An interpretation study of a mechanisms to acquire the neural correlates of maternal parenting behaviors in humans and its endocrine and genetic regulations

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We investigated whether DNA methylations in the promoter region of the oxytocin receptor (OXTR) gene predict the neural activations linked with maternal parenting behaviors, and whether the methylation statuses are related to a mechanism to acquire the neural correlates of maternal parenting behaviors. We measured DNA methylations from saliva-extracted DNA by means of pyrosequencing in 38 mothers who were participated in our previous study which focused on the neural activation of the anterior part of the prefrontal cortex (APFC) during seeing their own infants' facial expressions against other unfamiliar infants' facial expressions measured by near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS). We found that there was a significant correlation between the methylation rate of a specific CpG site and the activation of the right inferior part of the APFC. These results suggest that the methylation status in the promoter region predicts the neural activations linked with maternal parenting behaviors.