Intake of mother's milk by very-low-birth-weight infants and variation in DNA methylation of genes involved in neurodevelopment at 5.5 years of age.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Mechanisms responsible for associations between intake of mother's milk in very-low-birth-weight (VLBW, <1500 g) infants and later neurodevelopment are poorly understood. It is proposed that early nutrition may affect neurodevelopmental pathways by altering gene expression through epigenetic modification. Variation in DNA methylation (DNAm) at cytosine-guanine dinucleotides (CpGs) is a commonly studied epigenetic modification.

Objectives

We aimed to assess whether early mother's milk intake by VLBW infants is associated with variations in DNAm at 5.5 y, and whether these variations correlate with neurodevelopmental phenotypes.

Methods

This cohort study was a 5.5-y follow-up (2016-2018) of VLBW infants born in Ontario, Canada who participated in the Donor Mi

SUBMITTER: Xu J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9535521 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature