ArticleTranslational psychiatry2021
Maternal psychosocial risk factors and child gestational epigenetic age in a South African birth cohort study.
Article in Translational psychiatry, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Impact of Maternal Lifetime Stress on Offspring Biological Aging: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Observational Studies.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Pooled it
- The epidemiology of maternal mental health in Africa: a systematic review.Archives of women's mental health · 2025Pooled it
- Predictors of Preschool Neurodevelopmental Outcomes and Trajectories in a South African Birth Cohort.Research square · 2026Article
- Timing of adverse childhood experiences shapes epigenetic ageing and life-history outcomes.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Gestational phthalate levels and biomarkers of aging in infants and children from New York City.Environmental research · 2025Article
- Prenatal stress and gestational epigenetic age: No evidence of associations based on a large prospective multi-cohort study.Research square · 2024Article
- Prevalence of perinatal post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in low-income and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMJ public health · 2024Article
- Data Resource Profile: A national linked mother-baby cohort of health, education and social care data in England (ECHILD-MB).International journal of epidemiology · 2024Article
- Maternal Childhood Adversity and Infant Epigenetic Aging: Moderation by Restless Sleep During Pregnancy.Developmental psychobiology · 2024Article
- Review
- Cumulative stress, PTSD, and emotion dysregulation during pregnancy and epigenetic age acceleration in Hispanic mothers and their newborn infants.Epigenetics · 2023Article
- Temperamental and psychomotor predictors of ADHD symptoms in children born after a threatened preterm labour: a 6-year follow-up study.European child & adolescent psychiatry · 2023Article
- Epigenetic age deacceleration in youth at familial risk for schizophrenia and bipolar disorder.Translational psychiatry · 2023Article
- Analysis of Pregnancy Complications and Epigenetic Gestational Age of Newborns.JAMA network open · 2023Article
- Maternal depression and adverse neighbourhood conditions during pregnancy are associated with gestational epigenetic age deceleration.Epigenetics · 2022Article
- Gestational age acceleration is associated with epigenetic biomarkers of prenatal physiologic stress exposure.Clinical epigenetics · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
14 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Accelerated epigenetic aging relative to chronological age has been found to be associated with higher risk of mortality in adults. However, little is known about whether and how in utero exposures might shape child gestational epigenetic age (EA) at birth. We aimed to explore associations between maternal psychosocial risk factors and deviation in child gestational EA at birth (i.e., greater or lower EA relative to chronological age) in a South African birth cohort study-the Drakenstein Child Health Study. Maternal psychosocial risk factors included trauma/stressor exposure; posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD); depression; psychological distress; and alcohol/tobacco use. Child gestational EA at birth was calculated using an epigenetic clock previously devised for neonates; and gestational EA deviation was calculated as the residuals of the linear model between EA and chronological gestational age. Bivariate linear regression was then used to explore unadjusted associations between maternal/child risk factors and child gestational EA residuals at birth. Thereafter, a multivariable regression method was used to determine adjusted associations. Data from 271 maternal-child dyads were included in the current analysis. In the multivariable regression model, maternal PTSD was significantly and negatively associated with child gestational EA residuals at birth (β = -1.95; p = 0.018), controlling for study site, sex of the child, head circumference at birth, birthweight, mode of delivery, maternal estimated household income, body mass index (BMI) at enrolment, HIV status, anaemia, psychological distress, and prenatal tobacco or alcohol use. Given the novelty of this preliminary finding, and its potential translational relevance, further studies to delineate underlying biological pathways and to explore clinical implications of EA deviation are warranted.
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