Cambridge Reproduction |

Brown mouse. Credit: Understanding Animal Research

Unborn babies use ‘greedy’ gene from dads to ‘remote-control’ mums into feeding them extra food

11 July 2023

A study in mice has found that fetuses use a copy of a gene inherited from their dad to force their mum to release as much nutrition as possible during pregnancy. The unborn baby ‘remote controls’ its mother’s metabolism so the two are in a nutritional tug of war. The mother’s body wants the baby to survive but needs to...

Father and son talking. Credit: Jose Luis Pelaez Inc / DigitalVision via Getty Images

Assisted reproduction kids grow up just fine – but it may be better to tell them early about biological origins

13 April 2023

Landmark study finds no difference in psychological wellbeing or quality of family relationships between children born by assisted reproduction (egg or sperm donation or surrogacy) and those born naturally at age 20. However, findings suggest that telling children about their biological origins early – before they start...

cells of the placenta. Credit: Kenny Roberts, Wellcome Sanger Institute

Cell mapping and ‘mini placentas’ give new insights into human pregnancy

29 March 2023

Researchers have mapped the complete trajectory of placental development, helping shed new light on why pregnancy disorders happen. Researchers from the University of Cambridge, the Wellcome Sanger Institute, the Friedrich Miescher Institute for Biomedical Research (FMI), Switzerland, EMBL’s European Bioinformatics...

Why maternal deaths in the UK are rising

24 November 2022

Why maternal deaths in the UK are rising Marian Knight , University of Oxford and Lisa Hinton , University of Cambridge In high-income countries such as Denmark and the Netherlands, pregnancy is comparatively safe. But maternal deaths still happen and in places like the UK are increasing . Understanding why is important...

Upcoming events

View all events

"Reproduction matters to us all": Professor Kathy Niakan on why it’s vital to take a multidisciplined approach to understanding reproduction

Reproduction: Antiquity to the Present Day

About us

Cambridge Reproduction is a strategic research intiative that explores the urgent challenges posed by reproduction today.

We facilitate close engagement between the arts, humanities and social sciences, biology and medicine. By approaching reproduction collectively and across disciplines, we offer fresh perspectives on broad issues which range from global policies to those which affect individuals, families and populations.

Find out more