The relationship of the early life social-emotional environment on childhood BDNF methylation and adrenarche
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Date
2024-12
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The Ohio State University
Abstract
Adrenarche is hypothesized to provide protection to a rapidly developing brain during this time (6-8 years of age), through increased production of DHEA/S, which has antioxidant properties and supports brain energetics. Brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) proteins are critical for neurodevelopment and are encoded by the BDNF gene. As such, BDNF gene expression should covary with the timing of adrenarche. Previous research indicates that early life stress and social-emotional environments might affect maturational timing, though few studies have explored adrenarche timing. This analysis tested three hypotheses: 1) more distant and reserved maternal-infant interaction quality is associated with BDNF methylation at 7 years of age, 2) more distant and reserved maternal-infant interaction quality is associated with premature adrenarche, and 3) variation in BDNF methylation at 7 years of age is associated with premature adrenarche. A secondary data analysis of the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children (ALSPAC) compared differences in the methylation of 77 BDNF CpG sites from birth to 7.5 years of age (n=927), the association of BDNF methylation with DHEA-S concentrations at 8.5 years of age (n=162), the association of BDNF methylation with observed maternal-infant interaction quality (n=109), and the association of DHEA-S and observed maternal-infant interaction quality (n=70). Multiple linear regressions showed only significant associations between the first principal component score of BDNF methylation at birth and 7 years of age (p<.05). Sensitivity analysis in a correlation matrix showed one significant association between site cg04106006 at age 7 with premature adrenarche (DHEAS > 50 µg/dL) (p<.05). These results indicate that the prenatal period may be more influential on BDNF methylation than postnatal stress. They may also point to a discordance between brain methylation patterns and timing of adrenarche suggesting some individuals may not experience the protective effects of adrenarche during childhood brain development.
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Keywords
Medical anthropology, Methylation, Adrenarche, Stress