Vitamin B-12 status during pregnancy and child's IQ at age 8: a Mendelian randomization study in the Avon longitudinal study of parents and children.

ABSTRACT: Vitamin B-12 is essential for the development and maintenance of a healthy nervous system. Brain development occurs primarily in utero and early infancy, but the role of maternal vitamin B-12 status during pregnancy on offspring cognitive function is unclear. In this study we assessed the effect of vitamin B-12 status in well-nourished pregnant women on the cognitive ability of their offspring in a UK birth cohort (ALSPAC). We then examined the association of SNPs in maternal genes FUT2 (rs492602) and TCN2 (rs1801198, rs9606756) that are related to plasma vitamin B-12, with offspring IQ. Observationally, there was a positive association between maternal vitamin B-12 intake and child's IQ that was markedly attenuated after adjustment for potential confounders (mean difference in offspring I

SUBMITTER: Bonilla C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3515553 | biostudies-literature | 2012

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature