ArticleEpigenetics2015
Differential DNA methylation in umbilical cord blood of infants exposed to mercury and arsenic in utero.
Article in Epigenetics, 2015. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 66 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
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
66 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 130 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prenatal Exposure to Potentially Toxic Metals and Their Effects on Genetic Material in Offspring: a Systematic Review.Biological trace element research · 2023Pooled it
- DNA methylation changes associated with prenatal mercury exposure: A meta-analysis of prospective cohort studies from PACE consortium.Environmental research · 2022Pooled it
- A meta-analysis of two high-risk prospective cohort studies reveals autism-specific transcriptional changes to chromatin, autoimmune, and environmental response genes in umbilical cord blood.Molecular autism · 2019Pooled it
- Environmental Epigenetic Changes, as Risk Factors for the Development of Diseases in Children: A Systematic Review.Annals of global health · 2018Pooled it
- Zebrafish parental co-exposure to environmentally relevant levels of inorganic arsenic + methylmercury impacts neurobehavior in parents and progeny.Environmental toxicology and pharmacology · 2026Article
- The fetal exposome: cellular and epigenetic programming of neonatal immune function.Frontiers in immunology · 2026Review
- Epigenetic reprogramming by air pollution: linking prenatal exposures to birth outcomes.Molecular and cellular biochemistry · 2025Review
- Synergic effect of arsenic exposure related methylation changes in three cohorts exposed to levels of this toxicant.International archives of occupational and environmental health · 2025Article
- Newborn mitochondrial DNA copy number is associated with changes to DNA methylation that persist into childhood and are associated with cognitive development.Clinical epigenetics · 2025Article
- Relationships of the serum levels of toxic trace elements in pregnant women versus exposure to second-hand smoke.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Combined effects of global DNA methylation, blood lead and total urinary arsenic levels on developmental delay in preschool children.Environmental health : a global access science source · 2025Article
- Placental and immune cell DNA methylation reference panel for bulk tissue cell composition estimation in epidemiological studies.Epigenetics · 2024Article
- Review
- DNA methylation is associated with hair trace elements in female adolescents from two vulnerable populations in the Colombian Caribbean.Environmental epigenetics · 2024Article
- Arsenic in brown rice: do the benefits outweigh the risks?Frontiers in nutrition · 2023Review
- Consensus on the Key Characteristics of Immunotoxic Agents as a Basis for Hazard Identification.Environmental health perspectives · 2022Article
- Epigenetics at the Intersection of COVID-19 Risk and Environmental Chemical Exposures.Current environmental health reports · 2022Review
- Arsenic Exposure, Blood DNA Methylation, and Cardiovascular Disease.Circulation research · 2022Article
- Analysis of essential, toxic, rare earth, and noble elements in maternal and umbilical cord blood.Environmental science and pollution research international · 2022Article
- Maternal blood metal concentrations and whole blood DNA methylation during pregnancy in the Early Autism Risk Longitudinal Investigation (EARLI).Epigenetics · 2022Article
6 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Mercury and arsenic are known developmental toxicants. Prenatal exposures are associated with adverse childhood health outcomes that could be in part mediated by epigenetic alterations that may also contribute to altered immune profiles. In this study, we examined the association between prenatal mercury exposure on both DNA methylation and white blood cell composition of cord blood, and evaluated the interaction with prenatal arsenic exposure. A total of 138 mother-infant pairs with postpartum maternal toenail mercury, prenatal urinary arsenic concentrations, and newborn cord blood were assessed using the Illumina Infinium Methylation450 array. White blood cell composition was inferred from DNA methylation measurements. A doubling in toenail mercury concentration was associated with a 2.5% decrease (95% CI: 5.0%, 1.0%) in the estimated monocyte proportion. An increase of 3.5% (95% CI: 1.0, 7.0) in B-cell proportion was observed for females only. Among the top 100 CpGs associated with toenail mercury levels (ranked on P-value), there was a significant enrichment of loci located in North shore regions of CpG islands (P = 0.049), and the majority of these loci were hypermethylated (85%). Among the top 100 CpGs for the interaction between arsenic and mercury, there was a greater than expected proportion of loci located in CpG islands (P = 0.045) and in South shore regions (P = 0.009) and all of these loci were hypermethylated. This work supports the hypothesis that mercury may be contributing to epigenetic variability and immune cell proportion changes, and suggests that in utero exposure to mercury and arsenic, even at low levels, may interact to impact the epigenome.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.