Epigenetics and Donor Eggs: How Your Body Shapes Your Baby

A baby conceived with donor eggs inherits DNA from the egg donor and the sperm provider, yet the woman who carries the pregnancy still shapes how that DNA is used. That influence is called epigenetics, and it starts during the earliest stages of embryo implantation.¹ Here is what the research shows and what it means for you as a donor egg recipient.

What is epigenetics?

Epigenetics is the study of how cells control which genes are turned on or off without changing the DNA sequence.² This means outside factors, like what you eat and what you are exposed to in your environment, can affect the way your genes work.^2,4 It is a lifelong process that begins before you are born and keeps shifting as you age.⁴

How does epigenetics influence a pregnancy via donor egg?

Once the embryo is transferred in donor egg IVF, your womb becomes your baby's environment for the rest of their development, so the conditions inside your body help set how active many of your baby's genes are as they grow.^1,3

Through your blood and the placenta, you deliver the nutrients, oxygen, hormones and antibodies that build and protect your baby throughout gestation.⁶ 

Mother via egg donation shares her experience with epigenetics

Victoria Niño is a two-time mother through egg donation. In this short video, she shares what she learned about epigenetics and how it changed the way she understands her connection to her children.

What does your baby get from you in a donor egg pregnancy?

While a baby conceived via donor egg gets their DNA from the egg donor and the sperm provider, much of what they need to develop comes from the pregnancy you carry.

The science behind donor egg epigenetics

You are biologically connected to your baby

Genetics is one part of biology, not all of it. The DNA is only the starting material, and the pregnancy that turns it into a person comes from you. Signals from your uterus, blood and hormones during pregnancy help shape how that DNA is used.^1,3

"The womb may be more important than the home."

David Barker, epidemiologist

Your body and the embryo respond to each other from the start

During implantation, the exchange runs in both directions. The embryo sends signals that change the lining of your uterus, and the lining answers with fluid that nourishes the embryo while it settles in. Researchers call that fluid uterine milk, and it is the earliest nourishment your baby receives from you.¹

Your uterus sends signals that adjust gene activity

The lining of your uterus also releases microRNAs, tiny molecules that can turn gene activity up or down. In a 2015 study, researchers found that one of them, miR-30d, was taken up by early-stage mouse embryos and increased the activity of genes involved in attaching to the uterine lining.¹ The finding matters for donor conception because this kind of signaling does not depend on the embryo sharing your DNA.

After implantation the exchange widens, and a growing body of evidence suggests epigenetic regulation plays a role throughout embryonic and fetal development, including brain development, with effects that can last into adulthood.³

Some of your baby's cells stay in your body for decades through fetal microchimerism

The exchange also runs in the other direction, since some of your baby's cells cross into your body and can stay there for decades. This is called fetal microchimerism, and it is part of what Victoria talks about in the video above. One study found cells from sons in their mothers' blood as long as 27 years after birth.⁸ 

What mothers notice as their children grow

Many mothers through egg donation say their children share their expressions, mannerisms and ways of moving through the world. Some of that may be biology and some of it comes from raising a child day after day, and both are part of being a parent.

Victoria Niño puts it this way:

"Through Biology, I gave my daughter everything she needed. She had a healthy DNA blueprint from her egg donor and her father, but my body gave her life and nurtured her into the human she is. Genetics gave her, her physical appearance (a beautiful one I might add) but epigenetics is what made her who she really is, at her core, her essence, her grit, her compassion. I continue to discover new biological connections I have to her as she grows, which started the moment she was born. My mom kept talking about how much she smelled like me when I was a baby, and at the time I figured it was just a normal baby smell, but later learned it's an actual biological connection we share."

Epigenetics and donor eggs FAQ

Am I the real mom if I use donor eggs?

Yes. Carrying the pregnancy makes you your baby's mother in a biological sense as well as an emotional one. The DNA sequence comes from your egg donor and the sperm provider, while your body builds the pregnancy, supplies everything your baby needs to grow, and shapes how those genes are expressed through epigenetics.

Is a mother via donor egg biologically related to her baby?

You aren't genetically related to your baby, but you are biologically connected through pregnancy. Your baby's DNA comes from the egg donor and the sperm provider, while your body carries the pregnancy, supplies what your baby needs to grow, and influences how your baby's genes are expressed through epigenetics.

Will my baby born via donor egg have my DNA?

No. Your baby's DNA sequence comes from your egg donor and the sperm provider. You do still influence how those genes are used, through epigenetics, the process that controls which genes are switched on or off and how strongly, without changing the DNA itself. Signals from your uterus, blood and hormones during pregnancy help shape that.^1,3

Can epigenetics make my baby look like me?

Physical features like eye color and face shape are mostly determined by DNA, so epigenetics is unlikely to create a strong physical resemblance. It can influence how genes are expressed in ways that affect growth and health tendencies, and many mothers through egg donation notice shared expressions and mannerisms as their children grow.

Does it matter if I use fresh or frozen donor eggs?

The pregnancy-related influences described in this article come from your body after the embryo is transferred, so they apply whether the embryo was created from fresh or frozen donor eggs. You can compare both options on our donor egg programs page.

How does the same DNA become different cells?

Your baby begins as a single cell that divides into a whole body, and every cell along the way carries the same DNA. A nerve cell and a muscle cell hold identical instructions, yet they do completely different work. Epigenetic marks are physical tags on the DNA, and on the proteins it wraps around, that control which genes a cell can read.² As a cell becomes a nerve cell or a muscle cell it lays down its own pattern of marks, and that pattern is copied each time it divides, which is why a nerve cell's descendants stay nerve cells.²

How does it affect gene activity?

Epigenetic changes affect how a gene behaves rather than what it says. CDC describes three effects: a gene can make protein in a cell or at a time when it normally would not, it can fail to make protein where and when it normally would, or it can make more or less protein than usual.⁴

So it works as both a switch and a dial. Methylation typically turns a gene off and demethylation turns it back on, and the same changes can raise or lower how much protein a gene produces.⁴

What are the main types of epigenetic changes?

Researchers have identified three main mechanisms.

• DNA methylation. A small chemical tag attaches to the DNA and usually turns a gene off.⁴
• Histone modification. DNA wraps around proteins called histones, and changes to those proteins make genes easier or harder to read.²
• MicroRNAs. These tiny molecules fine-tune how much protein a gene makes.⁵

Where does research on epigenetics come from?

Much of the research comes from animal studies and large population studies, and scientists are still working out how much of this influence carries through a person's life. Scientists agree the womb environment matters, and they are still mapping how far that influence reaches.³ What is already well supported is that pregnancy shapes development in measurable ways.

"Had my baby grown in the donor's womb, she wouldn't be the same person. Just like if you plant the same grape tree in a different region of Napa Valley, you'd get very different wine. Without me, she would not be her."

Victoria Niño, mother through egg donation

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What to read next

Will My Baby Look Like Me If I Use Donor Eggs?Victoria Niño shares her own experience with resemblance, bonding and the epigenetic connection she feels with her daughter.Read her story What Is a Donor Egg Pregnancy Really Like?One mother's journey from the decision to use donor eggs through to a healthy baby, in a blog and video.Read her journeyThey Told Me I'd Never Have "Children of My Own." They Were Wrong.Emily Patel on identity, epigenetics, and the bond she built with her daughters beyond shared DNA.Read her story

Sources

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2. MedlinePlus Genetics. What is epigenetics? National Library of Medicine (US). Updated June 11, 2021. MedlinePlus
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4. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Epigenetics, health, and disease. Reviewed January 31, 2025. CDC
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6. Cleveland Clinic. Placenta: purpose, anatomy, function and complications. Cleveland Clinic
7. Kisilevsky BS, Hains SMJ, Lee K, et al. Effects of experience on fetal voice recognition. Psychol Sci. 2003;14(3):220-224. PubMed
8. Bianchi DW, Zickwolf GK, Weil GJ, Sylvester S, DeMaria MA. Male fetal progenitor cells persist in maternal blood for as long as 27 years postpartum. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 1996;93(2):705-708. PubMed
9. In the womb's shadow. EMBO Rep. 2011;12(1). Quoting David Barker. DOI