And if the research, currently being carried out on mice, proves a link, scientists hope they may be able to design a drug to prevent some miscarriages and even birth defects.

The work is being carried out at the University of Toronto in Canada and seems to have found a link between carrying a certain gene and the chances of miscarriage.

Doctors suspect a number of causes of miscarriage, including:

• rejection of an abnormal foetus
• damaged cervix
• abnormal uterus
• underactive thyroid gland
• diabetes
• cocaine use
• chronic kidney inflammation
• infection
• autoimmune reaction
• emotional shock.

Around 15% of pregnancies end in miscarriage but doctors find it hard to pinpoint a cause in many individual cases.

With the work involving mice, researchers writing in the New Scientist magazine have found that genes passed to the foetus of the mouse determine the chance of the baby surviving.

Now there are calls to take the studies forward by finding out whether women taking certain drugs reduce the chances of them miscarrying.

However, although there are trials already in the pipeline, research will move forward slowly because a dose that is too high may do more harm than good.

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