Dr. Amaal Schroeder recently graduated from the Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at the University of Cape Town with her Master of Medicine.

The female sex hormone oestrogen has anti-viral effects against the influenza A virus, commonly known as the flu, a new study in American Journal of Physiology — Lung Cellular and Molecular Physiology reports. A virus infects and causes sickness by entering a cell and making copies of itself inside the host cell. When released from infected cells, the virus can spread through the body and between people. How much a virus has replicated determines its severity. Less replication of the virus means the infected person may experience less disease or is less likely to spread the disease to someone else, says Sabra[...]

HPV vaccine associated with improved fertility in some women More than 40 percent of American teens are now getting vaccinated against human papillomavirus (HPV). But, despite HPV infection being associated with reduced semen quality and lower pregnancy rates, there is still public concern about whether the HPV vaccine itself could affect future fertility. Now, the first prospective cohort examining the relationship between HPV vaccination and fertility, led by a Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) researcher, has found that the vaccine can actually improve chances of conception in some women. The study, published in the journal Paediatric and Perinatal Epidemiology,[...]