Summary
This large Norwegian birth cohort study demonstrates that assisted reproductive technology procedures are associated with widespread epigenetic alterations detectable at birth. ART-conceived newborns exhibit lower genome-wide DNA methylation and differential methylation at 607 CpG sites compared to naturally conceived controls, with genes implicated in growth and neurodevelopment particularly affected. The associations persist after adjustment for parental methylation patterns and are not attributable to parental subfertility alone, suggesting ART procedures themselves influence fetal epigenetic remodelling.
Regional applicability
The findings are directly relevant to UK clinical practice and population health, as ART services are widely used within the NHS and private fertility clinics. The results may inform counselling of prospective ART users and warrant investigation of long-term health outcomes in ART cohorts within the UK, particularly regarding neurodevelopmental and growth-related trajectories.
Key measures
DNA methylation at CpG sites measured via Illumina EPIC platform; comparison of methylation patterns between 962 ART-conceived and 983 naturally conceived singleton newborns; gene-level analysis of differentially methylated regions
Outcomes reported
The study identified widespread differences in cord blood DNA methylation between ART-conceived and naturally conceived newborns using the Illumina EPIC platform. ART-conceived infants displayed overall reduced methylation across the genome with 607 genome-wide differentially methylated CpGs, including 176 known genes related to growth, neurodevelopment, and health outcomes.
Topic tags
Dig deeper with Pulse AI.
Pulse AI has read the whole catalogue. Ask about this record, its theme, or how the findings apply to UK farming and policy — every answer cites the underlying studies.