Nature Communications (Jul 2021)

Early-life social experience affects offspring DNA methylation and later life stress phenotype

  • Zachary M. Laubach,
  • Julia R. Greenberg,
  • Julie W. Turner,
  • Tracy M. Montgomery,
  • Malit O. Pioon,
  • Maggie A. Sawdy,
  • Laura Smale,
  • Raymond G. Cavalcante,
  • Karthik R. Padmanabhan,
  • Claudia Lalancette,
  • Bridgett vonHoldt,
  • Christopher D. Faulk,
  • Dana C. Dolinoy,
  • Kay E. Holekamp,
  • Wei Perng

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-24583-x
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12, no. 1
pp. 1 – 15

Abstract

Read online

Early social experience can alter epigenetic patterns and stress responses later in life. A study on wild spotted hyenas finds that maternal care and social connections after leaving the den influence DNA methylation and contribute to a developmentally plastic stress response.