Environment-induced epigenetic reprogramming in genomic regulatory elements in smoking mothers and their children.

ABSTRACT: Epigenetic mechanisms have emerged as links between prenatal environmental exposure and disease risk later in life. Here, we studied epigenetic changes associated with maternal smoking at base pair resolution by mapping DNA methylation, histone modifications, and transcription in expectant mothers and their newborn children. We found extensive global differential methylation and carefully evaluated these changes to separate environment associated from genotype-related DNA methylation changes. Differential methylation is enriched in enhancer elements and targets in particular "commuting" enhancers having multiple, regulatory interactions with distal genes. Longitudinal whole-genome bisulfite sequencing revealed that DNA methylation changes associated with maternal smoking persist over years

SUBMITTER: Bauer T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4812527 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature