Precursor cells in the embryonic neural tube are organized in a specific striped pattern which depends on the signals they receive (left). Lehr and colleagues recreated this pattern in a cell culture ...

Neural tube formation was compromised in frog embryos treated with the widely-used antiepileptic drug valproic acid and led to defects. Disclaimer: AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the ...

About 300,000 to 400,000 fetuses per year from mothers with diabetes develop neural tube defects -- when the tissue that eventually forms the brain and spinal cord fails to form properly -- which can ...

A Japanese research team has successfully reproduced the human neural circuit in vitro using multi-region miniature organs known as assembloids, which are derived from induced pluripotent stem (iPS) ...

The first stem cell culture method that produces a full model of the early stages of the human central nervous system has been developed by a team of engineers and biologists at the University of ...

The UK Government's current proposal to fortify one type of flour with folic acid is inadequate as it suggests a low dose that would fail to prevent hundreds of cases of severe birth defects each year ...

Taking folic acid supplements before conception and in the first trimester of pregnancy continues to be a major line of defense against neural tube defects. The recommendation also aligns with ...