The biggest probe yet into the inherited causes of osteoarthritis has turned up eight genes associated with this painful disease, bringing the tally of suspects to 11, The Lancet reported on Tuesday.

Researchers led by John Loughlin at Newcastle University, northeast England, compared the DNA code of more than 7,400 people with severe hip and knee osteoarthritis against that of more than 11,000 counterparts who did not have the disease.

The Mexican government declared a national animal health emergency on Monday in the face of an aggressive bird flu epidemic that has infected nearly 1.7 million poultry.

More than half the infected birds have died or been culled, the agriculture ministry said of an epidemic that was confirmed on Friday by the U.N.'s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).

GlaxoSmithKline was socked with $3 billion in fines by U.S. authorities Monday over charges it marketed drugs for unauthorized uses, held back safety data, and cheated the government's Medicaid program.

In a longstanding case that officials said bared the ugly underside of the U.S. pharmaceutical industry, GSK was also accused of paying kickbacks to doctors, paying for expensive trips and other benefits, to gain their support for the drugs the company was pushing.

Two-thirds of South African teens and adults suffer from a "fear of missing out" on more interesting activities than what they're doing, a study by a pharmaceutical firm showed on Monday.

Over 62 percent of some 3,000 respondents aged between 15 and 50 years said in a nationwide survey that they live in "constant fear" of missing out on something more exciting than what they are doing.

Even for infants born full-term, a little more time in the womb may matter.

The extra time results in more brain development, and a study suggests perhaps better scores on academic tests, too.

All vehicles travelling on French roads must carry a chemical or electronic breathalyzer test from Sunday, under new rules aimed at reducing alcohol-driven accidents.

"Alcohol has been the main cause of mortality on roads since 2006," according to road security authorities.

People who were hit or spanked as children face higher odds of mental ailments as adults, including mood and anxiety disorders and problems with alcohol and drug abuse, researchers said Monday.

The study, led by Canadian researchers, is the first to examine the link between psychological problems and spanking, while excluding more severe physical or sexual abuse in order to better gauge the effect of corporal punishment alone.

In-vitro fertilization (IVF) has given the world about five million new people since the first test tube baby was born in England 34 years ago, according to an estimate released on Monday.

As the initial controversy over man's scientific manipulation of nature has faded, about 350,000 babies conceived in petri dishes are now born every year, said the European Society of Human Reproduction and Embryology (ESHRE).

Mississippi soon could become the only U.S. state without an abortion clinic as a new law takes effect this weekend. Critics say it would force women in one of the country's poorest states to drive hours to obtain a constitutionally protected procedure or carry unwanted pregnancies to term.

Top officials say limiting abortions is exactly what they have in mind.

The foreign minister is offering assurances that Germany protects religious traditions after a court ruled that circumcising young boys on religious grounds amounts to bodily harm even if parents consent.

Last week, a state court in Cologne ruled that the child's right to physical integrity trumps freedom of religion and parents' rights. The ruling was strongly criticized by the head of Germany's Central Council of Jews, Dieter Graumann, who urged Parliament to clarify the legal situation to protect religious freedom. Muslim leaders also expressed concern.