SynthesisTranslational psychiatry2019
What do DNA methylation studies tell us about depression? A systematic review.
Synthesis in Translational psychiatry, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 70 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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
70 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 128 citations in OpenAlex.
- A systematic review of methylome-wide associations with anxiety disorders.Translational psychiatry · 2026Pooled it
- Decoding depression: a comprehensive multi-cohort exploration of blood DNA methylation using machine learning and deep learning approaches.Translational psychiatry · 2024Pooled it
- The Relationship between DNA Methylation and Antidepressant Medications: A Systematic Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2020Pooled it
- Stress During Pregnancy and Epigenetic Modifications to Offspring DNA: A Systematic Review of Associations and Implications for Preterm Birth.The Journal of perinatal & neonatal nursingPooled it
- Early life experiences, the neural epigenome and affective disorder risk.Nature reviews. Neuroscience · 2026Review
- Investigating PeripheralBiomolecules · 2026Article
- Longitudinal associations of DNA-methylation of OXT, SLC6A4 and NR3C1 genes with the treatment response in patients with depression.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Premature aging in serious mental illness.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026Review
- DNA methylation in bipolar disorder: mechanistic insights and translational challenges.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Epigenetic Mechanisms of Suicidal Behavior Formation: A Review.Medical journal of the Islamic Republic of Iran · 2026Review
- Major depressive disorder and anti-depressant therapy markedly alters the human follicular niche DNA methylome.Reproduction (Cambridge, England) · 2025Article
- Epigenetic Clocks Identify Harmful Epigenetic Aging Linked to Depression Severity and Cognitive Deficits in Major Depressive Disorder.Aging and disease · 2025Article
- Remodeling the Epigenome Through Meditation: Effects on Brain, Body, and Well-being.Sub-cellular biochemistry · 2025Review
- Intricate mechanism of anxiety disorder, recognizing the potential role of gut microbiota and therapeutic interventions.Metabolic brain disease · 2024Review
- Review
- Transcriptomic decoding of regional cortical vulnerability to major depressive disorder.Communications biology · 2024Article
- Epigenome-Wide Association Study of Depressive Symptoms in Black Women in the InterGEN Study.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Article
- Review
- Multi-omics integration identifies regulatory factors underlying bovine subclinical mastitis.Journal of animal science and biotechnology · 2024Article
- Translational bioinformatics and data science for biomarker discovery in mental health: an analytical review.Briefings in bioinformatics · 2024Review
10 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
6 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
There has been a limited number of systematic reviews conducted to summarize the overview of the relationship between DNA methylation and depression, and to critically appraise the roles of major study characteristics in the accuracy of study findings. This systematic review aims to critically appraise the impact of study characteristics on the association between DNA methylation and depression, and summarize the overview of this association. Electronic databases and gray literatures until December 2017 were searched for English-language studies with standard diagnostic criteria of depression. A total of 67 studies were included in this review along with a summary of their study characteristics. We grouped the findings into etiological and treatment studies. Majority of these selected studies were recently published and from developed countries. Whole blood samples were the most studied common tissues. Bisulfite conversion, along with pyrosequencing, was widely used to test the DNA methylation level across all the studies. High heterogeneity existed among the studies in terms of experimental and statistical methodologies and study designs. As recommended by the Cochrane guideline, a systematic review without meta-analysis should be undertaken. This review has, in general, found that DNA methylation modifications were associated with depression. Subgroup analyses showed that most studies found BDNF and SLC6A4 hypermethylations to be associated with MDD or depression in general. In contrast, studies on NR3C1, OXTR, and other genes, which were tested by only few studies, reported mixed findings. More longitudinal studies using standardized experimental and laboratory methodologies are needed in future studies to enable more systematical comparisons and quantitative synthesis.
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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.