Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • News & Views
  • Published:

Paediatric endocrinology

Can niacin supplementation protect against congenital malformations?

A recent report found mutations in the de novo kynurenine pathway and reduced plasma levels of NAD in patients with congenital malformations. In a mouse model, the mutation not only altered the phenotype of the litters but the combination of a homozygous mutation and a niacin-free diet resulted in miscarriages.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Shi, H. et al. NAD deficiency, congenital malformations, and niacin supplementation. N. Engl. J. Med. 377, 544–552 (2017).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  2. Garten, A. et al. Physiological and pathophysiological roles of NAMPT and NAD metabolism. Nat. Rev. Endocrinol. 11, 535–546 (2015).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  3. Cervenka, I., Agudelo, L. Z. & Ruas, J. L. Kynurenines: tryptophan's metabolites in exercise, inflammation, and mental health. Science 357, eaaf9794 (2017).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Penke, M. et al. Hepatic NAD salvage pathway is enhanced in mice on a high-fat diet. Mol. Cell. Endocrinol. 412, 65–72 (2015).

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  5. Dölle, C. et al. NAD biosynthesis in humans — enzymes, metabolites and therapeutic aspects. Curr. Top. Med. Chem. 13, 2907–2917 (2013).

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Wieland Kiess.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing financial interests.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Penke, M., Kiess, W. Can niacin supplementation protect against congenital malformations?. Nat Rev Endocrinol 13, 630–631 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1038/nrendo.2017.133

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/nrendo.2017.133

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing