Differential Methylation of the Oxytocin Receptor Gene in Patients with Anorexia Nervosa: A Pilot Study

摘要: Background and Aim Recent studies in patients with anorexia nervosa suggest that oxytocin may be involved the pathophysiology of nervosa. We examined whether there was evidence variation methylation status receptor (OXTR) gene might account for these findings. Methods We analyzed CpG sites a region from exon 1 to MT2 regions OXTR buccal cells 15 36 healthy women using bisulfite sequencing. further associated markers illness severity or form. Results identified six significant differences average levels between patient control groups. Among differentially methylated sites, five showed higher than those group (64.9–88.8% vs. 6.6–45.0%). The were negatively body mass index (BMI). BMI, eating disorders psychopathology, anxiety regression analysis as factors affecting more accounted by BMI. Conclusions Epigenetic misregulation implicated nervosa, which either mechanism linking environmental adversity risk secondary consequence illness.