title: Alterations of Glucocorticoid Receptor Gene Methylation in Externalizing Disorders During Childhood and Adolescence.
abstract: Epigenetic modulations are a hypothesized link between environmental factors and the development of psychiatric disorders. Research has suggested that patients with depression or bipolar disorder exhibit higher methylation levels in the glucocorticoid receptor gene NR3C1. We aimed to investigate whether NR3C1 methylation changes are similarly associated with externalizing disorders such as aggressive behavior and conduct disorder. NR3C1 exon 1F methylation was analyzed in young adults with a lifetime diagnosis of an externalizing disorder (N = 68) or a depressive disorder (N = 27) and healthy controls (N = 124) from the Mannheim Study of Children at Risk. The externalizing disorders group had significantly lower NR3C1 methylation levels than the lifetime depressive disorder group (p = 0.009) and healthy controls (p = 0.001) This report of lower methylation levels in NR3C1 in externalizing disorders may indicate a mechanism through which the differential development of externalizing disorders as opposed to depressive disorders might occur.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetic Epidemiology in Psychiatry, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany, Angela.Heinrich@zi-mannheim.de.
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Heinrich
authors.forename: Arlette F
authors.initials: AF
authors.lastname: Buchmann
authors.forename: Katrin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Zohsel
authors.forename: Helene
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Dukal
authors.forename: Josef
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Frank
authors.forename: Jens
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Treutlein
authors.forename: Vanessa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Nieratschker
authors.forename: Stephanie H
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Witt
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Brandeis
authors.forename: Martin H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: Günter
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Esser
authors.forename: Tobias
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Banaschewski
authors.forename: Manfred
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Laucht
authors.forename: Marcella
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rietschel
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D002648:Child; D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000235:genetics*; D019175:DNA Methylation / Q000235:genetics*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000235:genetics; D005091:Exons; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011965:Receptors, Glucocorticoid / Q000235:genetics*; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: C497713:NR3C1 protein, human; D011965:Receptors, Glucocorticoid