Biological stability of DNA methylation measurements over varying intervals of time and in the presence of acute stress.

Identifying factors that influence the stability of DNA methylation measurements across biological replicates is of critical importance in basic and clinical research. Using a within-person between-group experimental design ( = 31, number of observations = 192), we report the stability of biological replicates over a variety of unique temporal scenarios, both in the absence and presence of acute psychosocial stress, and between individuals who have experienced early life adversity (ELA) and non-exposed individuals. We found that varying time intervals, acute stress, and ELA exposure influenced the stability of repeated DNA methylation measurements.

Immune cell dynamics in response to an acute laboratory stressor: a within-person between-group analysis of the biological impact of early life adversity.

Early life adversity (ELA) is a risk factor for early onset morbidities and mortality, a relationship that may be driven in part by immune system dysregulation. One mechanism of dysregulation that has yet to be fully examined in the context of ELA is alterations to immune cell dynamics in response to acute stress. Using a within-person between-group experimental design, we investigated stress-induced changes in immune cell populations, and how these changes may be altered in individuals with a history of ELA.

Intergenerational transmission of childhood trauma? Testing cellular aging in mothers exposed to sexual abuse and their children.

Background: Exposure to maltreatment in childhood can lead to increased risk for poor health outcomes in adulthood. Child maltreatment and later poor health may be linked by premature biological aging. We tested whether childhood sexual abuse (CSA) was associated with telomere length (TL) in adult females.

Testing three hypotheses about effects of sensitive-insensitive parenting on telomeres.

Telomeres are the protective DNA-protein sequences appearing at the ends of chromosomes; they shorten with each cell division and are considered a biomarker of aging. Shorter telomere length and greater erosion have been associated with compromised physical and mental health and are hypothesized to be affected by early life stress. In the latter case, most work has relied on retrospective measures of early life stressors.

Facial masculinity does not appear to be a condition-dependent male ornament and does not reflect MHC heterozygosity in humans.

Recent studies have called into question the idea that facial masculinity is a condition-dependent male ornament that indicates immunocompetence in humans. We add to this growing body of research by calculating an objective measure of facial masculinity/femininity using 3D images in a large sample ( = 1,233) of people of European ancestry. We show that facial masculinity is positively correlated with adult height in both males and females.