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Association of in vitro fertilization with global and IGF2/H19 methylation variation in newborn twins

Version 2 2024-06-04, 13:32
Version 1 2018-07-10, 11:01
journal contribution
posted on 2024-06-04, 13:32 authored by YJ Loke, JC Galati, R Saffery, Jeffrey CraigJeffrey Craig
In vitro fertilization (IVF) and its subset intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI), are widely used medical treatments for conception. There has been controversy over whether IVF is associated with adverse short- and long-term health outcomes of offspring. As with other prenatal factors, epigenetic change is thought to be a molecular mediator of any in utero programming effects. Most studies focused on DNA methylation at gene-specific and genomic level, with only a few on associations between DNA methylation and IVF. Using buccal epithelium from 208 twin pairs from the Peri/Postnatal Epigenetic Twin Study (PETS), we investigated associations between IVF and DNA methylation on a global level, using the proxies of Alu and LINE-1 interspersed repeats in addition to two locus-specific regulatory regions within IGF2/H19, controlling for 13 potentially confounding factors. Using multiple correction testing, we found strong evidence that IVF-conceived twins have lower DNA methylation in Alu, and weak evidence of lower methylation in one of the two IGF2/H19 regulatory regions and LINE-1, compared with naturally conceived twins. Weak evidence of a relationship between ICSI and DNA methylation within IGF2/H19 regulatory region was found, suggesting that one or more of the processes associated with IVF/ICSI may contribute to these methylation differences. Lower within- and between-pair DNA methylation variation was also found in IVF-conceived twins for LINE-1, Alu and one IGF2/H19 regulatory region. Although larger sample sizes are needed, our results provide additional insight to the possible influence of IVF and ICSI on DNA methylation. To our knowledge, this is the largest study to date investigating the association of IVF and DNA methylation.

History

Journal

Journal of developmental origins of health and disease

Volume

6

Pagination

115-124

Location

Cambridge, Eng.

ISSN

2040-1744

eISSN

2040-1752

Language

eng

Publication classification

C1.1 Refereed article in a scholarly journal

Copyright notice

2015, Cambridge University Press and the International Society for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease

Issue

2

Publisher

Cambridge University Press

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