ArticleEnvironmental epigenetics2018
The public reception of putative epigenetic mechanisms in the transgenerational effects of trauma.
Article in Environmental epigenetics, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 14 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
14 citing papers in PubMed, 43 citations in OpenAlex.
- The Contextual Resonance Theory of Psychopathology: A Cognitive-Systemic Framework for Transgenerational Trauma, Distributed Pathology, and Corrective Recontextualization.Behavioral sciences (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Epigenetic mechanisms in maternal-fetal crosstalk: inter- and trans-generational inheritance.Epigenomics · 2025Review
- Epigenetic modifications and transgenerational inheritance in women victims of violence (EWVV).Environmental epigenetics · 2025Review
- Attachment and the (mis)apprehension of Aboriginal children: epistemic violence in child welfare interventions.Psychiatry, psychology, and law : an interdisciplinary journal of the Australian and New Zealand Association of Psychiatry, Psychology and Law · 2025Article
- Epigenetics of Trauma Transmission and Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder: What Does the Evidence Support?International journal of environmental research and public health · 2023Review
- Birth-related PTSD symptoms and related factors following preterm childbirth in Turkey.Current psychology (New Brunswick, N.J.) · 2022Article
- An epigenetic, transgenerational model of increased mental health disorders in children, adolescents and young adults.European journal of human genetics : EJHG · 2021Review
- Evidence for germline non-genetic inheritance of human phenotypes and diseases.Clinical epigenetics · 2020Review
- Resilience: Safety in the Aftermath of Traumatic Stressor Experiences.Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience · 2020Review
- Air pollution-induced placental alterations: an interplay of oxidative stress, epigenetics, and the aging phenotype?Clinical epigenetics · 2019Review
- Maternal rotating night shift work before pregnancy and offspring stress markers.Physiology & behavior · 2019Article
- Intergenerational Effects of Alcohol: A Review of Paternal Preconception Ethanol Exposure Studies and Epigenetic Mechanisms in the Male Germline.Alcoholism, clinical and experimental research · 2019Review
- Epigeneti-What? Approaches on Translating Research for Primary Breast Cancer Prevention.Frontiers in oncology · 2019Article
- Intergenerational transmission of trauma effects: putative role of epigenetic mechanisms.World psychiatry : official journal of the World Psychiatric Association (WPA) · 2018Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
There has been great interest in the possibility that effects of trauma might be passed from parent to offspring through epigenetic mechanisms. This topic has stimulated discussion and controversy in the scientific literature, the popular press, and culture at large. This article describes the initial observations that have led to recent examinations of epigenetic mechanisms in association with effects of parental trauma exposure on offspring. Epigenetic research in animals has provided models for how such effects might be transmitted. However, the attribution of any specific epigenetic mechanisms in human studies of offspring of trauma survivors is premature at this time. The article describes some of the ways in which initial epigenetic findings in the offspring of trauma survivors have been represented in the popular media. Reports have ranged from overly simplistic and sensationalistic claims to global dismissals. The authors discuss the importance of clarity in language when describing epigenetic findings for lay audiences, the need to emphasize the limitations as well as the promise of research on intergenerational transmission of trauma effects, and the importance of countering popular interpretations that imply a reductionist biological determinism. Scientists have an obligation to assist in translating important research findings and nascent avenues of research to the public. It is important to recognize the ways in which this research may unintentionally be received as supporting a narrative of permanent and significant damage in offspring, rather than contributing to discussions of potential resilience, adaptability, and mutability in biological systems affected by stress.
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What OpenQuestion holds
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.