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Khoshkar Chalaksarei Z, Mashayekhi F. The Impact of Folic Acid Supplementation During Pregnancy on the Expression of Nav1 and Nlgn1 Genes in the Cerebral Cortex of Newborn Mice. JGUMS 2025; 34 (3) :308-321
URL: http://journal.gums.ac.ir/article-1-2740-en.html

Background Folic acid (FA), the synthetic form of folate, plays an important role in brain development. Neuron navigator 1 (Nav1) is a cytoskeleton-associated protein that plays a role in neuronal cell migration. Neuroligin1 (Nlgn1) is a cell adhesion molecule involved in the formation of synapses. 
Objective This study aimed to assess the effects of FA supplementation during pregnancy on the expression of Nav1 and Nlgn1 genes in the cerebral cortex of newborn mice. 
Methods Forty-five pregnant BALB/c mice were divided into three groups of 15. The first and second groups received FA at doses of 2 mg/kg/BW (normal) and 40 mg/kg/BW (high) daily during pregnancy, respectively. The third group did not receive FA and was the control group. Neonatal cerebral cortex was collected for Nav1 and Nlgn1 expression analysis using real-time PCR. 
Results The expression levels of Nav1 and Nlgn1 in the normal-dose FA group were higher than in the control group, while their expression levels in the high-dose FA group were lower than in the controls (P<0.001). The expression levels of Nav1 and Nlgn1 genes in the high-dose FA group were significantly lower than in the normal-dose FA group (P<0.001). 
Conclusion Using 2 mg/kg/BW FA during pregnancy increases the expression of Nav1 and Nlgn1 genes in the cerebral cortex of newborn mice, while 40 mg/kg/BW FA reduces their expression. Therefore, normal doses of FA affect brain development by changing the expression of two genes, while high doses of FA may have a negative effect. The protein-protein interaction showed the relationship between the two Nav1 and Nlgn1 proteins and their role in the synapse.