![Ros John](https://profiles-cardiff.imgix.net/attachments/1074?w=200&h=200&auto=format&crop=faces&fit=crop&q=90")
Professor Ros John
- Media commentator
- Available for postgraduate supervision
Teams and roles for Ros John
Director of Research, Professor
School of Biosciences
Overview
Research overview
We are tackling one of the most challenging and fundamentally important questions in human health which is how to maximise the chances of a healthy and successful pregnancy. Pregnancy-related care costs the NHS some £5.8 billion per year, but only 2.4% of all direct, non-industry health-research funding is spent on pregnancy related research (RAND report, 2020). This identifies pregnancy research as one of the most underfunded areas of research in the UK. Yet this is where human health begins and where we can make the most effective changes to improve the health not only of the mother but also for future generations.
My research ultilises experimental models and human cohort data (The Grown in Wales Study) to 1) identify epigenetically regulated imprinted genes that respond to prenatal adversity; 2) engineer altered dosage of imprinted genes to examine the impact on placental development and fetal growth; and 3) examine the consequences of placental hormone insufficiency for maternal and offspring behaviour. By identifying underpinning mechanisims linking adversity to outcomes, we will inform the development and implementation of new strategies to tackle poor health.
Roles
- Deputy Head: Research, Innovation and Enterprise
- Principle Investigator: Grown in Wales Study
- Academic Team Leader
Publication
2026
- Jones, R. et al. 2026. Investigating the contribution of the imprinted gene Asb4 to parental care. European Journal of Neuroscience 64 (5) e70655. (10.1111/ejn.70655)
- Chibnall, A. et al. 2026. Sex-specific consequences of loss-of-imprinting of the maternally expressed gene Pleckstrin Homology-Like Domain Family A Member 2 (Phlda2) on placental development and fetal growth. Biology of Sex Differences (10.1186/s13293-026-00972-z)
- Webberley, A. E. et al., 2026. Placental defects revealed by modelling PWS in mice. Disease Models & Mechanisms (10.1242/dmm.052833)
2024
- John, R. M. 2024. The placenta as a neuroendocrine organ. In: Brunton, P. J. and Grattan, D. R. eds. Neuroendocrine Regulation of Mammalian Pregnancy and Lactation. Springer. , pp.21-63. (10.1007/978-3-031-51138-7_2)
- Prodani, C. et al., 2024. Protein restriction during pregnancy alters Cdkn1c silencing, dopamine circuitry and offspring behaviour without changing expression of key neuronal marker genes. Scientific Reports 14 (1) 8528. (10.1038/s41598-024-59083-7)
- Tyson, H. R. et al. 2024. Deficiency of the paternally-expressed imprinted Peg3 gene in mice has sexually dimorphic consequences for offspring communication and social behaviour. Frontiers in Neuroscience 18 1374781. (10.3389/fnins.2024.1374781)
2023
- John, R. , Higgs, M. J. and Isles, A. R. 2023. Imprinted genes and the manipulation of parenting in mammals. Nature Reviews Genetics 24 (10.1038/s41576-023-00644-3)
- Higgs, M. et al. 2023. The parenting hub of the hypothalamus is a focus of imprinted gene action. PLoS Genetics 19 (10) e1010961. (10.1371/journal.pgen.1010961)
- Burgess, R. et al., 2023. A quantitative evaluation of thin slice sampling for parent-infant interactions. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior 47 , pp.117-210. (10.1007/s10919-022-00420-7)
2022
- Higgs, M. et al. 2022. Systematic investigation of imprinted gene expression and enrichment in the mouse brain explored at single-cell resolution. BMC Genomics 23 754. (10.1186/s12864-022-08986-8)
- Garay, S. M. , Sumption, L. and John, R. 2022. Prenatal health behaviours as predictors of human placental lactogen levels. Frontiers in Endocrinology 13 946539. (10.3389/fendo.2022.946539)
- Dingsdale, H. et al. 2022. Cord serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels at birth associate with temperament outcomes at one year. Journal of Psychiatric Research 150 47-53. (10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.03.009)
- Van de Pette, M. et al., 2022. Epigenetic changes induced by in utero dietary challenge result in phenotypic variability in successive generations of mice. Nature Communications 13 (1) 2464. (10.1038/s41467-022-30022-2)
- John, R. M. 2022. In support of the placental programming hypothesis: Placental endocrine insufficiency programs atypical behaviour in mothers and their offspring. Experimental Physiology 107 (5), pp.398-404. (10.1113/EP089916)
- John, R. M. , Lefebvre, L. and Surani, M. A. 2022. Genomic imprinting: a paradigm for epigenetics of human diseases. In: Michels, K. B. ed. Epigenetic Epidemiology (2nd Edition). Springer, Cham. , pp.171-212. (10.1007/978-3-030-94475-9_8)
2021
- Savory, N. A. et al. 2021. Prevalence and predictors of poor mental health among pregnant women in Wales using a cross-sectional survey. Midwifery 103 103103. (10.1016/j.midw.2021.103103)
- Harrison, D. J. et al. 2021. Placental endocrine insufficiency programs anxiety, deficits in cognition and atypical social behaviour in offspring. Human Molecular Genetics 30 (19), pp.1863-1880. ddab154. (10.1093/hmg/ddab154)
- Garcia Martin, I. et al. 2021. Symptoms of prenatal depression associated with shorter telomeres in female placenta. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 22 (14) 7458. (10.3390/ijms22147458)
- Dingsdale, H. et al. 2021. The placenta protects the fetal circulation from anxiety-driven elevations in maternal serum levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Translational Psychiatry 11 (1) 62. (10.1038/s41398-020-01176-8)
- Garay, S. et al. 2021. Risk factors for excessive gestational weight gain in a UK population: A biopsychosocial model approach. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 21 43. (10.1186/s12884-020-03519-1)
2020
- Creeth, H. D. J. and John, R. M. 2020. The placental programming hypothesis: placental endocrine insufficiency and the co-occurrence of low birth weight and maternal mood disorders. Placenta 98 , pp.52-59. (10.1016/j.placenta.2020.03.011)
- Sumption, L. A. , Garay, S. M. and John, R. M. 2020. Low serum placental lactogen at term is associated with postnatal symptoms of depression and anxiety in women delivering female infants. Psychoneuroendocrinology 116 104655. (10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.104655)
- Harrison, D. J. et al. 2020. Unified behavioral scoring for preclinical models. Frontiers in Neuroscience 14 313. (10.3389/fnins.2020.00313)
- Savory, K. et al. 2020. Prenatal symptoms of anxiety and depression associated with sex differences in both maternal perceptions of one year old infant temperament and researcher observed infant characteristics. Journal of Affective Disorders 264 , pp.383-392. (10.1016/j.jad.2019.11.057)
2019
- Garay, S. M. et al. 2019. Seasonal variation in salivary cortisol but not symptoms of depression and trait anxiety in pregnant women undergoing an elective caesarean section. Psychoneuroendocrinology 108 , pp.14-19. (10.1016/j.psyneuen.2019.05.029)
- Seifinejad, A. et al., 2019. Molecular codes and in vitro generation of hypocretin and melanin concentrating hormone neurons. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 116 (34), pp.17061-17070. (10.1073/pnas.1902148116)
- John, R. M. 2019. Prenatal adversity modulates the quality of maternal care via the exposed offspring. BioEssays 41 (6) 1900025. (10.1002/bies.201900025)
- Creeth, H. D. J. et al., 2019. Imprinted genes influencing the quality of maternal care. Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology 53 100732. (10.1016/j.yfrne.2018.12.003)
- Garay, S. M. et al. 2019. The Grown in Wales Study: Examining dietary patterns, custom birthweight centiles and the risk of delivering a small-for-gestational age (SGA) infant. PLoS ONE 14 (3) e0213412. (10.1371/journal.pone.0213412)
- Tucci, V. et al., 2019. Genomic imprinting and physiological processes in mammals. Cell 176 (5), pp.952-965. (10.1016/j.cell.2019.01.043)
- Isles, A. R. and John, R. M. 2019. Genomic imprinting and neurobehavioral programming by adverse early life environments: evidence from studying Cdkn1c. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences 25 , pp.31-35. (10.1016/j.cobeha.2018.06.008)
2018
- Garcia-Martin, I. et al., 2018. Meformin and insulin treatment prevent placental telomere attrition in boys exposed to maternal diabetes. PLoS ONE 13 (12) : e0208533. (10.1371/journal.pone.0208533)
- Millership, S. J. et al. 2018. Neuronatin deletion causes postnatal growth restriction and adult obesity in 129S2/Sv mice. Molecular Metabolism 18 , pp.97-106. (10.1016/j.molmet.2018.09.001)
- Tunster, S. J. et al. 2018. Fetal growth restriction in a genetic model of sporadic Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome. Disease Models and Mechanisms 11 dmm035832. (10.1242/dmm.035832)
- John, R. and Rougelle, C. 2018. Developmental epigenetics: phenotype and the flexible epigenome. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology 6 130. (10.3389/fcell.2018.00130)
- Tunster, S. J. et al. 2018. Peg3 deficiency results in sexually dimorphic losses and gains in the normal repertoire of placental hormones. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology 6 123. (10.3389/fcell.2018.00123)
- Van de Pette, M. , Tunster, S. J. and John, R. M. 2018. Loss of imprinting of Cdkn1c protects against age and diet-induced obesity. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 19 (9) 2734. (10.3390/ijms19092734)
- Janssen, A. et al., 2018. Persistence of anxiety symptoms after elective caesarean delivery. Bjpsych Open 4 (5), pp.354-360. (10.1192/bjo.2018.48)
- Millership, S. J. et al., 2018. Neuronatin regulates pancreatic β cell insulin content and secretion. Journal of Clinical Investigation 128 (8), pp.3369-3381. (10.1172/JCI120115)
- Creeth, H. D. J. et al. 2018. Maternal care boosted by paternal imprinting in mammals. PLoS Biology 16 (7) e2006599. (10.1371/journal.pbio.2006599)
- McNamara, G. I. et al. 2018. Dopaminergic and behavioral changes in a loss-of-imprinting model of Cdkn1c. Genes, Brain and Behavior 17 (2), pp.149-157. (10.1111/gbb.12422)
- McNamara, G. , John, R. and Isles, A. 2018. Territorial behaviour and social stability in the mouse require correct expression of imprinted Cdkn1c. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience 12 28. (10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00028)
- McNamara, G. I. et al. 2018. Loss of offspring Peg3 reduces neonatal ultrasonic vocalizations and increases maternal anxiety in wild-type mothers. Human Molecular Genetics 27 (3), pp.440-450. (10.1093/hmg/ddx412)
2017
- Garcia Martin, I. et al. 2017. Telomere length heterogeneity in placenta revealed with high-resolution telomere length analysis. Placenta 59 , pp.61-68. (10.1016/j.placenta.2017.09.007)
- Nomura, Y. et al., 2017. Neurodevelopmental consequences in offspring of mothers with preeclampsia during pregnancy: underlying biological mechanism via imprinting genes. Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics 295 (6), pp.1319-1329. (10.1007/s00404-017-4347-3)
- Van de Pette, M. et al., 2017. Visualizing changes in Cdkn1c expression links early-Life adversity to imprint mis-regulation in adults. Cell Reports 18 (5), pp.1090-1099. (10.1016/j.celrep.2017.01.010)
- John, R. M. 2017. Imprinted genes and the regulation of placental endocrine function: pregnancy and beyond. Placenta 56 , pp.86-90. (10.1016/j.placenta.2017.01.099)
2016
- McNamara, G. I. et al. 2016. Behavioural abnormalities in a novel mouse model for Silver Russell Syndrome. Human Molecular Genetics 25 (24), pp.5407-5417. (10.1093/hmg/ddw357)
- Tunster, S. J. et al. 2016. Increased dosage of the imprinted Ascl2 gene restrains two key endocrine lineages of the mouse Placenta. Developmental Biology 418 (1), pp.55-65. (10.1016/j.ydbio.2016.08.014)
- Janssen, A. B. et al. 2016. A role for the placenta in programming maternal mood and childhood behavioural disorders. Journal of Neuroendocrinology 28 (8)(10.1111/jne.12373)
- Van De Pette, M. et al., 2016. Cdkn1c boosts the development of brown adipose tissue in a murine model of Silver Russell Syndrome. PLoS Genetics 12 (3) e1005916. (10.1371/journal.pgen.1005916)
- Janssen, A. B. et al., 2016. Placental PHLDA2 expression is increased in cases of fetal growth restriction following reduced fetal movements. BMC Medical Genetics 17 (1) 17. (10.1186/s12881-016-0279-1)
- Tunster, S. J. , Creeth, H. and John, R. M. 2016. The imprinted Phlda2 gene modulates a major endocrine compartment of the placenta to regulate placental demands for maternal resources. Developmental Biology 409 (1), pp.251-260. (10.1016/j.ydbio.2015.10.015)
- Janssen, A. et al. 2016. Maternal prenatal depression is associated with decreased placental expression of the imprinted gene PEG3. Psychological Medicine 46 (14), pp.2999-3011. (10.1017/S0033291716001598)
2015
- Janssen, A. B. et al. 2015. Placental expression of imprinted genes varies with sampling site and mode of delivery. Placenta 36 (8), pp.790-795. (10.1016/j.placenta.2015.06.011)
- Kitamura, A. et al., 2015. Epigenetic alterations in sperm associated with male infertility. Congenital Anomalies 55 (3), pp.133-144. (10.1111/cga.12113)
2014
- Tunster, S. J. , Van De Pette, M. and John, R. M. 2014. Isolating the role of elevated Phlda2 in asymmetric late fetal growth restriction in mice. Disease Models & Mechanisms 7 (10), pp.1185-1191. (10.1242/dmm.017079)
- Jensen, A. B. , Tunster, S. J. and John, R. M. 2014. The significance of elevated placental PHLDA2 in human growth restricted pregnancies. Placenta 35 (8), pp.528-532. (10.1016/j.placenta.2014.04.018)
- Hiura, H. et al., 2014. A tripartite paternally methylated region within the Gpr1-Zdbf2 imprinted domain on mouse chromosome 1 identified by meDIP-on-chip [Correction]. Nucleic Acids Research 42 (16) 10869. (10.1093/nar/gku624)
2013
- John, R. M. 2013. Epigenetic regulation of placental endocrine lineages and complications of pregnancy. Biochemical Society Transactions 41 (3), pp.701-709. (10.1042/BST20130002)
- Tunster, S. J. , Jensen, A. B. and John, R. M. 2013. Imprinted genes in mouse placental development and the regulation of fetal energy stores. Reproduction 145 (5), pp.R117-R137. (10.1530/REP-12-0511)
2012
- Reed, K. R. et al. 2012. Entopic overexpression of Ascl2 does not accelerate tumourigenesis in ApcMin mice. Gut 61 (10), pp.1435-1438. (10.1136/gutjnl-2011-300842)
- Ackerman, W. E. I. et al., 2012. IFPA Meeting 2011 workshop report III: Placental immunology; epigenetic and microRNA-dependent gene regulation; comparative placentation; trophoblast differentiation; stem cells.. Placenta 33 (Suppl), pp.S15-S22. (10.1016/j.placenta.2011.11.022)
- Clarke, A. J. et al., 2012. 'Sifting the significance from the data' - the impact of high-throughput genomic technologies on human genetics and health care. Human Genomics 6 11. (10.1186/1479-7364-6-11)
- Hiura, H. et al., 2012. Characterization of DNA methylation errors in patients with imprinting disorders conceived by assisted reproduction technologies. Human Reproduction 27 (8), pp.2541-2548. (10.1093/humrep/des197)
- John, R. M. and Hemberger, M. 2012. A placenta for life. Reproductive BioMedicine Online 25 (1), pp.5-11. (10.1016/j.rbmo.2012.03.018)
- Lewis, R. M. et al., 2012. Relationship between placental expression of the imprinted PHLDA2 gene, intrauterine skeletal growth and childhood bone mass. Bone 50 (1), pp.337-342. (10.1016/j.bone.2011.11.003)
- Tunster, S. J. , Van De Pette, M. and John, R. M. 2012. Impact of genetic background on placental glycogen storage in mice.. Placenta 33 (2), pp.124-127. (10.1016/j.placenta.2011.11.011)
2011
- John, R. M. and Lefebvre, L. 2011. Developmental regulation of somatic imprints.. Differentiation 81 (5), pp.270-280. (10.1016/j.diff.2011.01.007)
- Tunster, S. J. , Van De Pette, M. and John, R. M. 2011. BACs as tools for the study of genomic imprinting. Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology 2011 283013. (10.1155/2011/283013)
- Tunster, S. J. , Van De Pette, M. and John, R. M. 2011. Fetal overgrowth in the Cdkn1c mouse model of Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome. Disease Models & Mechanisms 4 (6), pp.814-821. (10.1242/dmm.007328)
2010
- Hiura, H. et al., 2010. A tripartite paternally methylated region within the Gpr1-Zdbf2 imprinted domain on mouse chromosome 1 identified by meDIP-on-chip. Nucleic Acids Research 38 (15), pp.4929-4945. (10.1093/nar/gkq200)
- John, R. M. 2010. Engineering mouse models to investigate the function of imprinting. Briefings in Functional Genomics 9 (4), pp.294-303. (10.1093/bfgp/elq010)
- Tunster, S. J. , Tycko, B. and John, R. M. 2010. The imprinted Phlda2 gene regulates extraembryonic energy stores. Molecular and Cellular Biology 30 (1), pp.295-306. (10.1128/MCB.00662-09)
- Wood, M. D. et al., 2010. Autonomous silencing of the imprinted Cdkn1c gene in stem cells. Epigenetics 5 (3), pp.214-221. (10.4161/epi.5.3.11275)
2009
- Kobayashi, H. et al., 2009. DNA methylation errors at imprinted loci after assisted conception originate in the parental sperm. European Journal of Human Genetics 17 (1582-1)(10.1038/ejhg.2009.68)
2008
- Sowpati, D. et al., 2008. An intronic DNA sequence within the mouse Neuronatin gene exhibits biochemical characteristics of an ICR and acts as a transcriptional activator in Drosophila. Mechanisms of Development 125 (11/12), pp.963-973. (10.1016/j.mod.2008.08.002 |)
2007
- Andrews, S. C. et al. 2007. Cdkn1c (p57Kip2) is the major regulator of embryonic growth within its imprinted domain on mouse distal chromosome 7. BMC Developmental Biology 7 53. (10.1186/1471-213x-7-53)
2006
- Arima, T. et al., 2006. The human HYMAI/PLAGL1 differentially methylated region acts as an imprint control region in mice. Genomics 88 (5), pp.650-658. (10.1016/j.ygeno.2006.07.005)
- Azuara, V. et al., 2006. Chromatin signatures of pluripotent cell lines. Nature Cell Biology 8 (5), pp.532-538. (10.1038/ncb1403)
2005
- Zvetkova, I. et al., 2005. Global hypomethylation of the genome in XX embryonic stem cells. Nature Genetics 37 (11), pp.1274-1279. (10.1038/ng1663)
2004
- Baxter, J. et al., 2004. Histone hypomethylation is an indicator of epigenetic plasticity in quiescent lymphocytes. EMBO Journal 23 (22), pp.4462-4472. (10.1038/sj.emboj.7600414)
- Salas, M. et al., 2004. Placental growth retardation due to loss of imprinting of Phlda2. Mechanisms of Development 121 (10), pp.1199-1210. (10.1016/j.mod.2004.05.017)
2002
- Ainscough, J. , John, R. M. and Barton, S. C. 2002. Production of YAC transgenic mice by pronuclear injection. In: Ward, A. ed. Genomic Imprinting. Vol. 181, Methods in Molecular Biology Humana Press. , pp.55-65. (10.1385/1-59259-211-2:55)
- John, R. M. , Ainscough, J. and Barton, S. C. 2002. A transgenic approach to studying imprinted genes: modified BACs and PACs. In: Ward, A. ed. Genomic Imprinting. Vol. 181, Methods in Molecular Biology Humana Press. , pp.67-81. (10.1385/1-59259-211-2:67)
2001
- John, R. M. et al. 2001. Imprinted Expression of Neuronatin from Modified BAC Transgenes Reveals Regulation by Distinct and Distant Enhancers. Developmental Biology 236 (2), pp.387-399. (10.1006/dbio.2001.0327)
- John, R. M. et al. 2001. Distant cis-elements regulate imprinted expression of the mouse p57Kip2 (Cdkn1c) gene: Implications for the human disorder, Beckwith–Wiedemann syndrome. Human Molecular Genetics Vol.10 (15), pp.1601-1609. (10.1093/hmg/10.15.1601)
2000
- Ainscough, J. et al., 2000. A skeletal muscle-specific mouse Igf2 repressor lies 40 kb downstream of the gene. Development 127 (18), pp.3923-3930.
- John, R. M. 2000. Genomic imprinting, mammalian evolution, and the mystery of egg-laying mammals. Cell 101 (6), pp.585-588.
Articles
- Jones, R. et al. 2026. Investigating the contribution of the imprinted gene Asb4 to parental care. European Journal of Neuroscience 64 (5) e70655. (10.1111/ejn.70655)
- Chibnall, A. et al. 2026. Sex-specific consequences of loss-of-imprinting of the maternally expressed gene Pleckstrin Homology-Like Domain Family A Member 2 (Phlda2) on placental development and fetal growth. Biology of Sex Differences (10.1186/s13293-026-00972-z)
- Webberley, A. E. et al., 2026. Placental defects revealed by modelling PWS in mice. Disease Models & Mechanisms (10.1242/dmm.052833)
- Prodani, C. et al., 2024. Protein restriction during pregnancy alters Cdkn1c silencing, dopamine circuitry and offspring behaviour without changing expression of key neuronal marker genes. Scientific Reports 14 (1) 8528. (10.1038/s41598-024-59083-7)
- Tyson, H. R. et al. 2024. Deficiency of the paternally-expressed imprinted Peg3 gene in mice has sexually dimorphic consequences for offspring communication and social behaviour. Frontiers in Neuroscience 18 1374781. (10.3389/fnins.2024.1374781)
- John, R. , Higgs, M. J. and Isles, A. R. 2023. Imprinted genes and the manipulation of parenting in mammals. Nature Reviews Genetics 24 (10.1038/s41576-023-00644-3)
- Higgs, M. et al. 2023. The parenting hub of the hypothalamus is a focus of imprinted gene action. PLoS Genetics 19 (10) e1010961. (10.1371/journal.pgen.1010961)
- Burgess, R. et al., 2023. A quantitative evaluation of thin slice sampling for parent-infant interactions. Journal of Nonverbal Behavior 47 , pp.117-210. (10.1007/s10919-022-00420-7)
- Higgs, M. et al. 2022. Systematic investigation of imprinted gene expression and enrichment in the mouse brain explored at single-cell resolution. BMC Genomics 23 754. (10.1186/s12864-022-08986-8)
- Garay, S. M. , Sumption, L. and John, R. 2022. Prenatal health behaviours as predictors of human placental lactogen levels. Frontiers in Endocrinology 13 946539. (10.3389/fendo.2022.946539)
- Dingsdale, H. et al. 2022. Cord serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor levels at birth associate with temperament outcomes at one year. Journal of Psychiatric Research 150 47-53. (10.1016/j.jpsychires.2022.03.009)
- Van de Pette, M. et al., 2022. Epigenetic changes induced by in utero dietary challenge result in phenotypic variability in successive generations of mice. Nature Communications 13 (1) 2464. (10.1038/s41467-022-30022-2)
- John, R. M. 2022. In support of the placental programming hypothesis: Placental endocrine insufficiency programs atypical behaviour in mothers and their offspring. Experimental Physiology 107 (5), pp.398-404. (10.1113/EP089916)
- Savory, N. A. et al. 2021. Prevalence and predictors of poor mental health among pregnant women in Wales using a cross-sectional survey. Midwifery 103 103103. (10.1016/j.midw.2021.103103)
- Harrison, D. J. et al. 2021. Placental endocrine insufficiency programs anxiety, deficits in cognition and atypical social behaviour in offspring. Human Molecular Genetics 30 (19), pp.1863-1880. ddab154. (10.1093/hmg/ddab154)
- Garcia Martin, I. et al. 2021. Symptoms of prenatal depression associated with shorter telomeres in female placenta. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 22 (14) 7458. (10.3390/ijms22147458)
- Dingsdale, H. et al. 2021. The placenta protects the fetal circulation from anxiety-driven elevations in maternal serum levels of brain-derived neurotrophic factor. Translational Psychiatry 11 (1) 62. (10.1038/s41398-020-01176-8)
- Garay, S. et al. 2021. Risk factors for excessive gestational weight gain in a UK population: A biopsychosocial model approach. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 21 43. (10.1186/s12884-020-03519-1)
- Creeth, H. D. J. and John, R. M. 2020. The placental programming hypothesis: placental endocrine insufficiency and the co-occurrence of low birth weight and maternal mood disorders. Placenta 98 , pp.52-59. (10.1016/j.placenta.2020.03.011)
- Sumption, L. A. , Garay, S. M. and John, R. M. 2020. Low serum placental lactogen at term is associated with postnatal symptoms of depression and anxiety in women delivering female infants. Psychoneuroendocrinology 116 104655. (10.1016/j.psyneuen.2020.104655)
- Harrison, D. J. et al. 2020. Unified behavioral scoring for preclinical models. Frontiers in Neuroscience 14 313. (10.3389/fnins.2020.00313)
- Savory, K. et al. 2020. Prenatal symptoms of anxiety and depression associated with sex differences in both maternal perceptions of one year old infant temperament and researcher observed infant characteristics. Journal of Affective Disorders 264 , pp.383-392. (10.1016/j.jad.2019.11.057)
- Garay, S. M. et al. 2019. Seasonal variation in salivary cortisol but not symptoms of depression and trait anxiety in pregnant women undergoing an elective caesarean section. Psychoneuroendocrinology 108 , pp.14-19. (10.1016/j.psyneuen.2019.05.029)
- Seifinejad, A. et al., 2019. Molecular codes and in vitro generation of hypocretin and melanin concentrating hormone neurons. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 116 (34), pp.17061-17070. (10.1073/pnas.1902148116)
- John, R. M. 2019. Prenatal adversity modulates the quality of maternal care via the exposed offspring. BioEssays 41 (6) 1900025. (10.1002/bies.201900025)
- Creeth, H. D. J. et al., 2019. Imprinted genes influencing the quality of maternal care. Frontiers in Neuroendocrinology 53 100732. (10.1016/j.yfrne.2018.12.003)
- Garay, S. M. et al. 2019. The Grown in Wales Study: Examining dietary patterns, custom birthweight centiles and the risk of delivering a small-for-gestational age (SGA) infant. PLoS ONE 14 (3) e0213412. (10.1371/journal.pone.0213412)
- Tucci, V. et al., 2019. Genomic imprinting and physiological processes in mammals. Cell 176 (5), pp.952-965. (10.1016/j.cell.2019.01.043)
- Isles, A. R. and John, R. M. 2019. Genomic imprinting and neurobehavioral programming by adverse early life environments: evidence from studying Cdkn1c. Current Opinion in Behavioral Sciences 25 , pp.31-35. (10.1016/j.cobeha.2018.06.008)
- Garcia-Martin, I. et al., 2018. Meformin and insulin treatment prevent placental telomere attrition in boys exposed to maternal diabetes. PLoS ONE 13 (12) : e0208533. (10.1371/journal.pone.0208533)
- Millership, S. J. et al. 2018. Neuronatin deletion causes postnatal growth restriction and adult obesity in 129S2/Sv mice. Molecular Metabolism 18 , pp.97-106. (10.1016/j.molmet.2018.09.001)
- Tunster, S. J. et al. 2018. Fetal growth restriction in a genetic model of sporadic Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome. Disease Models and Mechanisms 11 dmm035832. (10.1242/dmm.035832)
- John, R. and Rougelle, C. 2018. Developmental epigenetics: phenotype and the flexible epigenome. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology 6 130. (10.3389/fcell.2018.00130)
- Tunster, S. J. et al. 2018. Peg3 deficiency results in sexually dimorphic losses and gains in the normal repertoire of placental hormones. Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology 6 123. (10.3389/fcell.2018.00123)
- Van de Pette, M. , Tunster, S. J. and John, R. M. 2018. Loss of imprinting of Cdkn1c protects against age and diet-induced obesity. International Journal of Molecular Sciences 19 (9) 2734. (10.3390/ijms19092734)
- Janssen, A. et al., 2018. Persistence of anxiety symptoms after elective caesarean delivery. Bjpsych Open 4 (5), pp.354-360. (10.1192/bjo.2018.48)
- Millership, S. J. et al., 2018. Neuronatin regulates pancreatic β cell insulin content and secretion. Journal of Clinical Investigation 128 (8), pp.3369-3381. (10.1172/JCI120115)
- Creeth, H. D. J. et al. 2018. Maternal care boosted by paternal imprinting in mammals. PLoS Biology 16 (7) e2006599. (10.1371/journal.pbio.2006599)
- McNamara, G. I. et al. 2018. Dopaminergic and behavioral changes in a loss-of-imprinting model of Cdkn1c. Genes, Brain and Behavior 17 (2), pp.149-157. (10.1111/gbb.12422)
- McNamara, G. , John, R. and Isles, A. 2018. Territorial behaviour and social stability in the mouse require correct expression of imprinted Cdkn1c. Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience 12 28. (10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00028)
- McNamara, G. I. et al. 2018. Loss of offspring Peg3 reduces neonatal ultrasonic vocalizations and increases maternal anxiety in wild-type mothers. Human Molecular Genetics 27 (3), pp.440-450. (10.1093/hmg/ddx412)
- Garcia Martin, I. et al. 2017. Telomere length heterogeneity in placenta revealed with high-resolution telomere length analysis. Placenta 59 , pp.61-68. (10.1016/j.placenta.2017.09.007)
- Nomura, Y. et al., 2017. Neurodevelopmental consequences in offspring of mothers with preeclampsia during pregnancy: underlying biological mechanism via imprinting genes. Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics 295 (6), pp.1319-1329. (10.1007/s00404-017-4347-3)
