Dr. Barbara Strupp, Ph.D.  
Graduate School Professor, Graduate Field of Nutrition, 
Faculty Fellow for Inclusive Mentoring, Cornell Graduate School 
Professor Emerita, Division of Nutritional Sciences and Department of Psychology 

Dr. Strupp has served as a Professor at Cornell University for over 30 years, with appointments in the Division of Nutritional Sciences and the Department of Psychology. Over this time, her research has focused on studying environmental influences (nutritional, neurotoxicant, drug exposure) that can adversely affect brain development and ultimate cognitive functioning, and testing potential therapies. Her current research focuses on the effects of maternal choline intake during pregnancy on offspring cognition, in both animal models and humans. Her animal studies in this area have provided exciting new evidence that maternal choline supplementation not only is beneficial to typically developing offspring but may also lessen the cognitive and neurological impairments produced by Down syndrome. Her ongoing human clinical trials (with collaborators Rick Canfield and Marie Caudill) are designed to evaluate whether the low choline intakes of most pregnant women represent a risk factor for child cognitive development, as well as assess the potential benefits of maternal choline supplementation during pregnancy. 

In addition to her research, Dr. Strupp is actively involved in student advising – both undergraduate and graduate. She is currently spearheading a new advising initiative in the Cornell Graduate School which provides guidance and support for graduate students. In 2015, she was awarded the Kendall S. Carpenter Advising Award, and in 2022, received the Cornell/CHE KON/Alumni Advising Award, both for excellence in advising.

Dr. Richard Canfield, Ph.D. Senior Research Associate 
Dr Canfield is a developmental psychologist whose research is grounded in basic developmental science and is aimed a leveraging basic science to understand and characterize the effects of early exposures on lifelong cognitive functioning. Over the past 35 years Dr. Canfield has led and collaborated on 

multiple large and small longitudinal studies relating early exposures to cognitive function in infants, toddlers, and school-aged children. He is currently working on several projects related to maternal choline supplementation and offspring cognition -- exceptionally important and timely projects that promise to provide evidence supporting an inexpensive intervention that can produce widespread benefits to offspring cognitive development by removing one putative nutritional impediment to optimal cognitive function throughout life. 

Dr. Canfield also spends a significant amount of time advising and mentoring undergraduate students in formal and informal settings, and is an avid gardener.

Contact us at cholcog@cornell.edu

Current Members

Graduate Student Researchers
Elisabeth Anne Larson MSc, PhD Candidate. 
Lisa received her BSc. in nutrition and dietetics from New York University, summa cum laude, and her MSc. in human nutrition from the University of Copenhagen where she received a 12/12 on her thesis. She has worked in numerous research settings, running clinical trials portfolios for breast cancer chemotherapies and evaluating the impact of mentorship on eating disorder recovery, but her passion is in maternal and child nutrition. Her current work focuses on maternal choline intake and its impact on the health of both the pregnant mother and her offspring.

Undergraduate Research Assistants
Angie Lam
Joyce Shinyuan Wang
Nicole Gabriel
Angelina Ge
Judit Laidlaw
Ryan Yang
Gabriella Javier
Aleha Syed

Cholbabies investigates the effects of prenatal choline supplementation vs. placebo on infant cognition in the areas of reaction time and anticipatory eye movements, which predicts working memory and problem-solving later in life.

The Cholteens study is the first study to explore the long-term effect of maternal prenatal choline intake on memory, attention, executive functioning, and emotional well-being. This novel, fully-virtual 14-year follow-up of a controlled feeding study done in our lab uses Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB Connect), the Achenbach System of Empirically Based Assessment (ASEBA) Youth Self Report (YSR) questionnaire, and Kaufman Brief Intelligence Test, Second Edition Revised to assess adolescent offspring cognition.

We’re teaming up with the team at Harvard’s Project Viva for the first study to explore associations between maternal choline intake and inflammation during pregnancy. This population-level epidemiological analysis will provide initial evidence toward the potential beneficial impact of choline on inflammation during pregnancy.

