A longitudinal DNA methylation atlas and its link to brain structure and mental health
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Epigenetic mechanisms are thought to contribute to neurodevelopmental vulnerability for psychiatric disorders, yet longitudinal evidence linking DNA methylation (DNAm) to brain maturation and psychopathology is limited. Using epigenome-wide DNAm (372,582 CpGs) and whole-brain structural MRI data from the IMAGEN cohort (n = 506, ages 14-19), we identified 18 co-regulated DNAm clusters, ten enriched for brain-expressed genes involved in neuronal development and signalling. The clusters showed consistent longitudinal change and were reproducible in independent adult samples (PPMI, n = 513; ADNI, n = 606). Multivariate analyses revealed coordinated coupling between DNAm change and cortical-subcortical maturation, such that greater DNAm reductions in brain-related clusters associated with greater cortical thinning and subcortical volume changes in the fronto-limbic-striatal axis. Increases in depressive symptoms, and frequency of cannabis use and binge drinking were linked to DNAm changes, with mediation models supporting DNAm as a mechanistic bridge between behaviour and brain change. Two clusters (C1 and C7) were associated with depressive and negative psychotic symptoms across adolescence. Associations of these clusters with depressive symptoms replicated in the PPMI dataset. Their coupling with amygdala-striatal maturation suggests that these DNAm signatures index environmentally shaped affective-motivational neurodevelopment.
Source: Molecular Psychiatry
Authors: Di Chen, Xinyang Yu, Wei Cheng, Linbo Wang, Shitong Xiang, Wei Zhang, Tobias Banaschewski, Arun L. W. Bokde, Herta Flor, Antoine Grigis, Hugh Garavan, Penny Gowland, Andreas Heinz, Rüdiger Brühl, Jean-Luc Martinot, Marie-Laure Paillère Martinot, Eric Artiges, Frauke Nees, Dimitri Papadopoulos Orfanos, Hervé Lemaître, Tomáš Paus, Luise Poustka, Sarah Hohmann, Nathalie Holz, Christian Bäuchl, Michael N. Smolka, Nilakshi Vaidya, Henrik Walter, Robert Whelan, Jianfeng Feng, Paul M. Thompson, Gunter Schumann, Tianye Jia, Sylvane Desrivières, Marie-Laure Paillère Martinot, on behalf of the ENIGMA Epigenetics Working Group
Institutions: Shanghai Medical College of Fudan University, King's College London, Fudan University, East China Normal University, Heidelberg University, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medizinische Fakultät Mannheim, Trinity College Dublin, University of Mannheim, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique et aux Énergies Alternatives, Université Paris-Saclay, CEA Paris-Saclay - Etablissement de Saclay, CEA Paris-Saclay, University of Vermont, University of Nottingham, Deutsches Zentrum für Psychische Gesundheit, Technische Universität Dresden, University of Tübingen, Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt, École Normale Supérieure Paris-Saclay, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Inserm, Université Paris Cité, Trajectoires développementales & psychiatrie, Centre Borelli, Sorbonne Université, Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris, Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital, Institut für Medizinische Psychologie, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Université de Bordeaux, Institut des Maladies Neurodégénératives, Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Sainte-Justine, Université de Montréal, University Hospital Heidelberg, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, University of Warwick, University of Southern California, Peking University, University of Southampton
Language: English
Subfield: Molecular Biology
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Estimated APC paid: $5,490
OpenAlex ID: W7144108541