Genome-wide association studies identify 137 genetic loci for DNA methylation biomarkers of aging
Abstract Background Biological aging estimators derived from DNA methylation data are heritable and correlate with morbidity and mortality. Consequently, identification of genetic and environmental contributors to the variation in these measures in populations has become a major goal in the field. Results Leveraging DNA methylation and SNP data from more than 40,000 individuals, we identify 137 genome-wide significant loci, of which 113 are novel, from genome-wide association study (GWAS) meta-analyses of four epigenetic clocks and epigenetic surrogate markers for granulocyte proportions and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1 levels, respectively. We find evidence for shared genetic loci ass…
Maternal and fetal genetic effects on birth weight and their relevance to cardio-metabolic risk factors
AbstractBirth weight (BW) variation is influenced by fetal and maternal genetic and non-genetic factors, and has been reproducibly associated with future cardio-metabolic health outcomes. These associations have been proposed to reflect the lifelong consequences of an adverse intrauterine environment. In earlier work, we demonstrated that much of the negative correlation between BW and adult cardio-metabolic traits could instead be attributable to shared genetic effects. However, that work and other previous studies did not systematically distinguish the direct effects of an individual’s own genotype on BW and subsequent disease risk from indirect effects of their mother’s correlated genoty…
Association of maternal prenatal smoking GFI1-locus and cardio-metabolic phenotypes in 18,212 adults
Background: DNA methylation at the GFI1-locus has been repeatedly associated with exposure to smoking from the foetal period onwards. We explored whether DNA methylation may be a mechanism that links exposure to maternal prenatal smoking with offspring's adult cardio-metabolic health.Methods: We meta-analysed the association between DNA methylation at GFI1-locus with maternal prenatal smoking, adult own smoking, and cardio-metabolic phenotypes in 22 population-based studies from Europe, Australia, and USA (n= 18,212). DNA methylation at the GFI1-locus was measured in whole-blood. Multivariable regression models were fitted to examine its association with exposure to prenatal and own adult s…
Association between DNA methylation and ADHD symptoms from birth to school age: a prospective meta-analysis
Funder: Gouvernement du Canada | Canadian Institutes of Health Research (Instituts de Recherche en Santé du Canada); doi: https://doi.org/10.13039/501100000024
DNA methylation links prenatal smoking exposure to later life health outcomes in offspring
Background Maternal smoking during pregnancy is associated with adverse offspring health outcomes across their life course. We hypothesize that DNA methylation is a potential mediator of this relationship. Methods We examined the association of prenatal maternal smoking with offspring blood DNA methylation in 2821 individuals (age 16 to 48 years) from five prospective birth cohort studies and perform Mendelian randomization and mediation analyses to assess whether methylation markers have causal effects on disease outcomes in the offspring. Results We identify 69 differentially methylated CpGs in 36 genomic regions (P value < 1 × 10−7) associated with exposure to maternal smoking in adolesc…
DNA methylation changes associated with prenatal mercury exposure:A meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies from PACE consortium
Mercury (Hg) is a ubiquitous heavy metal that originates from both natural and anthropogenic sources and is transformed in the environment to its most toxicant form, methylmercury (MeHg). Recent studies suggest that MeHg exposure can alter epigenetic modifications during embryogenesis. In this study, we examined associations between prenatal MeHg exposure and levels of cord blood DNA methylation (DNAm) by meta-analysis in up to seven independent studies (n = 1462) as well as persistence of those relationships in blood from 7 to 8 year-old children (n = 794). In cord blood, we found limited evidence of differential DNAm at cg24184221 in MED31 (β = 2.28 × 10-4, p-value = 5.87 × 10-5) in relat…