The future is team science! With initial findings from our Project Viva work, we are teaming up with collaborators at the University of Alberta to try and replicate our findings and amass more evidence regarding the relationship between choline intake and inflammation in pregnancy.

• Training in our group provides undergraduate and graduate students opportunity to hone skills in study
  management, statistical analysis, and scientific communication;
• Our students gain invaluable knowledge about nutrition, biochemistry, maternal health, and
  psychology;
• Our team prepares our students for their next professional step through regular opportunities to present their work, journal clubs, and opportunities to write and publish.

LARSON EA, ZHAO Z, BADER-LARSEN KS, MAGKOS F. EGG CONSUMPTION AND GROWTH IN CHILDREN: A META-ANALYSIS
OF INTERVENTIONAL TRIALS. FRONT NUTR. 2024 JAN 5;10:1278753. DOI: 10.3389/FNUT.2023.1278753. PMID: 38249601; PMCID:PMC10796599.

BAHNFLETH C, STRUPP BJ, CAUDILL MA, CANFIELD RL. PRENATAL CHOLINE SUPPLEMENTATION IMPROVES CHILD
SUSTAINED ATTENTION: A 7-YEAR FOLLOW-UP OF A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED FEEDING TRIAL. FASEB J, 2022; 36:E22054.
DOI:10.1096/FJ.20210 1217R

KLATT KC, MCDOUGALL MQ, MALYSHEVA OV, TAESUWAN S, LOINARD-GONZÁLEZ AAP, NEVINS JEH, BECKMAN K, BHAWAL
R, ANDERSON E, ZHANG S, BENDER E, JACKSON KH, KING DJ, DYER RA, DEVAPATLA S, VIDAVALUR R, BRENNA JT, CAUDILL
MA. PRENATAL CHOLINE SUPPLEMENTATION IMPROVES BIOMARKERS OF MATERNAL DOCOSAHEXAENOIC ACID (DHA)
STATUS AMONG PREGNANT PARTICIPANTS CONSUMING SUPPLEMENTAL DHA: A RANDOMIZED CONTROLLED TRIAL. AM J
CLIN NUTR. 2022 SEP 2;116(3):820-832. DOI: 10.1093/AJCN/NQAC147. PMID: 35575618; PMCID: PMC9437984.

CAUDILL MA, STRUPP BJ, MUSCALU L, NEVINS JEH, CANFIELD RL. MATERNAL CHOLINE SUPPLEMENTATION DURING THE
THIRD TRIMESTER OF PREGNANCY IMPROVES INFANT INFORMATION PROCESSING SPEED: A RANDOMIZED, DOUBLE-BLIND,
CONTROLLED FEEDING STUDY. FASEB J. 2018 APR;32(4):2172-2180. DOI: 10.1096/FJ.201700692RR. EPUB 2018 JAN 5. PMID:
29217669; PMCID: PMC6988845.

POWERS BE; VELAZQUEZ R, ASH JA, GINSBURG SD, MUFSON EJ, STRUPP, BJ. MATERNAL CHOLINE SUPPLEMENTATION AS A
POTENTIAL THERAPY FOR DOWN SYNDROME: ASSESSMENT OF EFFECTS THROUGHOUT THE LIFESPAN. FRONT AGING
NEUROSCI. 2021 OCT 6;13:723046. DOI: 10.3389/FNAGI.2021.723046. ECOLLECTION 2021.

HOWARD S., BEAUDIN SA, STRUPP BJ, SMITH DR. MATERNAL CHOLINE SUPPLEMENTATION LESSENS THE BEHAVIORAL
DYSFUNCTION PRODUCED BY DEVELOPMENTAL MANGANESE EXPOSURE IN A RODENT MODEL OF ADHD.
NEUROTOXICOLOGY AND TERATOLOGY, 2024 MAR-APR;102:107337. DOI: 10.1016/J.NTT.2024.107337. EPUB 2024 FEB 27.

