New Delhi, Apr 22 (PTI) An embryo in the womb experiencing increased pressure due to fluids may impact facial development, including the risk of malformations, a new research has found.

The study found that an increase in pressure exerted by still fluids, or hydrostatic pressure, sensed by the embryo can hinder the healthy development of facial features.

Also Read | National Civil Services Day 2024 Date in India: Know the History and Significance of the Day That Celebrates the Work Done by Civil Servants.

Researchers at the University College, London, UK, said differences in pressure bears the risk of facial malformations.

The researchers performed their analyses in mice and frog embryos, and in lab-grown structures made of human stem cells.

Also Read | India National Elections 2024 Rangoli Design Videos: Matdan Jagrukta Rangoli Designs To Celebrate Biggest Festival of Democracy in the World.

Human stem cells cannot perform specific functions to begin with but, with time, self-renew and have the potential to become specialised cells such as those in muscles, blood or brain. These cells are needed for tissue maintenance and also repairs following an injury.

"When an organism is experiencing a change in pressure, all the cells -- including the embryo inside the mother -- are able to sense it," said Roberto Mayor, professor of developmental and cellular neurobiology at the University College, London, and lead author of the study, which has been published in the Nature Cell Biology journal.

"Our findings suggest that facial malformations could be influenced not only by genetics but by physical cues in the womb such as pressure," he said.

Mayor and his colleagues had previously found that cells in developing embryos sense the stiffness of other cells around them, which is key to them moving together to form the face and skull, they said.

(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)