A study published in PNAS reports that folic acid may protect fetal brain and spinal cord development by supporting the body’s production of retinoic acid, an active form of vitamin A. The findings were described in an article published Aug. 4, 2026, by mindbodygreen. Folic acid has been a standard prenatal recommendation for decades, credited with cutting the risk of neural tube defects by about 50%, according to the report.
Researchers used CRISPR/Cas9 on frog embryos to switch off specific genes and track how each one affected neural tube development, the report stated. According to the findings, retinoic acid, not folic acid directly, appears to be the molecule that helps the neural tube close. When the team blocked an enzyme needed to make retinoic acid, folic acid no longer prevented neural tube defects. Direct administration of retinoic acid restored normal development even without folic acid, the study found.
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