Descripción del proyecto
Dilucidar los orígenes de los patrones epigenéticos asociados a la salud mental infantil
Los patrones epigenéticos al nacer —un mecanismo que regula la actividad de los genes en respuesta a las influencias genéticas y ambientales— pueden estar asociados a problemas comunes de salud mental en los niños. Este descubrimiento, que podría suponer toda una revolución, es muy inesperado y podría introducir un cambio de paradigma en la forma de abordar la salud mental infantil. Mediante la investigación de los efectos temporales, el equipo del proyecto TEMPO, financiado con fondos europeos, proporcionará información nueva sobre los orígenes de los problemas de salud mental y abrirá oportunidades muy necesarias para la detección temprana de riesgos. Combinará métodos innovadores y multidisciplinarios, así como la generación de nuevos datos excepcionales, en un conjunto único de cohortes longitudinales europeas. El objetivo es dilucidar «el qué, el dónde y el por qué» de los efectos temporales epigenéticos.
Objetivo
TEMPO aims to solve the newly discovered epigenetic 'time puzzle' of child mental health. Recently it has been observed that common mental health problems in children (e.g. hyperactivity, poor impulse-control) are associated with epigenetic patterns at birth - a mechanism that regulates gene activity in response to genetic and environmental influences. Curiously, however, this association is lost when measuring the same epigenetic patterns later in development. This discovery is highly unexpected and potentially ground-breaking: the existence of timing effects could lead to new insights into the origins of mental health and open much-needed opportunities for early risk detection. Yet, what factors drive epigenetic timing effects, how they manifest and why they occur is currently a puzzle.
To solve it, TEMPO will combine innovative, multidisciplinary approaches and the generation of exceptional new data in a unique set of longitudinal European cohorts to address the what, where and why of epigenetic timing effects. Three work packages will be implemented to: (i) Systematically characterize unknown properties of epigenetic timing effects, including their genomic scale, specificity to mental health and persistence into adulthood, using advanced quantitative methods; (ii) Locate epigenetic timing effects with greater precision, by establishing whether effects are driven by epigenetic patterns in specific tissues and cell-types that are found at birth but not later in life; and (iii) Explain timing effects, by disentangling the genetic and environmental origins of epigenetic timing effects on mental health, drawing on the power of genetically sensitive, quasi-experimental designs.
As well as leading a breakthrough in this emerging field and addressing a major knowledge gap at the intersection of biological and psychological sciences, TEMPO has the potential to set in motion a paradigm shift in the way that we conceptualize, understand and approach child mental health.
Ámbito científico
Programa(s)
- HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC) Main Programme
Régimen de financiación
HORIZON-AG - HORIZON Action Grant Budget-BasedInstitución de acogida
3015 GD Rotterdam
Países Bajos