Mothers and infants are at high risk for inadequate vitamin D status. Mechanisms by which vitamin D may affect maternal and infant DNA methylation are poorly understood.
This study quantified the effects of vitamin D3 supplementation on DNA methylation in pregnant and lactating women and their breastfed infants.
In this randomized controlled pilot study, pregnant women received vitamin D3 400 international units (IU) (n = 6; control) or 3,800 IU (n = 7; intervention) daily from late second trimester through 4-6 weeks postpartum. Epigenome-wide DNA methylation was quantified in leukocytes collected from mothers at birth and mother-infant dyads at 4-6 weeks postpartum.
At birth, intervention group mothers showed DNA methylation gain and loss at 76 and 89 cytosine-guanine (CpG) dinucleotides, respectively, compared to controls. Postpartum, methylation gain was noted at 200 and loss at 102 CpGs. Associated gene clusters showed strongest biologic relevance for cell migration/motility and cellular membrane function at birth and cadherin signaling and immune function at postpartum. Breastfed 4-6-week-old infants of intervention mothers showed DNA methylation gain and loss in 217 and 213 CpGs, respectively, compared to controls. Genes showing differential methylation mapped most strongly to collagen metabolic processes and regulation of apoptosis.
Maternal vitamin D supplementation during pregnancy and lactation alters DNA methylation in mothers and breastfed infants. Additional work is needed to fully elucidate the short- and long-term biologic effects of vitamin D supplementation at varying doses, which could hold important implications for establishing clinical recommendations for prenatal and offspring health promotion.
Pharmacology, Toxicology and Pharmaceutical Science
5
2%
Other
26
11%
Unknown
105
43%
Attention Score in Context
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 16. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 22 August 2026.
All research outputs
#2,879,748
of 34,187,362 outputs
Outputs from Breastfeeding Medicine
#248
of 1,312 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#44,848
of 373,838 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Breastfeeding Medicine
#8
of 24 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 34,187,362 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 91st percentile: it's in the top 10% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 1,312 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 21.8. This one has done well, scoring higher than 81% of its peers.
Older research outputs will score higher simply because they've had more time to accumulate mentions. To account for age we can compare this Altmetric Attention Score to the 373,838 tracked outputs that were published within six weeks on either side of this one in any source. This one has done well, scoring higher than 87% of its contemporaries.
We're also able to compare this research output to 24 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has gotten more attention than average, scoring higher than 66% of its contemporaries.
