease. The sheep are believed to be the first Merinos to have been imported into the UK from Australia for about 50 years.
Cambridge scientists have developed a new method for growing and transplanting artificial bile ducts that could in future be used to help treat liver disease in children, reducing the need for liver transplantation.
Scientists have shown how the precursors of egg and sperm cells – the cells that are key to the preservation of a species – arise in the early embryo by studying pig embryos alongside human stem cells.
An artificial intelligence system designed by researchers at the University of Cambridge is able to detect pain levels in sheep, which could aid in early diagnosis and treatment of common, but painful, conditions in animals.
A team of researchers at Cambridge has identified how two key areas of the brain govern both our emotions and our heart activity, helping explain why people with depression or anxiety have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.
Asian elephants are able to recognise their bodies as obstacles to success in problem-solving, further strengthening evidence of their intelligence and self-awareness, according to a new study from the University of Cambridge.
Eating a high fat and high sugar diet when pregnant leads to metabolic impairments in both the mother and her unborn child, which may 'program' them for potential health complications later in life, a study in mice has shown.
OCD can be a devastating condition: therapy and medication often doesn’t work, leaving many people unable to hold down a job or a relationship – or even to leave their house. In our series of films, science writer David Adam looks at how research at Cambridge using animals helps us understand what is happening in the brain – and may lead to better treatments.
If a mother picks up an infection during pregnancy, her immune system will kick into action to clear the infection – but this self-defence mechanism may also have a small influence how her child’s brain develops in the womb, in ways that are similar to how the brain develops in autism spectrum disorders. Now, an international team of researchers has shown why this may be the case, in a study using rodents to model infection during pregnancy.
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