ArticleInternational journal of epidemiology2015
Exposure to aflatoxin B1 in utero is associated with DNA methylation in white blood cells of infants in The Gambia.
Article in International journal of epidemiology, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 45 papers, 3 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
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Who cites it
45 citing papers in PubMed, 3 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 97 citations in OpenAlex.
- 'Omics in environmental epidemiological studies of chemical exposures: A systematic evidence map.Environment international · 2022Pooled it
- Human Biomonitoring of Mycotoxins in Blood, Plasma and Serum in Recent Years: A Review.Toxins · 2020Pooled it
- Epigenetic alterations induced by genotoxic occupational and environmental human chemical carcinogens: A systematic literature review.Mutation research. Reviews in mutation researchPooled it
- Review
- Aflatoxin exposure and health impacts: global burden and advances in detection technologies.Genes and environment : the official journal of the Japanese Environmental Mutagen Society · 2026Review
- Genomic Impacts of Biological Exposures.Journal of developmental biology · 2026Review
- The Difficulties in Demonstrating That Aflatoxin Reduction Improves Stunting in Developing World Regions.Toxins · 2026Review
- Aflatoxin B1 induces subtle but coordinated histone modifications in Epstein-Barr virus infected and non-infected Burkitt lymphoma cells.Environment international · 2025Article
- Aflatoxin Exposure in Immunocompromised Patients: Current State and Future Perspectives.Toxins · 2025Review
- Effects of aflatoxin and fumonisin on gene expression of growth factors and inflammation-related genes in a human hepatocyte cell line.Mutagenesis · 2024Article
- Aflatoxin B1 and Epstein-Barr virus-induced CCL22 expression stimulates B cell infection.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2024Article
- Article
- A Novel Multicellular Placental Barrier Model to Investigate the Effect of Maternal Aflatoxin BToxins · 2023Article
- Effect of MAOA DNA Methylation on Human in Vivo Protein Expression Measured by [11C]harmine Positron Emission Tomography.The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology · 2023Article
- The influence of early environment and micronutrient availability on developmental epigenetic programming: lessons from the placenta.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2023Review
- Analytical Validation of a Direct Competitive ELISA for Multiple Mycotoxin Detection in Human Serum.Toxins · 2022Article
- Article
- Article
- Effects of Prenatal Exposure to Aflatoxin B1: A Review.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2021Review
- Aflatoxin Exposure during Early Life Is Associated with Differential DNA Methylation in Two-Year-Old Gambian Children.International journal of molecular sciences · 2021Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
14 authors at 5 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundExposure to environmental toxins during embryonic development may lead to epigenetic changes that influence disease risk in later life. Aflatoxin is a contaminant of staple foods in sub-Saharan Africa, is a known human liver carcinogen and has been associated with stunting in infants.
methodsWe have measured aflatoxin exposure in 115 pregnant women in The Gambia and examined the DNA methylation status of white blood cells from their infants at 2-8 months old (mean 3.6 ± 0.9). Aflatoxin exposure in women was assessed using an ELISA method to measure aflatoxin albumin (AF-alb) adducts in plasma taken at 1-16 weeks of pregnancy. Genome-wide DNA methylation of infant white blood cells was measured using the Illumina Infinium HumanMethylation450beadchip.
resultsAF-alb levels ranged from 3.9 to 458.4 pg/mg albumin. We found that aflatoxin exposure in the mothers was associated to DNA methylation in their infants for 71 CpG sites (false discovery rate < 0.05), with an average effect size of 1.7% change in methylation. Aflatoxin-associated differential methylation was observed in growth factor genes such as FGF12 and IGF1, and immune-related genes such as CCL28, TLR2 and TGFBI. Moreover, one aflatoxin-associated methylation region (corresponding to the miR-4520b locus) was identified.
conclusionsThis study shows that maternal exposure to aflatoxin during the early stages of pregnancy is associated with differential DNA methylation patterns of infants, including in genes related to growth and immune function. This reinforces the need for interventions to reduce aflatoxin exposure, especially during critical periods of fetal and infant development.
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