Childhood abuse leaves scars that can be passed down from generation to generation. The DNA of the victims is modified.
The violence suffered during childhood would have an even greater impact on the victims than previously thought. They would leave stigmata on the DNA, according to a new study, and could influence several generations. We are talking here about physical, psychological and sexual assault. “We examined the association between childhood abuse and DNA methylation in human sperm,” the researchers say. Methylation is a chemical modification that can occur in millions of places on the DNA sequence.
Their experiment proved that paternal environmental stressors can affect sperm DNA methylation and gene expression in offspring. “Child abuse has been associated with epigenetic marks in human blood, saliva, and brain tissue, and statistically significant methylation differences vary widely,” the scientists say.
Anxious behavior
To reach these conclusions, the team analyzed sperm samples from 34 men. 22 of them had been victims of childhood abuse. 12 DNA regions differentially methylated by childhood abuse have been identified. They were responsible for neuronal function (MAPT, CLU), fat cell regulation (PRDM16), and immune function (SDK1).
Given the significant impact of child abuse on the sperm of victims, the offspring of those exposed to violence during childhood are at a higher risk of having physical and neurological health problems throughout their lives. . Concretely, “a trauma affects the behavior of the victim. Some become depressed or are prey to post-traumatic stress”, explains the scientist Andrea Roberts, director of the study. “Stress factors in early life affect sperm and by extension the health of offspring, notably by creating anxious behavior”.
“A potentially useful tool in criminal investigations”
The impact of such a discovery could also be legal. “Methylation is beginning to be seen as a potentially useful tool in criminal investigations – for example, providing investigators with the approximate age of a person who may have left a trace of their DNA,” says Michael Kobor, co-author of the study.
In 2016, the police and gendarmerie services recorded 53,270 complaints from minor victims following physical violence. In 4 cases out of 10, this violence is perpetrated within the family sphere, on both girls and boys. The same year, 19,700 complaints from minor victims following sexual violence were recorded. 7,050 complaints relate to acts of rape and 12,650 to situations of harassment and sexual assault. 78% of the victims are little girls.
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