Postnatal stability, tissue, and time specific effects of AHRR methylation change in response to maternal smoking in pregnancy.

ABSTRACT: The intrauterine environment has the potential to "program" the developing fetus in a way that can be potentially deleterious to later health. While in utero environmental/stochastic factors are known to influence DNA methylation profile at birth, it has been difficult to assign specific examples of epigenetic variation to specific environmental exposures. Recently, several studies have linked exposure to smoking with DNA methylation change in the aryl hydrocarbon receptor repressor (AHRR) gene in blood. This includes hypomethylation of AHRR in neonatal blood in response to maternal smoking in pregnancy. The role of AHRR as a negative regulator of pathways involved in pleiotropic responses to environmental contaminants raises the possibility that smoking-induced hypomethylation is an adapt

SUBMITTER: Novakovic B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4053456 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature