TY - JOUR
T1 - Exposure to ambient air pollution in the first 1000 days of life and alterations in the DNA methylome and telomere length in children
T2 - A systematic review
AU - Isaevska, Elena
AU - Moccia, Chiara
AU - Asta, Federica
AU - Cibella, Fabio
AU - Gagliardi, Luigi
AU - Ronfani, Luca
AU - Rusconi, Franca
AU - Stazi, Maria Antonietta
AU - Richiardi, Lorenzo
N1 - Funding Information:
The project was realized with the financial support of the Italian Ministry of Health – CCM./ Progetto realizzato con il supporto finanziario del Ministero della Salute – CCM .
Publisher Copyright:
© 2020
Copyright:
Copyright 2020 Elsevier B.V., All rights reserved.
PY - 2021/2
Y1 - 2021/2
N2 - Background: Exposure to air pollution during the first 1000 days of life (from conception to the 2nd year of life) might be of particular relevance for long-term child health. Changes in molecular markers such as DNA methylation and telomere length could underlie the association between air pollution exposure and pollution-related diseases as well as serve as biomarkers for past exposure. The objective of this systematic review was to assess the association between air pollution exposure during pregnancy and the first two years of life and changes in DNA methylation or telomere length in children. Methods: PubMed was searched in October 2020 by using terms relative to ambient air pollution exposure, DNA methylation, telomere length and the population of interest: mother/child dyads and children. Screening and selection of the articles was completed independently by two reviewers. Thirty-two articles matched our criteria. The majority of the articles focused on gestational air pollution exposure and measured DNA methylation/telomere length in newborn cord blood or placental tissue, to study global, candidate-gene or epigenome-wide methylation patterns and/or telomere length. The number of studies in children was limited. Results: Ambient air pollution exposure during pregnancy was associated with global loss of methylation in newborn cord blood and placenta, indicating the beginning of the pregnancy as a potential period of susceptibility. Candidate gene and epigenome-wide association studies provided evidence that gestational exposure to air pollutants can lead to locus-specific changes in methylation, in newborn cord blood and placenta, particularly in genes involved in cellular responses to oxidative stress, mitochondrial function, inflammation, growth and early life development. Telomere length shortening in newborns and children was seen in relation to gestational pollutant exposure. Conclusions: Ambient air pollution during pregnancy is associated with changes in both global and locus-specific DNA methylation and with telomere length shortening. Future studies need to test the robustness of the association across different populations, to explore potential windows of vulnerability and assess the role of the methylation and telomere length as mediators in the association between early exposure to ambient air pollutants and specific childhood health outcomes.
AB - Background: Exposure to air pollution during the first 1000 days of life (from conception to the 2nd year of life) might be of particular relevance for long-term child health. Changes in molecular markers such as DNA methylation and telomere length could underlie the association between air pollution exposure and pollution-related diseases as well as serve as biomarkers for past exposure. The objective of this systematic review was to assess the association between air pollution exposure during pregnancy and the first two years of life and changes in DNA methylation or telomere length in children. Methods: PubMed was searched in October 2020 by using terms relative to ambient air pollution exposure, DNA methylation, telomere length and the population of interest: mother/child dyads and children. Screening and selection of the articles was completed independently by two reviewers. Thirty-two articles matched our criteria. The majority of the articles focused on gestational air pollution exposure and measured DNA methylation/telomere length in newborn cord blood or placental tissue, to study global, candidate-gene or epigenome-wide methylation patterns and/or telomere length. The number of studies in children was limited. Results: Ambient air pollution exposure during pregnancy was associated with global loss of methylation in newborn cord blood and placenta, indicating the beginning of the pregnancy as a potential period of susceptibility. Candidate gene and epigenome-wide association studies provided evidence that gestational exposure to air pollutants can lead to locus-specific changes in methylation, in newborn cord blood and placenta, particularly in genes involved in cellular responses to oxidative stress, mitochondrial function, inflammation, growth and early life development. Telomere length shortening in newborns and children was seen in relation to gestational pollutant exposure. Conclusions: Ambient air pollution during pregnancy is associated with changes in both global and locus-specific DNA methylation and with telomere length shortening. Future studies need to test the robustness of the association across different populations, to explore potential windows of vulnerability and assess the role of the methylation and telomere length as mediators in the association between early exposure to ambient air pollutants and specific childhood health outcomes.
KW - Air pollution
KW - Children
KW - Cord blood
KW - Methylation
KW - Newborn
KW - Placenta
KW - Pregnancy
KW - Telomere length
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85097441345&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85097441345&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.envres.2020.110504
DO - 10.1016/j.envres.2020.110504
M3 - Review article
C2 - 33221306
AN - SCOPUS:85097441345
VL - 193
JO - Environmental Research
JF - Environmental Research
SN - 0013-9351
M1 - 110504
ER -