Powers BE, Velazquez R, Strawderman MS, Ginsberg SD, Mufson EJ, Strupp BJ. Maternal Choline Supplementation as a Potential Therapy for Down Syndrome: Assessment of Effects Throughout the Lifespan. Front Aging Neurosci. 2021 Oct 6;13:723046. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2021.723046. PMID: 34690739; PMCID: PMC8527982.

Bahnfleth CL, Strupp BJ, Caudill MA, Canfield RL. Prenatal choline supplementation improves child sustained attention: A 7-year follow- up of a randomized controlled feeding trial. FASEB J. 2022;36:e22054. doi:10.1096/fj.20210 1217R

Alldred, M. J., Chao, H. M., Lee, S. H., Beilin, J., Powers, B. E., Petkova, E., Strupp, B. J., & Ginsberg, S. D. (2019). Long-term effects of maternal choline supplementation on CA1 pyramidal neuron gene expression in the Ts65Dn mouse model of Down syndrome and Alzheimer's disease. FASEB journal, 33(9), 9871–9884.

Kelley, C. M., Ginsberg, S. D., Alldred, M. J., Strupp, B. J., & Mufson, E. J. (2019). Maternal Choline Supplementation Alters Basal Forebrain Cholinergic Neuron Gene Expression in the Ts65Dn Mouse Model of Down Syndrome. Developmental neurobiology, 79(7), 664–683.

Alldred, M. J., Chao, H. M., Lee, S. H., Beilin, J., Powers, B. E., Petkova, E., Strupp, B. J., & Ginsberg, S. D. (2018). CA1 pyramidal neuron gene expression mosaics in the Ts65Dn murine model of Down syndrome and Alzheimer's disease following maternal choline supplementation. Hippocampus, 28(4), 251–268.

Caudill, M. A., Strupp, B. J., Muscalu, L., Nevins, J. E. H., & Canfield, R. L. (2018). Maternal choline supplementation during the third trimester of pregnancy improves infant information processing speed: a randomized, double-blind, controlled feeding study. FASEB journal: official publication of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, 32(4), 2172.

Powers, B. E., Kelley, C. M., Velazquez, R., Ash, J. A., Strawderman, M. S., Alldred, M. J., Ginsberg, S. D., Mufson, E. J., & Strupp, B. J. (2017). Maternal choline supplementation in a mouse model of Down syndrome: Effects on attention and nucleus basalis/substantia innominata neuron morphology in adult offspring. Neuroscience, 340, 501–514.

Strupp, B. J., Powers, B. E., Velazquez, R., Ash, J. A., Kelley, C. M., Alldred, M. J., Strawderman, M., Caudill, M. A., Mufson, E. J., & Ginsberg, S. D. (2016). Maternal Choline Supplementation: A Potential Prenatal Treatment for Down Syndrome and Alzheimer's Disease. Current Alzheimer research, 13(1), 97–106.

Kelley, C. M., Ash, J. A., Powers, B. E., Velazquez, R., Alldred, M. J., Ikonomovic, M. D., Ginsberg, S. D., Strupp, B. J., & Mufson, E. J. (2016). Effects of Maternal Choline Supplementation on the Septohippocampal Cholinergic System in the Ts65Dn Mouse Model of Down Syndrome. Current Alzheimer research, 13(1), 84–96.

Powers, B. E., Velazquez, R., Kelley, C. M., Ash, J. A., Strawderman, M. S., Alldred, M. J., Ginsberg, S. D., Mufson, E. J., & Strupp, B. J. (2016). Attentional function and basal forebrain cholinergic neuron morphology during aging in the Ts65Dn mouse model of Down syndrome. Brain structure & function, 221(9), 4337–4352.

Ash, J. A., Velazquez, R., Kelley, C. M., Powers, B. E., Ginsberg, S. D., Mufson, E. J., & Strupp, B. J. (2014). Maternal choline supplementation improves spatial mapping and increases basal forebrain cholinergic neuron number and size in aged Ts65Dn mice. Neurobiology of disease, 70, 32–42.

Yan, J., Ginsberg, S. D., Powers, B., Alldred, M. J., Saltzman, A., Strupp, B. J., & Caudill, M. A. (2014). Maternal choline supplementation programs greater activity of the phosphatidylethanolamine N-methyltransferase (PEMT) pathway in adult Ts65Dn trisomic mice. FASEB journal, 28(10), 4312–4323.

Kelley, C. M., Powers, B. E., Velazquez, R., Ash, J. A., Ginsberg, S. D., Strupp, B. J., & Mufson, E. J. (2014). Maternal choline supplementation differentially alters the basal forebrain cholinergic system of young-adult Ts65Dn and disomic mice. The Journal of comparative neurology, 522(6), 1390–1410.

Kelley, C. M., Powers, B. E., Velazquez, R., Ash, J. A., Ginsberg, S. D., Strupp, B. J., & Mufson, E. J. (2014). Sex differences in the cholinergic basal forebrain in the Ts65Dn mouse model of Down syndrome and Alzheimer's disease. Brain pathology (Zurich, Switzerland), 24(1), 33–44.

Velazquez, R., Ash, J. A., Powers, B. E., Kelley, C. M., Strawderman, M., Luscher, Z. I., Ginsberg, S. D., Mufson, E. J., & Strupp, B. J. (2013). Maternal choline supplementation improves spatial learning and adult hippocampal neurogenesis in the Ts65Dn mouse model of Down syndrome. Neurobiology of disease, 58, 92–101.

Field, M. S., Shields, K. S., Abarinov, E. V., Malysheva, O. V., Allen, R. H., Stabler, S. P., Ash, J. A., Strupp, B. J., Stover, P. J., & Caudill, M. A. (2013). Reduced MTHFD1 activity in male mice perturbs folate- and choline-dependent one-carbon metabolism as well as transsulfuration. The Journal of nutrition, 143(1), 41–45.

Moon, J., Chen, M., Gandhy, S. U., Strawderman, M., Levitsky, D. A., Maclean, K. N., & Strupp, B. J. (2010). Perinatal choline supplementation improves cognitive functioning and emotion regulation in the Ts65Dn mouse model of Down syndrome. Behavioral neuroscience, 124(3), 346–361.

Prenatal Choline Supplementation Improves Child Color-location Memory Task Performance at 7 Y of Age (FS05-01-19) 
Charlotte L. Bahnfleth, Richard L. Canfield, Julie E.H. Nevins, Marie A. Caudill, Barbara J. Strupp 
Maternal, Perinatal and Pediatric Nutrition, Current Developments in Nutrition, Volume 3, Issue Supplement 1, June 2019, nzz048.FS05-01-19, https://doi.org/10.1093/cdn/nzz048.FS05-01-19.

Maternal choline supplementation: A therapy for Down Syndrome with population-wide cognitive benefits (DNTS 16) 
Barbara J. Strupp
43rd Annual Meeting of the Developmental Neurotoxicology Society: Held in Conjunction with the 59th Annual Meeting of the Teratology Society and 32nd Annual Education Meeting for the Organization of Teratology Information Specialists, Sheraton San Diego Hotel and Marina, San Diego, CA, June 23–26, 2019, Neurotoxicology and Teratology, Volume 73, 2019, Pages 76-94, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ntt.2019.04.001. (NOTE: This article can be found on page 80, DNTS 16; or read the excerpt linked in the title above.)

Maternal Choline Supplementation During Pregnancy Improves Executive Functioning in Children at Age 7 y (E10-06) 
Julie E.H. Nevins, Kara Beckman, Charlotte L. Bahnfleth, Bailey M. Drewes, Marie A. Caudill, Barbara J. Strupp, and Richard L. Canfield 
Neurobiology, Current Developments in Nutrition, Volume 2, Issue 11, November 2018, nzy043, https://doi.org/10.1093/cdn/nzy043/5046114. (NOTE: This article can be found on page 4 of the PDF which can be accessed from the top of the page under the published date; or read the excerpt linked in the title above.)

Enduring Benefits of Prenatal Choline Supplementation in 7-y-Olds: Enhanced Attention Task Performance (OR11-01) 
Charlotte L. Bahnfleth, Bailey Drewes, Julie E.H. Nevins, Marie A. Caudill, Richard L. Canfield, and Barbara J. Strupp 
Neurobiology, Current Developments in Nutrition, Volume 2, Issue 11, November 2018, nzy043, https://doi.org/10.1093/cdn/nzy043. (NOTE: This article can be found on page 4 of the PDF which can be accessed from the top of the page under the published date; or read the excerpt linked in the title above.)

Maternal choline supplementation during the third trimester of pregnancy improves infant information processing speed: a randomized, double-blind, controlled feeding study (N-O-026) 
Richard L. Canfield, Marie A. Caudill, Barbara J. Strupp, Laura Muscalu, Julie E.H. Nevins  
51^st ESPGHAN Annual Meeting, Journal of Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition, Volume 66, Issue Supplement 1, April 2018. (NOTE: This article can be found on page 901 of the document or use Ctrl F to search Strupp or Canfield; or read the excerpt linked in the title above.)

Charlotte Bahnfleth. (2019). The effect of maternal choline intake on child attention and memory: A seven-year follow-up [Masters]. Cornell University." https://ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1813/67243

Bailey Drewes. (2017). Maternal third-trimester choline supplementation, fetal NR3C1 methylation, and behavior problems at age 7 [Masters]. Cornell University." https://ecommons.cornell.edu/handle/1813/59089

Choline during pregnancy impacts children’s sustained attention 

“Our findings suggest population-wide benefits of adding choline to a standard prenatal vitamin regimen,” said Barbara Strupp, professor in the Division of Nutritional Sciences (DNS) and Department of Psychology, and co-senior author of the study, “Prenatal Choline Supplementation Improves Child Sustained Attention: A Seven-Year Follow-Up of a Randomized Controlled Feeding Trial,” published Dec. 28 in the Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology” 

CU study: Lead levels even well below U.S. standard may affect brain function in children 

“Even after taking into consideration family and environmental factors known to affect a child's cognitive performance, blood lead played a significant role in predicting nonverbal IQ scores," said Richard Canfield, a senior researcher in Cornell's Division of Nutritional Sciences and senior author of the study in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives. "We found that the average IQ scores of children with BLLs of only 5 to 10 mcg/dl were about 5 points lower than the IQ scores of children with BLLs less than 5 mcg/dl. This indicates an adverse effect on children who have a BLL substantially below the CDC standard, suggesting the need for more stringent regulations," he said“ 

More choline for mom decreases Down syndrome effects 

“’Mounting evidence suggests that many women may not be consuming enough choline during pregnancy to promote optimal brain development and cognitive functioning of their babies – both normal and Down syndrome. Increasing choline intake during pregnancy is sound nutritional advice for all women and may offer an even more pronounced benefit for Down syndrome offspring,’ Strupp said.”

Study: Choline Can Boost Baby's Brain Health—If You're Getting Enough 

“The researchers believe both studies prove that the recommended amount of choline for pregnancy needs to be higher than it currently is for fetal brain development. “Current recommendations for pregnant women were set in 1998 and are based on the amount of choline needed to prevent liver dysfunction in men, not on the more relevant outcome of offspring neurocognitive development,” Richard Canfield, the study’s co-senior author and a senior research associate in the Division of Nutritional Sciences (DNS), said in a press release. “By showing that the beneficial effects of prenatal supplementation endure into childhood, these findings illustrate a role for prenatal choline in programming the course of child cognitive development.”

Researchers Call Off Controversial Autism Study 

“Several scientists praised the decision, including the lead author of the rat study, which found lingering problems in animals that did not have elevated lead levels.

“I think they’re making the right decision not to go forward with the study,” said Barbara Strupp, a professor of psychology and nutritional sciences at Cornell University. 

“Our data raise concerns about administering (the chelation compound) to children who do not have elevated levels of heavy metals,” Strupp said”