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MRC Unit The Gambia is conducting the Early Developmental Epigenetics and Nutrition (EDEN) study, an investigation into how a mother’s diet and environment at the time of conception, can alter the baby’s epigenome (gene control system), with implications for growth, development, and disease risk later in life. Launched in 2020, the project builds on previous study findings which show variation in food consumption patterns in The Gambia between the wet and dry seasons. This provides a natural model to explore how such differences might influence developmental programming. 

Every cell in the human body carries the same genetic code in the form of DNA, but what makes a brain cell different from a liver cell is how that DNA is read and regulated. These regulatory instructions are controlled by epigenetic mechanisms, an internal system that switches genes on or off depending on what the body needs. One important way this happens is through a process called DNA methylation, where chemical tags are added to DNA to silence or activate certain genes, without changing the gene itself. 

Shortly after a baby is conceived, many of these tags are wiped clean, and a new pattern is created that will guide the baby’s development. Earlier studies show that this fresh pattern, called the embryonic methylome, can be influenced by environmental factors, including the mother’s diet at conception. Previous research also revealed that changes in the embryonic methylome are associated with obesity, thyroid disorders, and cancer, suggesting the potential for far-reaching health effects. 

A novel aspect of the EDEN study is its focus on the placenta, the organ that connects mother and baby, and provides nutrients during pregnancy. The placenta is rich in specific methylation patterns that differ depending on whether they are inherited from the mother or father, and some of these control fetal growth. These patterns are a particular focus for the study. 

To achieve its goals, the EDEN study established a group of study participants in West and Central Kiang, in the Lower River Region of The Gambia, recruiting women of childbearing age and collecting detailed samples including placenta, blood, urine, and stool within 15 days of conception. 

In parallel, the team is creating an open-access Early Developmental Epigenetic BioResource (EDEBR) to facilitate wider research collaboration and future studies on how early life influences health. 

According to Dr Matt Silver, Principal Investigator of the study, “This study is providing important insights into how the developing baby’s environment, right at the beginning of life, can influence molecular mechanisms relevant to health and disease in later life.” 

Professor Andrew Prentice, Theme Leader for Nutrition and Planetary Health at MRCG at LSHTM and Co Principal Investigator of the study; said “Elucidating how a mother’s diet can influence a baby’s DNA has huge implications for understanding the early origins of lifelong health and might open new pathways for breaking the intergenerational cycle of ill health.” 

Despite the COVID-19 pandemic delaying fieldwork, the EDEN study has made significant strides, it has successfully recruited a robust participant group and begun sequencing entire genomes and placental methylomes using Nanopore technology at the MRCG Genomics Platform. 

As the study progresses toward its 2025 completion date, it is already revealing insights that could lead to new nutrition strategies to improve developmental outcomes from the earliest stages, with long-term benefits for metabolic health, growth, and disease prevention in populations. 

The EDEN study is funded by the .