- Van de Pette, M. et al., 2017. Visualizing changes in Cdkn1c expression links early-Life adversity to imprint mis-regulation in adults. Cell Reports 18 (5), pp.1090-1099. (10.1016/j.celrep.2017.01.010)
- John, R. M. 2017. Imprinted genes and the regulation of placental endocrine function: pregnancy and beyond. Placenta 56 , pp.86-90. (10.1016/j.placenta.2017.01.099)
- McNamara, G. I. et al. 2016. Behavioural abnormalities in a novel mouse model for Silver Russell Syndrome. Human Molecular Genetics 25 (24), pp.5407-5417. (10.1093/hmg/ddw357)
- Tunster, S. J. et al. 2016. Increased dosage of the imprinted Ascl2 gene restrains two key endocrine lineages of the mouse Placenta. Developmental Biology 418 (1), pp.55-65. (10.1016/j.ydbio.2016.08.014)
- Janssen, A. B. et al. 2016. A role for the placenta in programming maternal mood and childhood behavioural disorders. Journal of Neuroendocrinology 28 (8)(10.1111/jne.12373)
- Van De Pette, M. et al., 2016. Cdkn1c boosts the development of brown adipose tissue in a murine model of Silver Russell Syndrome. PLoS Genetics 12 (3) e1005916. (10.1371/journal.pgen.1005916)
- Janssen, A. B. et al., 2016. Placental PHLDA2 expression is increased in cases of fetal growth restriction following reduced fetal movements. BMC Medical Genetics 17 (1) 17. (10.1186/s12881-016-0279-1)
- Tunster, S. J. , Creeth, H. and John, R. M. 2016. The imprinted Phlda2 gene modulates a major endocrine compartment of the placenta to regulate placental demands for maternal resources. Developmental Biology 409 (1), pp.251-260. (10.1016/j.ydbio.2015.10.015)
- Janssen, A. et al. 2016. Maternal prenatal depression is associated with decreased placental expression of the imprinted gene PEG3. Psychological Medicine 46 (14), pp.2999-3011. (10.1017/S0033291716001598)
- Janssen, A. B. et al. 2015. Placental expression of imprinted genes varies with sampling site and mode of delivery. Placenta 36 (8), pp.790-795. (10.1016/j.placenta.2015.06.011)
- Kitamura, A. et al., 2015. Epigenetic alterations in sperm associated with male infertility. Congenital Anomalies 55 (3), pp.133-144. (10.1111/cga.12113)
- Tunster, S. J. , Van De Pette, M. and John, R. M. 2014. Isolating the role of elevated Phlda2 in asymmetric late fetal growth restriction in mice. Disease Models & Mechanisms 7 (10), pp.1185-1191. (10.1242/dmm.017079)
- Jensen, A. B. , Tunster, S. J. and John, R. M. 2014. The significance of elevated placental PHLDA2 in human growth restricted pregnancies. Placenta 35 (8), pp.528-532. (10.1016/j.placenta.2014.04.018)
- Hiura, H. et al., 2014. A tripartite paternally methylated region within the Gpr1-Zdbf2 imprinted domain on mouse chromosome 1 identified by meDIP-on-chip [Correction]. Nucleic Acids Research 42 (16) 10869. (10.1093/nar/gku624)
- John, R. M. 2013. Epigenetic regulation of placental endocrine lineages and complications of pregnancy. Biochemical Society Transactions 41 (3), pp.701-709. (10.1042/BST20130002)
- Tunster, S. J. , Jensen, A. B. and John, R. M. 2013. Imprinted genes in mouse placental development and the regulation of fetal energy stores. Reproduction 145 (5), pp.R117-R137. (10.1530/REP-12-0511)
- Reed, K. R. et al. 2012. Entopic overexpression of Ascl2 does not accelerate tumourigenesis in ApcMin mice. Gut 61 (10), pp.1435-1438. (10.1136/gutjnl-2011-300842)
- Ackerman, W. E. I. et al., 2012. IFPA Meeting 2011 workshop report III: Placental immunology; epigenetic and microRNA-dependent gene regulation; comparative placentation; trophoblast differentiation; stem cells.. Placenta 33 (Suppl), pp.S15-S22. (10.1016/j.placenta.2011.11.022)
- Clarke, A. J. et al., 2012. 'Sifting the significance from the data' - the impact of high-throughput genomic technologies on human genetics and health care. Human Genomics 6 11. (10.1186/1479-7364-6-11)
- Hiura, H. et al., 2012. Characterization of DNA methylation errors in patients with imprinting disorders conceived by assisted reproduction technologies. Human Reproduction 27 (8), pp.2541-2548. (10.1093/humrep/des197)
- John, R. M. and Hemberger, M. 2012. A placenta for life. Reproductive BioMedicine Online 25 (1), pp.5-11. (10.1016/j.rbmo.2012.03.018)
- Lewis, R. M. et al., 2012. Relationship between placental expression of the imprinted PHLDA2 gene, intrauterine skeletal growth and childhood bone mass. Bone 50 (1), pp.337-342. (10.1016/j.bone.2011.11.003)
- Tunster, S. J. , Van De Pette, M. and John, R. M. 2012. Impact of genetic background on placental glycogen storage in mice.. Placenta 33 (2), pp.124-127. (10.1016/j.placenta.2011.11.011)
- John, R. M. and Lefebvre, L. 2011. Developmental regulation of somatic imprints.. Differentiation 81 (5), pp.270-280. (10.1016/j.diff.2011.01.007)
- Tunster, S. J. , Van De Pette, M. and John, R. M. 2011. BACs as tools for the study of genomic imprinting. Journal of Biomedicine and Biotechnology 2011 283013. (10.1155/2011/283013)
- Tunster, S. J. , Van De Pette, M. and John, R. M. 2011. Fetal overgrowth in the Cdkn1c mouse model of Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome. Disease Models & Mechanisms 4 (6), pp.814-821. (10.1242/dmm.007328)
- Hiura, H. et al., 2010. A tripartite paternally methylated region within the Gpr1-Zdbf2 imprinted domain on mouse chromosome 1 identified by meDIP-on-chip. Nucleic Acids Research 38 (15), pp.4929-4945. (10.1093/nar/gkq200)
- John, R. M. 2010. Engineering mouse models to investigate the function of imprinting. Briefings in Functional Genomics 9 (4), pp.294-303. (10.1093/bfgp/elq010)
- Tunster, S. J. , Tycko, B. and John, R. M. 2010. The imprinted Phlda2 gene regulates extraembryonic energy stores. Molecular and Cellular Biology 30 (1), pp.295-306. (10.1128/MCB.00662-09)
