(March 18, 2010 - Insidermedicine)

From Boston - Stress during pregnancy may increase risk of asthma in the child, according to a report published in the American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine. Researchers studied 557 families, analyzing the child's umbilical cord for cytokines--a molecule that allows cells of the immune system to communicate with one another. They found varying levels of cytokines in mothers who lived or worked in a high stress environment, an aspect researchers believe increases the child's risk of allergy and  asthma later in life.

From Australia - According to another report published American Journal of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, scientists have developed a technique that may be able to reduce tobacco smoke damage to the lungs.  Researchers blocked the protein GM-CSF in one group of mice, while another served as controls. Exposing both groups to cigarette smoke, researchers found that the mice without the protein suffered significantly less lung inflammation than controls.

And finally, from France - The element Selenium may have a protective effect against diabetes, according to a report published in the journal Nutrition and Metabolism. Researchers studied over 1000 adults for nine years, finding that men with the highest selenium concentrations in their blood had a much lower incidence of dysglycemia (blood sugar metabolism disorders such as diabetes.)