B3346 - GWAS of breastfeeding patterns - 25/07/2019

B number: 
B3346
Principal applicant name: 
Luisa Zuccolo | MRC IEU - Univ of Bristol (UK)
Co-applicants: 
Dr Carolina Borges
Title of project: 
GWAS of breastfeeding patterns
Proposal summary: 

Breastfeeding is life-saving for some vulnerable populations (eg poor sanitation contexts) and individual babies (eg preterm), however breastfeeding according to WHO guidelines remains rare in the UK and other high-income countries. Other than the obvious lack of support for new mothers starting their breastfeeding journey, little is known about individual barriers to breastfeeding, some of which could be specific to the mother, and some could be specific to the baby.
This project aims to understand to what extent the mother and baby's genetic make up can influence the pair's chances of starting and sustaining breastfeeding.
This knowledge will help in several ways, and specifically:
1. it will allow researchers to conduct robust studies into the health effects of breastfeeding for mothers and babies,
2. it will shed light onto needs and approaches that could be used to help support breastfeeding.

Impact of research: 
Identification of genetic variants for use in Mendelian randomization studies. Improved understanding of determinants of breastfeeding patterns at the individual and mother-offspring dyad level.
Date proposal received: 
Thursday, 25 July, 2019
Date proposal approved: 
Thursday, 25 July, 2019
Keywords: 
Genetic epidemiology (including association studies and mendelian randomisation), Behaviour - e.g. antisocial behaviour, risk behaviour, etc., Pregnancy - e.g. reproductive health, postnatal depression, birth outcomes, etc., GWAS, Breast feeding, Cohort studies - attrition, bias, participant engagement, ethics, Genetic epidemiology, Genetics, Genomics, Genome wide association study, Mendelian randomisation, Nutrition - breast feeding, diet, Offspring, Parenting