notas.itmens
Epigenetics
Studies related to epigenetic changes#
DNA methylation as a mediator of the association between prenatal adversity and risk factors for metabolic disease in adulthood : concerns about the Dutch famine and its influence on later generations:
Our data are consistent with the hypothesis that epigenetic mechanisms mediate the influence of transient adverse environmental factors in early life on long-term metabolic health. The specific mechanism awaits elucidation.
One of the most well-known claims for epigenetic inheritance stems from long-term studies of the effects of the blockade of food and fuel to the Nazi-occupied Netherlands in 1944. The blockade caused widespread malnutrition in the Dutch population. It later became clear that babies born from mothers who had been malnourished early in pregnancy were prone to obesity in adulthood, while if the mothers had suffered malnourishment only late in pregnancy, the babies stayed small all their lives (as is common for children of malnourished mothers). Such differences were evident in the next generation too: babies of the first group tended to be heavier than average, while those of the second group were not. It seems possible although the idea has again been disputed — that epigenetic changes to the first group early in gestation due to maternal malnutrition were passed on to their offspring too, producing greater average weight.
When they became adults, they ended up a few pounds heavier than average. In middle age, they had higher levels of triglycerides and LDL cholesterol. They also experienced higher rates of such conditions as obesity, diabetes and schizophrenia. source
Most DMPs showed the same directionality in DNAm change across germline, prenatal, and direct exposures, suggesting a common epigenetic response to violence. Additionally, we identified epigenetic age acceleration in association with prenatal exposure to violence in children, highlighting the critical period of in utero development. This is the first report of an intergenerational epigenetic signature of violence, which has important implications for understanding the inheritance of trauma.