PHAR 303 Lecture Notes - Lecture 11: Ace Inhibitor, Hedgehog Signaling Pathway, Sonic Hedgehog
23 Mar 2016
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Document Summary
3/100 babies born in north america have a birth defect. Birth defects are the leading cause of infant mortality. Most birth defects are of unknown cause. There hasn"t been any impact at all - the incidences have remained the same since 1998. If we knew the cause, we could take away its exposure. Malformations in canada: neural tube defects from 1996-2007. There was a huge impact with a decrease in defects due to folic acid supplements. Pregnant women are being told to take folic acid. Although we still don"t know the cause of neural tube defects, clinical trials found that folic acid prevented them. Grains contain folic acid so it is found in our diet. But too much folic acid isn"t good either. For many years, people thought that the embryo was protected in the womb and that it was impenetrable (like a shield) It"s not just a human problem; malformations occur in many species.
