“Brainiac”, “four-eyes”, “bookworm” … they have been, for decades, frequent names (and, unfortunately, derogatory) that are used to refer to people who need to wear glasses due to some defect of vision (mistakenly associated with forcing the eyes to read too much).
Today, the claims of the bully on duty may not be so far from reality, at least according to research by an international team of scientists, published by the journal Nature Communications .
The group describes in their study the genetic and cognitive data obtained and what they found: after taking various intelligence tests, people who obtained higher than average results tended to require visual correction.
But this is not the most surprising: they also tended to live longer and were less likely to have hypertension.
The researchers reached these conclusions by extracting data from previous studies; specifically, the CHARGE and COGENT consortia, and the UK Biobank, which collects genomic and health data from more than 300,486 people.
The scientists began their analysis by looking at 90 genomic regions that previous research found can be associated with some degree of cognitive level and 58 regions that they had isolated as part of their study. Using this data, they were able to rank the study individuals in the databases in order of cognitive ability or intelligence. Then, they compared intelligence levels with other factors, such as longevity, hypertension, and eyesight.
However, it is important to note that the study is not definitive : the researchers note that the sample of individuals is not large enough to definitively suggest that poor eyesight and superior intelligence are directly related. Therefore, they suggest that much more research is required.
The genes of intelligence
As described in the study, the analyzes found 709 genes associated with general cognitive function, that is, the expression levels of these genes through the cerebral cortex are associated with intelligence; and, these genes, in turn, with certain variables of general health.
In addition, the study also evaluated the genetic variables that define reaction time and examined their genetic relationship with general cognitive function.
“We detected a significant genetic overlap between general cognitive function, reaction time, and many health variables, such as eyesight, hypertension, and longevity.”
“Reaction time is genetically correlated with general cognitive function, and accounts for its association with health,” the study details.
More information. Gail Davies et al. Study of 300,486 individuals identifies 148 independent genetic loci influencing general cognitive function, Nature Communications (2018). DOI: 10.1038 / s41467-018-04362-x
