BNDF methylation in mothers and newborns is associated with maternal exposure to war trauma
The gene codes for brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a growth factor involved in neural development, cell differentiation, and synaptic plasticity. Present in both the brain and periphery, BDNF plays critical roles throughout the body and is essential for placental and fetal development. Rodent stu...
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Published in | Clinical epigenetics Vol. 9; no. 1; pp. 68 - 12 |
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Main Authors | , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Germany
BioMed Central Ltd
30.06.2017
BioMed Central BMC |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
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Summary: | The
gene codes for brain-derived neurotrophic factor, a growth factor involved in neural development, cell differentiation, and synaptic plasticity. Present in both the brain and periphery, BDNF plays critical roles throughout the body and is essential for placental and fetal development. Rodent studies show that early life stress, including prenatal stress, broadly alters
methylation, with presumed changes in gene expression. No studies have assessed prenatal exposure to maternal traumatic stress and
methylation in humans. This study examined associations of prenatal exposure to maternal stress and
methylation at CpG sites across the
gene.
Among 24 mothers and newborns in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a region with extreme conflict and violence to women, maternal experiences of war trauma and chronic stress were associated with
methylation in umbilical cord blood, placental tissue, and maternal venous blood. Associations of maternal stress and
methylation showed high tissue specificity. The majority of significant associations were observed in putative transcription factor binding regions.
This is the first study in humans to examine
methylation in relation to prenatal exposure to maternal stress in three tissues simultaneously and the first in any mammalian species to report associations of prenatal stress and
methylation in placental tissue. The findings add to the growing body of evidence highlighting the importance of considering epigenetic effects when examining the impacts of trauma and stress, not only for adults but also for offspring exposed via effects transmitted before birth. |
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ISSN: | 1868-7075 1868-7083 1868-7083 1868-7075 |
DOI: | 10.1186/s13148-017-0367-x |