University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Dev Psychobiol. 2021 Jul;63(5):973-984. doi: 10.1002/dev.22103. Epub 2021 Feb 11.
Prenatal maternal distress predicts altered offspring immune outcomes, potentially via altered epigenetics. The role of different kinds of prenatal maternal distress on DNA methylation profiles is not understood.
A sample of 117 women (APrON cohort) were followed from pregnancy to the postpartum period. Maternal distress (depressive symptoms, pregnancy-specific anxiety, stressful life events) were assessed mid-pregnancy, late-pregnancy, and 3-months postpartum. DNA methylation profiles were obtained from 3-month-old blood samples. Principal component analysis identified two epigenetic components, characterized as Immune Signaling and DNA Transcription through gene network analysis. Covariates were maternal demographics, pre-pregnancy body mass index, child sex, birth gestational age, and postpartum maternal distress. Penalized regression (LASSO) models were used.
Late-pregnancy stressful life events, b = 0.006, early-pregnancy depressive symptoms, b = 0.027, late-pregnancy depressive symptoms, b = 0.014, and pregnancy-specific anxiety during late pregnancy, b = -0.631, were predictive of the Immune Signaling component, suggesting that these aspects of maternal distress could affect methylation in offspring immune signaling pathways. Only early-pregnancy depressive symptoms was predictive of the DNA Transcription component, b = -0.0004, suggesting that this aspect of maternal distress is implicated in methylation of offspring DNA transcription pathways.
Exposure timing and kind of prenatal maternal distress could matter in the prediction of infant immune epigenetic profiles.
产前母体焦虑会预测后代的免疫结果发生改变，这可能是通过改变表观遗传学实现的。不同种类的产前母体焦虑对 DNA 甲基化图谱的影响尚不清楚。
一项包含 117 名女性的样本（APrON 队列），从孕期一直随访到产后。在妊娠中期、妊娠晚期和产后 3 个月评估母体焦虑（抑郁症状、孕期特定焦虑、生活应激事件）。从 3 个月大的血液样本中获取 DNA 甲基化图谱。通过基因网络分析，主成分分析确定了两个表观遗传成分，分别为免疫信号和 DNA 转录。协变量为产妇人口统计学特征、孕前体重指数、孩子性别、出生胎龄和产后母体焦虑。采用惩罚回归（LASSO）模型。
妊娠晚期生活应激事件，b=0.006，妊娠早期抑郁症状，b=0.027，妊娠晚期抑郁症状，b=0.014，妊娠晚期特定焦虑，b=-0.631，与免疫信号成分相关，表明母体焦虑的这些方面可能影响后代免疫信号通路的甲基化。只有妊娠早期抑郁症状与 DNA 转录成分相关，b=-0.0004，表明母体焦虑的这一方面与后代 DNA 转录途径的甲基化有关。
产前母体焦虑的暴露时间和种类可能会影响婴儿免疫表观遗传图谱的预测。
