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Across the developed world, birth rates are plummeting. Is this just a social phenomenon, or is our biological fertility also declining? We don't yet know, and that is worrying, says Declan Butler.
Advances in reproductive medicine hint that female fertility might be extended into late middle age and beyond. But will the methods be safe? And is society ready for this demographic shift? Kendall Powell investigates.
During the past few decades, worries about environmental threats to human health have centred on the possible induction of cancers. Now risks to the male germ line, both real and potential, are also causing disquiet.
A child's genes are not all equal: in some cases, the copy from either the mother or the father is turned off. This affects the child's ability to acquire resources in the womb, after birth, and perhaps throughout life.
“It is high time we addressed the widening inequities that characterize our planet today. We need to focus our energies towards achieving basic healthcare for all.” Pascoal Mocumbi, former prime minister of Mozambique
Documentary makers can get as close to the war zones of disease as doctors and researchers — perhaps even closer. Julie Clayton and Declan Butler talk to Kevin Hull about his experiences.
We have the science to make new antimalarials, say Robert Ridley and Yeya Toure, but we need better mechanisms and resources to develop drugs and deliver them.