Gently rocking embryos while they grow during in vitro fertilization (IVF) improves pregnancy rates in mice by 22 percent, new research shows. The procedure could one day lead to significantly higher IVF success rates in humans.

New research shows that taking counterfeit drugs purchased over the Internet can kill and bypassing health systems can leave life-threatening problems undiagnosed. It's estimated that 90% of counterfeit drugs are sold on the Internet and that the global sale of counterfeit drugs will reach $75 billion this year. Counterfeit drug deaths include men who took fake erectile dysfunction drugs, pregnant women injected with fake iron for anemia and children who took paracetamol syrup contaminated with antifreeze.

The European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE) has published a position statement on the impact of the life style factors obesity, smoking and alcohol consumption on natural and medically assisted reproduction.

A man's male hormones may ward off heart damage by helping vessels around the heart regenerate, suggest Australian researchers.

A groundbreaking study of couples by researchers in Canada found more than half (56 percent) of young adults in a new sexual relationship were infected with human papillomavirus. Of those, nearly half (44 percent) were infected with an HPV type that causes cancer.

New research shows that people tend to match their risk perceptions about policy issues with their cultural values, which may explain the intense disagreement about proposals to vaccinate elementary-school girls against human-papillomavirus (HPV). The study also says people's values shape their perceptions of expert opinion on the vaccine.

Researchers have identified the first genetic variant associated with aggressive prostate cancer, proving the concept that genetic information may one day be used in combination with other factors to guide treatment decisions.

Two new studies show that protein bits produced by unusual "reading" of the HIV genome can induce immune responses. The information provided by these findings may prove useful during future HIV vaccine design efforts.

Neuroscientists have forged an unlikely molecular union as part of their fight against diseases of the brain and nervous system, bringing together the herpes virus and a molecule known as Sleeping Beauty to improve gene therapy. The work has allowed scientists to reach a long-sought goal: shuttling into brain cells a relatively large gene that can remain on for an extended period of time.

In a comparison of robot-assisted vasectomy reversal and the microscope procedure that is widely used, scientists found robot-assisted surgery could reduce average surgery time by about 20 minutes. Despite the study's small sample size -- 27 patients -- physicians say it is promising, and requires more evaluation and longer follow-up of patients to yield more widely applicable results.