Abstract
Maternal diet modifies epigenetic programming in offspring, a potentially critical factor in the immune dysregulation of modern societies. We previously found that prenatal fish oil supplementation affects neonatal T-cell histone acetylation of genes implicated in adaptive immunity including PRKCZ, IL13, and TBX21. In this study, we measured H3 and H4 histone acetylation levels by chromatin immunoprecipitation in 173 term placentas collected in the prospective birth cohort, ALADDIN, in which information on lifestyle and diet is thoroughly recorded. In anthroposophic families, regular olive oil usage during pregnancy was associated with increased H3 acetylation at FOXP3 (p = 0.004), IL10RA (p = 0.008), and IL7R (p = 0.007) promoters, which remained significant after adjustment by offspring gender. Furthermore, maternal fish consumption was associated with increased H4 acetylation at the CD14 gene in placentas of female offspring (p = 0.009). In conclusion, prenatal olive oil intake can affect placental histone acetylation in immune regulatory genes, confirming previously observed pro-acetylation effects of olive oil polyphenols. The association with fish consumption may implicate ω-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids present in fish oil. Altered histone acetylation in placentas from mothers who regularly include fish or olive oil in their diets could influence immune priming in the newborn.
Highlights
Maternal diet can modify the epigenetic landscape in diverse tissues and is a crucial factor in the developmental programing of the offspring [1,2,3]
Human and mice studies support the substantial effects of maternal diet on the expression of metabolic, immune, and neurodevelopmental genes, which is mediated in part through the alteration of histone acetylation marks [4,5,6]
Recent experimental evidence highlights the role of fish oil and its bioactive component n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) as significant epigenetic modifiers of histone marks [10]
Summary
Maternal diet can modify the epigenetic landscape in diverse tissues and is a crucial factor in the developmental programing of the offspring [1,2,3]. The gene forkhead box P3 (FOXP3), which encodes a master regulator of immune homeostasis, has shown to be epigenetically modified by dietary compounds including all-trans retinoid acid [13], microbial-derived butyrate [14], and propionate [15]. This gene is especially important because animal models suggest that FOXP3 is epigenetically modified by dietary exposures, such as high fiber and acetate, during the prenatal period [16]. The dietary patterns related with the anthroposophic lifestyle in this cohort included an increased frequency of vegetarian diet, consumption of organic/biodynamic food, use of butter on bread, and use of olive oil as main cooking fat [21]
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