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New Haven, Conn. Yale researchers have shown that developmental abnormalities, including those that lead to pregnancy loss and autism, are controlled by the genetics of the fetus and placenta and not the mother s intrauterine environment.
The findings are reported in the April 28 online edition of the journal
Placenta.
One out of every 33 children is diagnosed with a birth defect each year in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This translates into one baby born every 4 ½ minutes or 120,000 per year. Mothers often feel that they are responsible for these defects. But it s not their fault, said senior author Dr. Harvey Kliman, a research scientist in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Services at the Yale School of Medicine. This new research points to the genetics of these children as being the most important cause.
By Jim Shelton
May 3, 2021
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Twin babies sleeping.
Yale researchers have shown that developmental abnormalities, including those that lead to pregnancy loss and autism, are controlled by the genetics of the fetus and placenta and not the mother’s intrauterine environment.
One out of every 33 children is diagnosed with a birth defect each year in the United States, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). This translates into one baby born every 4 ½ minutes or 120,000 per year.
“Mothers often feel that they are responsible for these defects. But it’s not their fault,” said senior author Dr. Harvey Kliman, a research scientist in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Services at the Yale School of Medicine. “This new research points to the genetics of these children as being the most important cause.”