THE first gene that influences human intelligence has been found by scientists, a discovery with huge social and educational implications.

The research could herald the development of genetic tests to target potential high-flyers, pave the way to IQ-boosting "smart drugs" and will raise fears that embryos that lack smart genes could be aborted. The gene, believed to the first of many that contribute to normal intelligence, has been found after a six-year search by a team headed by Prof Robert Plomin of the Institute of Psychiatry in London.

. . . . Neuroscientists will now study how this gene works to affect the functioning of the brain, ending years of argument over whether genes can affect intelligence. "It is harder to argue with a piece of DNA."

Prof Plomin, Dr Thalia Eley and colleagues analysed genetic material from blood donated from several groups to find a genetic marker linked to general intelligence. They used new molecular genetic techniques to compare the genes of children of different abilities: two groups of average ability, and children of "super-high ability" who attended a summer school designed for them by Iowa State University.

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The team sought genetic markers that differed between the control children and the smart children, focusing on chromosome six. They found a link between intelligence and a gene called IGF2R on the long arm of the chromosome. . . . .

The find marks the first piece of the puzzle of how genetics contributes to human intellect, compared with influences such as education and upbringing. . . . . "Should we invest in people who have more potential, or should we compensate those who have possibly less genetic potential?"

However, Dr David King, editor of GenEthics News, who has campaigned against Prof Plomin's research, said the discovery would harden the public belief in genetic determinism, that everything we are is determined by genes. As a Jew, he was "horrified" by the eugenic implications, for instance, in the screening of unborn children.