Prenatal environmental factors shaped by maternal age and nutrition can affect the likelihood of genomic imprinting in humans, a study finds. Genomic imprinting is a developmental process that can restrict gene expression to a single allele inherited from only one parent. This process is often mediated by an epigenetic mark called DNA methylation, a chemical modification that silences gene transcription. To assess the effect of the prenatal environment on genomic imprinting, Peter Jones and colleagues reanalyzed results from a previous epigenome-wide association study (EWAS) that examined DNA methylation in 114 Gambian children. The differentially methylated region (DMR) of the nc886 gene was imprinted in 78% of children conceived during the nutritionally poor dry season and 93% of children conceived during the nutritionally rich rainy season. Using data from another EWAS study, the authors analyzed DNA methylation of the nc886 DMR in children born to 855 mothers of various ages. Imprinting was present in 47% of children born to mothers younger than 20 years old and 75% of children born to older mothers. According to the authors, the findings highlight a potential mechanism for transmitting epigenetic information from mother to child. In addition, the results suggest that future EWAS studies may need to consider the role of imprinting in human development.
Article #18-15005: "Mother-child transmission of epigenetic information by tunable polymorphic imprinting," by Brittany Carpenter et al.
MEDIA CONTACT: Peter Jones, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI; tel: 818-665-0047; e-mail: peter.jones@vai.org
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Journal
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences