Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40939286›Full record

ArticlePlacenta2025

Exposure to prenatal maternal stress is associated with epigenetic age acceleration and altered cell composition in the placenta: The QF2011 Queensland Flood Study.

Ella O Beraldo, Amy M Inkster, Maria S Peñaherrera, E Magda Price, Johanna Schuetz, Élodie Portales-Casamar, Sue Kildea, Cathy Vaillancourt, Suzanne King, Wendy P Robinson

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Placenta, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Ella O BeraldoDepartment of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, 4500 Oak St., Vancouver, BC, V6H 3N1, Canada; BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, 950 W. 28th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada.
Amy M InksterDepartment of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, 4500 Oak St., Vancouver, BC, V6H 3N1, Canada; BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, 950 W. 28th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada.
Maria S PeñaherreraDepartment of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, 4500 Oak St., Vancouver, BC, V6H 3N1, Canada; BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, 950 W. 28th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada.
E Magda PriceBC Children's Hospital Research Institute, 950 W. 28th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada; Children's Hospital of Eastern Ontario Research Institute, University of Ottawa, 401 Smyth Rd., Ottawa, ON, K1H 8L1, Canada.
Johanna SchuetzDepartment of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, 4500 Oak St., Vancouver, BC, V6H 3N1, Canada; BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, 950 W. 28th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada.
Élodie Portales-CasamarBC Children's Hospital Research Institute, 950 W. 28th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada; Centre de Recherche Azrieli du CHU Sainte-Justine, 3175 Chem. de la Côte-Sainte-Catherine, Montreal, QC, H3T 1C5, Canada.
Sue KildeaMater Research Institute, University of Queensland, Raymond Terrace, South Brisbane, QLD, 4101, Australia; Molly Wardaguga Research Centre, Charles Darwin University, 410 Ann St., Brisbane City, QLD, 4000, Australia.
Cathy VaillancourtInstitut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS), Centre Armand Frappier Santé Biotechnologie, 531 blvd des Prairies, Laval, QC, H7V 1B7, Canada; CISUSS-Nord-de-l'Île-de-Montréal, 1360 Rue Jean-Talon E., Montreal, QC, H2E 1S1, Canada.
Suzanne KingDepartment of Psychiatry, McGill University, 1033 Pine Ave. W., Montreal, QC, H3A 1A1, Canada; Douglas Hospital Research Centre, Psychosocial Research Division, 6875 Boulevard LaSalle, Montreal, QC, H4H 1R3, Canada.
Wendy P RobinsonDepartment of Medical Genetics, University of British Columbia, 4500 Oak St., Vancouver, BC, V6H 3N1, Canada; BC Children's Hospital Research Institute, 950 W. 28th Ave., Vancouver, BC, V5Z 4H4, Canada. Electronic address: wrobinson@bcchr.ca.

Funding

NIH HHS R01HD089713NIMHD NIH HHS R01 MD011749Non-US Government Research Support type
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundExposure to prenatal maternal stress (PNMS) in utero has been associated with several adverse perinatal outcomes, such as pre-term birth and perturbed cognitive development. As the interface between the fetal and maternal compartments during pregnancy, the placenta has been postulated to play a role in this process. We hypothesized that placental DNA methylation (DNAme) may be altered in association with natural disaster-mediated PNMS.

methodsPooled placental samples from the Queensland Flood Study, or QF2011, cohort (n = 105) were processed for assessment of DNAme using the Illumina Infinium MethylationEPIC BeadChip array.

resultsOverall, we did not find significant associations between placental DNAme and several stress measurements using linear modelling (FDR<0.05 and Δβ>0.03). While we found that XX placentas had slightly higher predicted cytotrophoblast to syncytiotrophoblast cell ratios than XY placentas (p = 0.01), this difference in cell ratio was not associated with PNMS exposure. However, we did observe associations between placental epigenetic age acceleration and all three types of PNMS investigated (objective hardship (QFOSS) (p = 0.03), subjective distress (COSMOSS) (p = 0.03), and maternal cognitive appraisal (CONSEQ) (p = 0.0005) scores).

conclusionThe lack of large global impacts of PNMS on placental DNAme possibly indicates that the placenta can buffer moderate levels of maternal stress during pregnancy. It remains unclear what the impact of increased placental epigenetic age acceleration is on fetal development or perinatal outcomes and will require further investigation.

Indexed as

Epigenesis, GeneticPlacentaPregnancy ComplicationsPrenatal Exposure Delayed EffectsStress, PsychologicalAdultDNA MethylationFemaleFloodsHumansPregnancyQueenslandYoung AdultDNA methylationEpigenetic ageMaternal stressPlacenta

Identifiers

PMID40939286
PMCPMC13245148

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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 Socratic graph.