By Michael Le Page ZEPHYR/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY As our understanding of genetics grows, so does the potential for people to use it to have babies with particular characteristics. In theory, DNA analysis could help prospective parents choose which IVF embryos to implant on the basis of characteristics like intelligence. But now a study estimates that… Read More »
Living near oil and gas wells may increase a woman’s risk of having a baby with a congenital heart defect. Researchers writing in Environment International reported on 3,324 infants born in Colorado from 2005 to 2011, comparing 536 babies with heart defects to 2,860 controls matched for sex, maternal smoking, race and ethnicity. They correlated… Read More »
The siblings dubbed the “world’s most identical twins,” Anna and Lucy DeCinque, have revealed their mom wants them both to get pregnant at the same time with their shared boyfriend’s babies. The twins made the startling confession on Australia’s “Today” TV show. Any baby would be both half-sibling and cousin. The 33-year-old sisters, who are… Read More »
Spinal surgery for unborn babies with the birth defect spina bifida is to be made routinely available on the NHS in England, officials have announced. The surgery involves repairing the spinal tissue of the baby while it is still in the womb. It can improve their ability to walk and reduce health problems that result… Read More »
Editorial pages focus on these and other health care issues. Bloomberg: Genetic Engineering Can Make Humans Different, But Not Better For such flawed creatures, human beings are surprisingly hard to improve, at least through our genes. That’s one reason there’s so much outcry over the recent claim that researchers in China altered the genes of… Read More »