placenta

Topic description and stories

Surviving birth

10 Dec 2020

Researchers at one of the busiest maternity hospitals in the world aim to help more women survive complications giving birth.

Credit: Title: Image reproduced with the permission of SPD Swiss Precision Diagnostics GmbH (SPD)

‘Mini-placentas’ could provide a model for early pregnancy

28 Nov 2018

Researchers say that new ‘mini-placentas’ – a cellular model of the early stages of the placenta – could provide a window into early pregnancy and...

"Pregnant"., Credit: Free stock image via Pexels.

Placenta plays pivotal “umpire” role to influence pregnancy outcomes

12 Sep 2016

New research provides the first clear evidence that the amount of nutrients transported to the foetus by the placenta adjusts according to both the...

Understanding the placenta: the key to healthy life

22 Aug 2012

The placenta is the interface between the mother and her baby, which means it is not only key to a successful pregnancy, it determines the future...

Rethinking the secrets of life: a code upon a code

04 Jan 2009

Epigenetics is taking the biomedical research world by storm; three Cambridge scientists use examples from their own research to explain why.

Prenatal origins of heart disease

04 Jan 2009

Studies in La Paz, the highest city in the world, are helping to uncover a link between prenatal conditions and heart disease in later life.

Collagen mechanics: learning from nature

01 Sep 2008

Because of their unique structure, biological tissues exhibit physical and mechanical properties that are unlike anything in the world of engineering...

Human placental villi showing signs of oxidative stress

Great expectations in pregnancy research

01 Feb 2008

Most pregnancies develop normally but when complications arise they can have devastating effects. Two recent initiatives in Cambridge hope to deliver...