- Wood, M. D. et al., 2010. Autonomous silencing of the imprinted Cdkn1c gene in stem cells. Epigenetics 5 (3), pp.214-221. (10.4161/epi.5.3.11275)
- Kobayashi, H. et al., 2009. DNA methylation errors at imprinted loci after assisted conception originate in the parental sperm. European Journal of Human Genetics 17 (1582-1)(10.1038/ejhg.2009.68)
- Sowpati, D. et al., 2008. An intronic DNA sequence within the mouse Neuronatin gene exhibits biochemical characteristics of an ICR and acts as a transcriptional activator in Drosophila. Mechanisms of Development 125 (11/12), pp.963-973. (10.1016/j.mod.2008.08.002 |)
- Andrews, S. C. et al. 2007. Cdkn1c (p57Kip2) is the major regulator of embryonic growth within its imprinted domain on mouse distal chromosome 7. BMC Developmental Biology 7 53. (10.1186/1471-213x-7-53)
- Arima, T. et al., 2006. The human HYMAI/PLAGL1 differentially methylated region acts as an imprint control region in mice. Genomics 88 (5), pp.650-658. (10.1016/j.ygeno.2006.07.005)
- Azuara, V. et al., 2006. Chromatin signatures of pluripotent cell lines. Nature Cell Biology 8 (5), pp.532-538. (10.1038/ncb1403)
- Zvetkova, I. et al., 2005. Global hypomethylation of the genome in XX embryonic stem cells. Nature Genetics 37 (11), pp.1274-1279. (10.1038/ng1663)
- Baxter, J. et al., 2004. Histone hypomethylation is an indicator of epigenetic plasticity in quiescent lymphocytes. EMBO Journal 23 (22), pp.4462-4472. (10.1038/sj.emboj.7600414)
- Salas, M. et al., 2004. Placental growth retardation due to loss of imprinting of Phlda2. Mechanisms of Development 121 (10), pp.1199-1210. (10.1016/j.mod.2004.05.017)
- John, R. M. et al. 2001. Imprinted Expression of Neuronatin from Modified BAC Transgenes Reveals Regulation by Distinct and Distant Enhancers. Developmental Biology 236 (2), pp.387-399. (10.1006/dbio.2001.0327)
- John, R. M. et al. 2001. Distant cis-elements regulate imprinted expression of the mouse p57Kip2 (Cdkn1c) gene: Implications for the human disorder, Beckwith–Wiedemann syndrome. Human Molecular Genetics Vol.10 (15), pp.1601-1609. (10.1093/hmg/10.15.1601)
- Ainscough, J. et al., 2000. A skeletal muscle-specific mouse Igf2 repressor lies 40 kb downstream of the gene. Development 127 (18), pp.3923-3930.
- John, R. M. 2000. Genomic imprinting, mammalian evolution, and the mystery of egg-laying mammals. Cell 101 (6), pp.585-588.
Book sections
- John, R. M. 2024. The placenta as a neuroendocrine organ. In: Brunton, P. J. and Grattan, D. R. eds. Neuroendocrine Regulation of Mammalian Pregnancy and Lactation. Springer. , pp.21-63. (10.1007/978-3-031-51138-7_2)
- John, R. M. , Lefebvre, L. and Surani, M. A. 2022. Genomic imprinting: a paradigm for epigenetics of human diseases. In: Michels, K. B. ed. Epigenetic Epidemiology (2nd Edition). Springer, Cham. , pp.171-212. (10.1007/978-3-030-94475-9_8)
- Ainscough, J. , John, R. M. and Barton, S. C. 2002. Production of YAC transgenic mice by pronuclear injection. In: Ward, A. ed. Genomic Imprinting. Vol. 181, Methods in Molecular Biology Humana Press. , pp.55-65. (10.1385/1-59259-211-2:55)
- John, R. M. , Ainscough, J. and Barton, S. C. 2002. A transgenic approach to studying imprinted genes: modified BACs and PACs. In: Ward, A. ed. Genomic Imprinting. Vol. 181, Methods in Molecular Biology Humana Press. , pp.67-81. (10.1385/1-59259-211-2:67)
Research
Summary
The principal interest of my laboratory lies in understanding how epigenetic marks direct mammalian development with a particular focus on in utero processes, and how exposure during critically sensitive windows in development can alter outcomes for both mother and child.
Links
1) Public Genetics & Genomics Conference December 2024
"Surprising things you may not know about the placenta"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1H6bR2kQ9RE/
2) Grown in Wales Study
https://www.cardiff.ac.uk/biosciences/research/projects/grown-in-wales
3) Genetics Society Podcast Oct 7th 2021
https://geneticsunzipped.com/blog/2021/10/7/science-genetics-placenta-mother-baby
Genomic Imprinting
Genomic imprinting is an epigenetic system, first initiated in the germ line, that directs the allele-specific expression of a small set of developmentally important genes (Figure 1). Imprinted genes function within a myriad of networks to regulate fetal growth, placental development, metabolism and behaviour. The aberrant expression of imprinted genes has been reported in relation to low birth weight, placental dysfunction, metabolic and psychiatric diseases. A goal of our research is to further understand the dosage-related function of imprinted genes in development and disease. We are also investigating factors and lifestyles which may influence the expression of imprinted genes early in life resulting in pregnancy complications, mood disorders and poorer behavioural outcomes for children both in the short term and across the life course.
The placenta
We have demonstrated that certain imprinted genes regulate the size of the endocrine compartment of the placenta and consequently modulate the production of placental hormones (Figure 2). During pregnancy placental hormones flood the maternal circulation to induce the physiological changes required for a successful pregnancy. Placental hormones ensure nutrient availability to ensure appropriate fetal growth. Placental hormones also prime the maternal brain in preparation for mothering the newborn infant. Funded by BBSRC, we are using unique experimental models based on the genetically modified expression of imprinted genes to experimentally show that imprinted genes influence fetal growth and maternal caregiving through the regulation of placental endocrine lineages (Figure 3).
