Gasping Reflex Clue To Cot Death

US scientists believe nerve cells critical for gasping offer important clues to the cause of cot death. Dr Jan-Marino Ramirez and colleagues at the University of Chicago have found two brain cell pathways that drive breathing baby mice. Normally, one pathway will compensate if the other is blocked, causing the baby to gasp to take in air. Cot deaths may occur if both pathways become blocked for some reason, say the authors in the journal Neuron.