Executive Function and Epigenetic Markers in Youth Exposed to Family and Community Violence in Childhood

Although exposure to violence has been linked to executive functioning impairments, the biological mechanisms underlying this association remain unclear. This study examined CpG sites associated with executive functions in 78 young adults and their links to family (psychological and physical) and community violence during childhood. The scales used were Conflict Tactics (family violence); Things I Have Seen and Heard (community violence); Barkley Deficits in Executive Functioning. Mean differences (Mann-Whitney-U/Kruskal-Wallis) and Spearman correlations were assessed. An epigenome-wide association study identified differentially methylated CpGs, and linear regressions examined associations with violence exposures. Girls reported more family and psychological violence. Black participants experienced higher family violence. Executive dysfunction (ED) correlated with psychological family and community violence, and family violence forms were interrelated. Differentially methylated positions highlighted genes tied to key biological processes: MRGPRD (sensory neurons development); DPPA3 (germ-cell development); UNKL (cell differentiation); GPR6 (learning and memory); DUSP5 (cell proliferation and differentiation); and CAPN13 (signal transduction, cytoskeletal remodeling and cell differentiation). Candidate gene analysis found associations between executive dysfunction and methylation levels in these genes. Exploratory pathway analysis suggested enrichment of neurodevelopment and synaptic plasticity, intracellular trafficking and cytoskeletal remodeling, genome stability and cellular stress responses, and neuroimmune and inflammatory signaling. These findings suggest associations between ED, childhood violence exposure, and differential DNA methylation in cognition- and health-related genes, suggesting that epigenetic markers may be associated with pathways linking early adversity to later outcomes, although no causal inference can be drawn.