How early childhood stress may change DNA marks linked to later depression
Official title: Childhood adversity, DNA methylation, and psychopathology symptoms: A longitudinal study of sensitive periods and chrono-epigenetics
Funded at Purdue University · NIH-11387880 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This work explores whether hard experiences in early childhood change DNA 'switches' and raise the chance of depression later on.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Purdue University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (West Lafayette, United States) |
| Project start | July 18, 2017 |
| Project end | February 28, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $783,415 |
| NIH project number | 5R01MH113930-10 |
| Project ID | NIH-11387880 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Children and families who experienced significant early-life adversity and can provide blood samples and follow-up health information, especially those enrolled in birth cohorts, would be ideal candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People whose mental health issues are unrelated to early-life stress, or who cannot provide biological samples or long-term follow-up, are unlikely to benefit directly from this project.
What this research studies
From a patient's viewpoint, this project follows children from birth through childhood in a long-term South African birth cohort, recording stressful experiences and collecting blood samples at multiple ages to measure DNA methylation. Researchers compare methylation patterns in children exposed to early adversity with those who were not, and track later symptoms of depression and other mental health problems. The team focuses on 'sensitive periods' in the first years of life when stress might leave lasting biological marks and on time-related patterns in methylation (chrono-epigenetics). By working in a more diverse, higher-adversity population than many past studies, they aim to see whether earlier findings apply more broadly.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could reveal biological markers and critical ages that help target prevention or early support for people at higher risk of depression after childhood adversity.
How similar studies have gone: Prior research has linked childhood adversity to DNA methylation in mainly European samples, but longitudinal, multi-timepoint work in a South African cohort is newer and seeks to replicate and extend those findings.
Where this research is happening
-
Purdue University
West Lafayette, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Dunn, Erin Cathleen — Purdue University
- Study coordinator: Dunn, Erin Cathleen
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.