Dynamic DNA methylation changes in the maternal oxytocin gene locus (OXT) during pregnancy predict postpartum maternal intrusiveness.

ABSTRACT: Maternal behavior (MB) is observable across mammals and represents an important feature of environmental variation during early postnatal development. Oxytocin (OT) plays a crucial role in MB. Even prior to childbirth, pregnancy induces epigenetic and other downstream changes in the maternal OT-system, likely mediated by the actions of steroid hormones. However, little is known about the nature and consequences of epigenetic modifications in the maternal OT-encoding gene (OXT) during pregnancy. Our study aims to investigate temporal dynamics of OXT promoter DNA methylation (DNAm) throughout pregnancy in predicting MB in humans. In 107 mother-child dyads, maternal OXT DNAm was serially analyzed in whole blood in early, mid and late pregnancy. MB was coded based on standardized mother-child interactions at six months postpartum. After controlling for cellular heterogeneity, race/ethnicity, age, and socioeconomic status, OXT-promoter DNAm exhibited a dynamic profile during pregnancy (b?=?0.026, t=-3.37, p?

SUBMITTER: Toepfer P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6554513 | biostudies-literature | 2019 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature