not observed in methylation of the mother’s blood suggesting this was reflective of the intrauterine environment (Mulligan et al., 2012). Stress was also negatively correlated with newborn birthweight (Mulligan et al., 2012). A similar effect was observed with intimate partner violence; this form of stress had no effect on NR3C1 methylation of the mother but altered NR3C1 methylation in whole blood of offspring (Radtke et al., 2011). Adolescent children whose mother experienced partner violence during pregnancy demonstrated increased methylation of NR3C1. Interestingly, methylation was not enhanced in adolescents if their mother experienced intimate partner violence either before or after pregnancy. Taken together, these studies highlight the ability of the gestational environment to influence methylation associated with the HPA axis. While it is possible that the stress incurred by the mother could alter her maternal behavior and in turn affect the offspring’s HPA axis, this seems unlikely given that women that experienced the violence before or after pregnancy did not have offspring with altered NR3C1 methylation (Radtke et al., 2011).
