ReviewNature reviews. Endocrinology2020
Unravelling the role of epigenetics in reproductive adaptations to early-life environment.
Review in Nature reviews. Endocrinology, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 29 papers.
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
29 citing papers in PubMed, 54 citations in OpenAlex.
- Early in, early out: reproductive lifespan timing and cardiometabolic risk in women.Journal of endocrinological investigation · 2026Review
- Timing of adverse childhood experiences shapes epigenetic ageing and life-history outcomes.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Mechanistic understanding of female reproductive aging based on the chicken model.Journal of animal science and biotechnology · 2026Review
- Temporal External Validation of a Customized Fetal Body Mass Index Percentile Model for Neonatal Nutritional Status Assessment.Diagnostics (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Epigenetic horizons in aquaculture: unlocking sustainable fish production.Fish physiology and biochemistry · 2025Review
- Regulatory Roles of MicroRNAs in Female and Male Human Reproduction: A Narrative Review.Iranian journal of medical sciences · 2025Review
- Toward understanding sexual immune dimorphism in humans.Frontiers in immunology · 2025Review
- Genetics of female and male reproductive traits and their relationship with health, longevity and consequences for offspring.Nature aging · 2024Review
- ALKBH5 Reduces BMP15 mRNA Stability and Regulates Bovine Puberty Initiation Through an m6A-Dependent Pathway.International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Article
- Cord blood ceramides facilitate early risk identification into childhood metabolic health.National science review · 2024Article
- The Heterogeneity of Post-Menopausal Disease Risk: Could the Basis for Why Only Subsets of Females Are Affected Be Due to a Reversible Epigenetic Modification System Associated with Puberty, Menstrual Cycles, Pregnancy and Lactation, and, Ultimately, Menopause?International journal of molecular sciences · 2024Review
- Childhood environment influences epigenetic age and methylation concordance of a CpG clock locus in British-Bangladeshi migrants.Epigenetics · 2023Article
- Increased paternal corticosterone exposure influences offspring behaviour and expression of urinary pheromones.BMC biology · 2023Article
- Article
- Maternal voluntary wheel running modulates glucose homeostasis, the gut microbiota and its derived fecal metabolites in offspring.Clinical science (London, England : 1979) · 2023Article
- Maternal attachment insecurity, maltreatment history, and depressive symptoms are associated with broad DNA methylation signatures in infants.Molecular psychiatry · 2022Article
- Early programming of reproductive health and fertility: novel neuroendocrine mechanisms and implications in reproductive medicine.Human reproduction update · 2022Review
- Sex Differences in Biological Systems and the Conundrum of Menopause: Potential Commonalities in Post-Menopausal Disease Mechanisms.International journal of molecular sciences · 2022Review
- Epigenetic regulation of 5α reductase-1 underlies adaptive plasticity of reproductive function and pubertal timing.BMC biology · 2022Article
- Genetic, epigenetic and enviromental influencing factors on the regulation of precocious and delayed puberty.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2022Review
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
Reproductive function adjusts in response to environmental conditions in order to optimize success. In humans, this plasticity includes age of pubertal onset, hormone levels and age at menopause. These reproductive characteristics vary across populations with distinct lifestyles and following specific childhood events, and point to a role for the early-life environment in shaping adult reproductive trajectories. Epigenetic mechanisms respond to external signals, exert long-term effects on gene expression and have been shown in animal and cellular studies to regulate normal reproductive function, strongly implicating their role in these adaptations. Moreover, human cohort data have revealed differential DNA methylation signatures in proxy tissues that are associated with reproductive phenotypic variation, although the cause-effect relationships are difficult to discern, calling for additional complementary approaches to establish functionality. In this Review, we summarize how adult reproductive function can be shaped by childhood events. We discuss why the influence of the childhood environment on adult reproductive function is an important consideration in understanding how reproduction is regulated and necessitates consideration by clinicians treating women with diverse life histories. The resolution of the molecular mechanisms responsible for human reproductive plasticity could also lead to new approaches for intervention by targeting these epigenetic modifications.
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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.