Genetics mediate relation of birth weight to childhood IQ

doi:10.1136/bmj.323.7326.1426

BMJ 2001;323:1426 ( 15 December )

Letters

Genetics mediate relation of birth weight to childhood IQ

The first 150 words of the full text of this article appear below.

EDITOR $---$ Matte et al reported an association between birth weight and childhood IQ.¹ To control for confounding by maternaland family factors they examined this relation in sibships ofthe same sex and found an association between birth weight andIQ within male sibships. This association may be mediated by geneticfactors.

The impact of genetic factors on this association can be determined through the investigation of birth weight and IQ in twinpairs. Differences within dizygotic twin pairs are a functionof both genetic and non-genetic factors, whereas differences withinmonozygotic twin pairs are almost completely caused by non-geneticfactors.² If genetic factors mediate the association betweenbirth weight and IQ it is expected that for dizygotic twin pairsthe association between intrapair differences in birth weightand IQ is positive, while for monozygotic twin pairs no associationisexpected.

In a Dutch longitudinal twin study the association . . . [Full text of this article]

CiteULike

Complore

Connotea

Del.icio.us Add to Digg

Digg

StumbleUpon Add to Technorati

Technorati What's this?

Relevant Article

Influence of variation in birth weight within normal range and within sibships on IQ at age 7 years: cohort study: Thomas D Matte, Michaeline Bresnahan, Melissa D Begg, and Ezra Susser
BMJ 2001 323: 310-314. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]

This article has been cited by other articles:

Lawlor, D. A., Clark, H., Smith, G. D., Leon, D. A. (2006). Intrauterine Growth and Intelligence Within Sibling Pairs: Findings From the Aberdeen Children of the 1950s Cohort. Pediatrics 117: e894-e902 [Abstract] [Full text]
Bergvall, N., Iliadou, A., Tuvemo, T., Cnattingius, S. (2006). Birth Characteristics and Risk of Low Intellectual Performance in Early Adulthood: Are the Associations Confounded by Socioeconomic Factors in Adolescence or Familial Effects?. Pediatrics 117: 714-721 [Abstract] [Full text]
Ronalds, G. A, De Stavola, B. L, Leon, D. A (2005). The cognitive cost of being a twin: evidence from comparisons within families in the Aberdeen children of the 1950s cohort study. BMJ 331: 1306- [Abstract] [Full text]
Pearce, M. S, Deary, I. J, Young, A. H, Parker, L. (2005). Growth in early life and childhood IQ at age 11 years: the Newcastle Thousand Families Study. Int J Epidemiol 34: 673-677 [Abstract] [Full text]
Lawlor, D. A, Bor, W., O'Callaghan, M. J, Williams, G. M, Najman, J. M (2005). Intrauterine growth and intelligence within sibling pairs: findings from the Mater-University study of pregnancy and its outcomes. J. Epidemiol. Community Health 59: 279-282 [Abstract] [Full text]