Background
Aim
Methods/design protocol registration
Key terms
Term | Description |
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Epigenetics | Any recognised indicator of DNA methylation or histone modification, measured in any tissue |
Body size | Any measure of body size including: weight, height, BMI, head circumference and growth (or change) in any of these measurements at birth and in early life |
Nutrition | Any measure of maternal nutrition, supplement use and/or diet during pregnancy, breastfeeding/formula, weaning practices and nutrition/diet of the child in early life measured using dietary questionnaires and/or objectively measured nutritional biomarkers |
Socioeconomic position (SEP) | Any recognised indicator of SEP within society, including occupation, education, income, occupational or social class, poverty and household overcrowding, as defined in reference [16], measured during early life |
Eligibility criteria
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Original studies published in peer-reviewed journals
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Epigenetic markers measured either at the same time or any age subsequent to the early life exposure (i.e. epigenetics can be measures in infancy, childhood, adolescence or adulthood)
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Current, prospective report or retrospective recall of indicators of body size (see Table 1)
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Current, prospective report or retrospective recall of nutrition and/or diet (see Table 1)
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Current, prospective report or retrospective recall SEP (see Table 1)
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English language
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Non-clinical samples
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Studies not meeting inclusion criteria
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Reviews
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Studies based on animals
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Studies only assessing the effect of adulthood exposures on epigenetic markers
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Studies assessing the effect of epigenetic markers before early life exposures
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Samples with a specific clinical condition
Search strategy
Epigenetics | |
1 | (epigen* ) |
2 | (EWAS) |
3 | (Methylation) |
4 | (DNA adj5 methyl*) |
5 | (differential adj1 methylation) |
6 | (global adj1 methylation) |
7 | (DNA adj5 hypermethyl*) |
8 | (DNA adj5 hypomethyl*) |
9 | (gene* adj5 methyl*) |
10 | Gene Expression Regulation |
11 | (methyl* adj5 region) |
12 | (histone adj1 modif*) |
13 | 1 OR 2 OR 3 OR 4 OR 5 OR 6 OR 7 OR 8 OR 9 OR 10 OR 11 OR 12 |
Body size/ growth | |
14 | ((premature or pre-mature or preterm or pre-term) adj2 (birth or infant* or child* or neonat*)) |
15 | (gestation* adj2 age) |
16 | (weight or body-size or bmi or height or length or head-circumference) |
17 | ((grow*) adj3 (fet* or neonat* or prenatal* or pre-natal* or intrauterine or in-utero or postnatal or post-natal or birth* or infant* or child* or early-life or earlylife)) |
18 | (fet* or neonat* or prenatal* or pre-natal* or intrauterine or in-utero or postnatal or post-natal or birth* or infant* or child* or early-life) |
19 | 16 OR 17 |
20 | 18 AND 19 |
21 | 14 OR 15 OR 20 |
Nutrition | |
22 | (nutrition adj3 (maternal or mother* or pregn* or fet* or neonat* or prenatal* or pre-natal* or intrauterine or in-utero)) |
23 | ((nutrition or diet or wean*) adj3 (postnatal or post-natal or infant* or child* or early-life)) |
24 | (breastfe* or breast-fe*) |
25 | (formula adj3 (infant* or child* or early-life)) |
26 | 22 OR 23 OR 24 OR 25 |
Socioeconomic position | |
27 | ((occupation* or education*) adj3 (father* or mother* or parent*)) |
28 | ((income or manual) adj3 (father* or mother* or parent*)) |
29 | ((social class or social status) adj3 (father* or mother* or parent* or child* or early-life)) |
30 | ((socioeconomic or socio-economic) adj3 (father* or mother* or parent* or child* or early-life)) |
31 | ((deprivation or poverty) adj3 (child* or early-life)) |
32 | ((overcrowding) adj3 (child* or early-life)) |
33 | 27 OR 28 OR 29 OR 30 OR 31 OR 32 |
Combining results | |
34 | 21 OR 26 OR 33 |
35 | 13 AND 33 |