Environmental programming
Imprinted genes are regulated by epigenetic marks that can respond to environmental factors. In addition to exploring the consequences of aberrant imprinted gene expression, funded by BBSRC we are investigating whether specific maternal diets or conditions can influence gene expression in the placenta causing placental endocrine dysfunction (Figure 4) and in the fetus directly influencing development, both of which may be linked to the poorer outcomes for children.
Lifelong health
It is well known that prenatal adversity is associated with poorer outcomes for children including behavioural difficulties and metabolic disorders. Funded by BBSRC and Wellcome Trust, we are exploring the consequences of placental endocrine dysfunction on offspring outcomes focusing on offspring behaviour (Figure 4).
Clinical engagement
The imprinted genes we are studying regulate placental development, fetal growth and maternal adaptations to pregnancy via the regulation of placental signalling. The aberrant expression of imprinted genes is common in a number of human disorders of pregnancy including low birth weight, gestational diabetes and preeclampsia. Our recent work suggests that aberrant imprinting may also have relevance to maternal mood disorders programmed by placental dysfunction. Funded by MRC, we initiated “The Grown in Wales” Study (Figure 5) to collect of data and biological samples including placenta from women delivering locally at University Hospital Wales to integrate the knowledge gained from our experimental models with studies on human samples. We are also assessing the development and behaviour of the children from this study in “The Grown in Wales Infant Study” funded by The Waterloo Foundation. Our work will promote the optimal interpretation of clinical data with a longer-term goal of improving diagnostic performance and the identification of possible therapeutic targets for treatment.
Clinical study
“The Grown in Wales Study: Developing and placentomic tool for characterising atypical pregnancies and predicting outcomes.”
REC reference number 15/WA/0004; IRAS project ID 166243; UKCRN ID 18894
Teaching
Teaching
BI2332 Concepts of Disease: Epigenetics and Underlying Principles
BI3351 Contemporary Topics in Disease: Mouse models of imprinting
BI3001 Biosciences Final Year Project.
BI3008 Integrated Masters Biomedical Group Project
BI4001 Integrated Masters Biomedical Individual Projects
BIT002 MRes Research Techniques in Bioscience: Research seminar
Biography
Rosalind M John is Professor of Developmental Epigenetics and Deputy Head for the School of Biosciences at Cardiff University responsible for Research, Innovation and Enterprise. She received her PhD from Imperial College, University of London and trained at University of San Francisco California (UCSF) and Stanford, USA, and Cambridge University. Over more than 25 years she has established an internationally recognised research programme studying genomic imprinting and placental biology transforming our understanding of how placental signalling influences maternal behaviour, offspring development and long-term outomes with major implications for human health. Her work has been funded primarily by continuous UKRI grants as Principal Investigator for more than two decades, and she has published extensively in prestigious journals within her discipline.
As Deputy Head: Research, Innovation and Enterprise and CU Co-Lead for Unit of Assessment 5 for REF2029 she provides strategic leadership for research across BIOSI playing a central role in REF2029 preparations, research culture development, grant support, promotions, strategic planning and infrastructure investment.
Nationally, she has served on BBSRC and MRC Response mode grant panels, UKRI FLF and UKRI special initiatives and strategic reviews of UKRI funded institutes. Currently she is a serving member of the MRC College of Experts and Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board of the MRC National Mouse Genetics Network. Alongside several invited and keynote presentations at national and international conferences, these roles provide evidence of influence over UK research strategy and investment and national/international esteem.
Professional memberships
- The Genetics Society;
- British Society of Developmental Biology;
- International Society for Developmental Origins of Health and Disease;
- International Federation Placenta Associations;
- European Placenta Group;
- ESRC InteSTELA network;
- GeCIPs (Genomics England Clinical Interpretation Partnerships) subdomain Imprinting Disorders: Epigenomics, Aetiology and Stratification, or IDEAS);
Committees and reviewing
- UKRI Future Leader fellowships Sift Panel Round 7 2023 -
- MRC National Mouse Genetics Network scientific advisory board, Chair (2023- )
- MRC Population and Systems Medicine Board 2021 -
- Royal Society Biological Awards Search Panel 2021 -
- Genetics Society Ordinary Committee Member 2021 -(Cell and Developmental Genetics )
- Speciality Chief Editor for Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology: Developmental Epigenetics (2019-2023)
- UKRI GCRF Health and Context Panel (2019-20)
- UKRI Future Leaders Fellowships Interview Panel Round 2 (2019)
- MRC Expert Review Panel for UK NRP Collaborative Awards (2019).
- BBSRC Expert Review Panel A (2011-2017)
Supervisions
There are many opportunities to study for a PhD in my group:
If you are interested in prenatal adversity, fetal programming, maternal behaviour and/or genomic imprinting AND have access to your own funding or opportunities to apply for funding with a supportive supervisor, please email me to make enquiries: [email protected]
For example, I am principal investigator for two human pregnancy cohorts
The Welsh Fetal Growth Restriction Cohort - focused on fetal growth restriction and low birth weight
The Grown in Wales Study - focused on maternal depression and anxiety
We also have follow up data for the Grown in Wales Infant Study currently aged 4 years.
PhD students can use these cohorts to study the relationship between specific maternal lifestyles, placental gene expression and outcomes for children with particular relevance to fetal growth restriction and infant neurodevelopment.
My group also work with experimental murine models of adversity which provide an opportunity for students to undertake research testing causal and effect relationship.
In addition to these in vivo models, we have tissue culture models where stem cells can be manipulated in culture to examine how this impacts their developmental potential.
Lots of possibilities for a flexible project to suit your interests!
Current supervision
Engagement
Recent talk for the public
5th Dec 2024
Wales Gene Park 3G Public Genetics & Genomics Conference
"Surprising things you may not know about the placenta"
News articles
Contact Details
Research themes
Specialisms
- Epigenetics
- Animal developmental and reproductive biology
- Psychosocial aspects of childbirth and perinatal mental health
- Parental Behaviour
- Endocrinology
