The relationship of childhood trauma and DNA methylation of NMDA receptor genes in first-episode schizophrenia.

We investigated and DNA methylation in first-episode schizophrenia patients, their nonaffected siblings and age- and sex-matched controls testing for associations between DNA methylation and exposition to childhood trauma. The Childhood Trauma Questionnaire evaluated the history of childhood trauma. Genomic DNA was bisulfite converted and pyrosequencing was employed to quantify DNA methylation. and DNA methylation was not associated with childhood trauma in patients, siblings and controls. Siblings with childhood trauma had hypermethylation at CpG1 of compared with siblings without trauma. Childhood trauma may influence methylation in subjects with liability to psychosis, but not in frank schizophrenia or controls.