Persistent open chromatin state in early-life stress-activated cells of the VTA.

ABSTRACT: Early-life stress sensitizes individuals to subsequent stressors to increase lifetime risk for psychiatric disorders. Within the ventral tegmental area (VTA), a mesolimbic brain region implicated in stress response and mental health, early-life stress causes long-lasting changes in gene expression and chromatin modifications that in turn cause latent physiological and behavioral sensitivity to stress. These molecular consequences of early-life stress are indicative of epigenetic priming, a form of molecular memory in which developmental or environmental cues open chromatin at enhancers to facilitate transcriptional response to stimuli. However, the long term impact of early-life stress on chromatin architecture in the VTA was not yet known. Using a combination of activity-dependent cellula

SUBMITTER: Rashford RL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12528658 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature