ArticleProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2007
Moderation of breastfeeding effects on the IQ by genetic variation in fatty acid metabolism.
Article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2007. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 113 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
113 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 391 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- Influence of fatty acid desaturase (FADS) genotype on maternal and child polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) status and child health outcomes: a systematic review.Nutrition reviews · 2020Pooled it
- Effect modification of FADS2 polymorphisms on the association between breastfeeding and intelligence: results from a collaborative meta-analysis.International journal of epidemiology · 2019Pooled it
- Pooled it
- Lack of beneficiary effect of levothyroxine therapy of pregnant women with subclinical hypothyroidism in terms of neurodevelopment of their offspring.Archives of gynecology and obstetrics · 2024Trial
- Maternal FADS2 single nucleotide polymorphism modified the impact of prenatal docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) supplementation on child neurodevelopment at 5 years: Follow-up of a randomized clinical trial.Clinical nutrition (Edinburgh, Scotland) · 2021Trial
- Maternal Docosahexaenoic Acid Status during Pregnancy and Its Impact on Infant Neurodevelopment.Nutrients · 2020Trial
- Trial
- Can polymorphisms in the fatty acid desaturase (FADS) gene cluster alter the effects of fish oil supplementation on plasma and erythrocyte fatty acid profiles? An exploratory study.European journal of nutrition · 2018Trial
- Trial
- Genetic Variants of the FADS Gene Cluster Are Associated with Erythrocyte Membrane LC PUFA Levels in Patients with Mild Cognitive Impairment.The journal of nutrition, health & aging · 2016Trial
- Fish oil supplementation during lactation: effects on cognition and behavior at 7 years of age.Lipids · 2011Trial
- Prenatal famine exposure restricts genetic effects on birth weight with implications for metabolic disease risk.Communications medicine · 2026Article
- Central administration of docosahexaenoic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, or linoleic acid activates hypothalamic fatty acid sensing and is involved in reproductive regulation in spotted scat (Scatophagus argus).Fish physiology and biochemistry · 2025Article
- Little women: the relevance and reliance on mouse models for mammary gland research and next steps for translation.Journal of mammary gland biology and neoplasia · 2025Review
- No Evidence of Interaction Between FADS2 Genotype and Breastfeeding on Cognitive or Other Traits in the UK Biobank.Behavior genetics · 2025Article
- Review on the Impact of Milk Oligosaccharides on the Brain and Neurocognitive Development in Early Life.Nutrients · 2023Review
- Association between Arachidonic Acid and the Risk of Schizophrenia: A Cross-National Study and Mendelian Randomization Analysis.Nutrients · 2023Article
- Optimizing Maternal Nutrition: The Importance of a Tailored Approach.Current developments in nutrition · 2022Review
- Membrane fatty acid desaturase: biosynthesis, mechanism, and architecture.Applied microbiology and biotechnology · 2022Review
53 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
10 authors at 5 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Children's intellectual development is influenced by both genetic inheritance and environmental experiences. Breastfeeding is one of the earliest such postnatal experiences. Breastfed children attain higher IQ scores than children not fed breast milk, presumably because of the fatty acids uniquely available in breast milk. Here we show that the association between breastfeeding and IQ is moderated by a genetic variant in FADS2, a gene involved in the genetic control of fatty acid pathways. We confirmed this gene-environment interaction in two birth cohorts, and we ruled out alternative explanations of the finding involving gene-exposure correlation, intrauterine growth, social class, and maternal cognitive ability, as well as maternal genotype effects on breastfeeding and breast milk. The finding shows that environmental exposures can be used to uncover novel candidate genes in complex phenotypes. It also shows that genes may work via the environment to shape the IQ, helping to close the nature versus nurture debate.
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What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.