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Cited by 27Epigenetics and DNA MethylationHealth, Environment, Cognitive AgingBirth, Development, and Health

Using Epigenetic Clocks to Characterize Biological Aging in Studies of Children and Childhood Exposures: A Systematic Review

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Musci, Rashelle J., Raghunathan, Radhika S., Johnson, Sara B., Klein, Lauren, Ladd-Acosta, Christine, Ansah, Rosemary, Hassoun, Ronda, Voegtline, Kristin M.·2023·Prevention Science
DOI 10.1007/s11121-023-01576-4PMC PMC10964791
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Abstract

Biological age, measured via epigenetic clocks, offers a unique and useful tool for prevention scientists to explore the short- and long-term implications of age deviations for health, development, and behavior. The use of epigenetic clocks in pediatric research is rapidly increasing, and there is a need to review the landscape of this work to understand the utility of these clocks for prevention scientists. We summarize the current state of the literature on the use of specific epigenetic clocks in childhood. Using systematic review methods, we identified studies published through February 2023 that used one of three epigenetic clocks as a measure of biological aging. These epigenetic clocks could either be used as a predictor of health outcomes or as a health outcome of interest. The database search identified 982 records, 908 of which were included in a title and abstract review. After full-text screening, 68 studies were eligible for inclusion. While findings were somewhat mixed, a majority of included studies found significant associations between the epigenetic clock used and the health outcome of interest or between an exposure and the epigenetic clock used. From these results, we propose the use of epigenetic clocks as a tool to understand how exposures impact biologic aging pathways and development in early life, as well as to monitor the effectiveness of preventive interventions that aim to reduce exposure and associated adverse health outcomes.

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Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Musci, R. J., Raghunathan, R. S., Johnson, S. B., Klein, L., Ladd-Acosta, C., Ansah, R., Hassoun, R., & Voegtline, K. M.
Affiliations
Johns Hopkins University (US)
Corresponding author
Musci, Rashelle J.
ORCID
Venue
Prevention Science
Publisher
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Published
2023-07-21
Volume
24
Issue
7
Pages
1398-1423
ISSN
  • 1389-4986 (ISSN-L)
  • 1573-6695
DOI
10.1007/s11121-023-01576-4
PMC
PMC10964791
OpenAlex
W4384925723
Cited by
27
References
5
Citations by year
2026: 10 · 2025: 8 · 2024: 9
FWCI
0.71
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Prevention Science (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD093643)
Topics
  • Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Molecular Biology › Epigenetics and DNA Methylation
  • Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Health, Toxicology and Mutagenesis › Health, Environment, Cognitive Aging
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health › Birth, Development, and Health
Keywords
epigenetic clocks, biological aging, children's exposure, biological age, early life development, preventive interventions, health outcomes, epigenetics, aging biomarkers
MeSH terms
Aging, Biological Clocks, Child, Humans, Databases, Factual, DNA Methylation, Epigenesis, Genetic, Epigenomics

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