Putting your pregnancy on pause until the time is right to give birth sounds like something out of a sci-fi novel, but for many mammals what’s known as “embryonic diapause” is an essential part of raising their young. Although scientists have known since the 1850s that some animals have this ability, it is only now becoming clear how it could teach us valuable lessons about human pregnancy, stem cells, and cancer. Which animals can do this? More than 130 species of mammal can pause their pregnancies. The pause can last anywhere between a couple of days and 11 months. In…
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