1
|
Pal A, Oakes J, Elnagheeb M, Ideraabdullah FY. Maternal Microdeletion at the H19/Igf2 ICR in Mice Increases Offspring Susceptibility to In Utero Environmental Perturbation. Epigenet Insights 2020; 13:2516865720970575. [PMID: 33313480 PMCID: PMC7716063 DOI: 10.1177/2516865720970575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2020] [Accepted: 10/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/01/2022] Open
Abstract
Deficiency of methyl donor nutrients folate, choline, and methionine (methyl deficiency) during gestation can impair fetal development and perturb DNA methylation. Here, we assessed genetic susceptibility to methyl deficiency by comparing effects in wildtype C57BL/6J (B6) mice to mutant mice carrying a 1.3 kb deletion at the H19/Igf2 Imprinting Control Region (ICR) (H19 ICRΔ2,3). The H19 ICRΔ2,3 mutation mimics microdeletions observed in Beckwith-Wiedemann syndrome (BWS) patients, who exhibit epimutations in cis that cause loss of imprinting and fetal overgrowth. Dams were treated during pregnancy with 1 of 4 methyl sufficient (MS) or methyl deficient (MD) diets, with or without the antibiotic commonly used to deplete folate producing gut microbes. As expected, after ~9 weeks of treatment, dams in MD and MD + antibiotic groups exhibited substantially reduced plasma folate concentrations. H19 ICRΔ2,3 mutant lines were more susceptible to adverse pregnancy outcomes caused by methyl deficiency (reduced birth rate and increased pup lethality) and antibiotic (decreased litter size and litter survival). Surprisingly, pup growth/development was only minimally affected by methyl deficiency, while antibiotic treatment caused inverse effects on B6 and H19 ICRΔ2,3 lines. B6 pups treated with antibiotic exhibited increased neonatal and weanling bodyweight, while both wildtype and mutant pups of heterozygous H19 ICRΔ2,3/+ dams exhibited decreased neonatal bodyweight that persisted into adulthood. Interestingly, only antibiotic-treated pups carrying the H19 ICRΔ2,3 mutation exhibited altered DNA methylation at the H19/Igf2 ICR, suggesting ICR epimutation was not sufficient to explain the altered phenotypes. These findings demonstrate that genetic mutation of the H19/Igf2 ICR increases offspring susceptibility to developmental perturbation in the methyl deficiency model, maternal and pup genotype play an essential role, and antibiotic treatment in the model also plays a key independent role.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anandita Pal
- Department of Nutrition, Gillings School of Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Judy Oakes
- Nutrition Research Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Kannapolis, NC, USA
| | - Marwa Elnagheeb
- Department of Nutrition, Gillings School of Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Nutrition Research Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Kannapolis, NC, USA
| | - Folami Y Ideraabdullah
- Department of Nutrition, Gillings School of Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Nutrition Research Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Kannapolis, NC, USA
- Department of Genetics, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Abrantes MA, Valencia AM, Bany-Mohammed F, Aranda JV, Beharry KD. Intergenerational Influence of Antenatal Betamethasone on Growth, Growth Factors, and Neurological Outcomes in Rats. Reprod Sci 2020; 27:418-431. [PMID: 32046399 DOI: 10.1007/s43032-019-00073-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2019] [Accepted: 05/08/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Antenatal steroids suppress growth in the fetus and newborn. Although weight deficits are regained by weaning, studies show that intrauterine growth restriction with postnatal "catch-up" growth is a risk factor for hypertension, insulin resistance, and ischemic heart disease in adult life, with multigenerational consequences. We tested the hypothesis that fetal exposure to betamethasone suppresses fetal growth in the F1 pups and their untreated F2 offspring. Timed pregnant rats received a single two-dose course of intramuscular betamethasone (0.25 mg/kg/day) on days 17 and 18 of gestation. Matched controls received equivalent volumes sterile normal saline. The first-generation (F1) offspring were studied at term, P21, and P70, or mated at P60 to produce the following subgroups: (1) saline male/saline female (SM/SF), (2) betamethasone (B) male/BFemale (BM/BF), (3) BM/SF, and (4) SM/BF. The unexposed second-generation (F2) offspring were examined at birth and P70. Growth, neurological outcomes, and growth factors were determined. At birth, the F1 pups exposed to B were significantly growth suppressed compared with the controls, with correspondingly lower blood glucose, insulin, IGF-I, corticosterone, and leptin levels and delayed neurological outcomes. Catchup growth occurred at P21, surpassing that of the control group. By P70, growth was comparable, but glucose was higher, insulin was lower, and memory was retarded in the B group, and transmitted to the unexposed F2 offspring of B-exposed rats. Antenatal betamethasone has sustained metabolic and neurological effects that may impact the unexposed offspring. Whether these intergenerational effects reverse in future generations remain to be determined.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Maria A Abrantes
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, University of California, Irvine Medical Center, Orange, CA, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, Long Beach, CA, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Kaiser Permanente, Irvine, CA, USA
| | - Arwin M Valencia
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, University of California, Irvine Medical Center, Orange, CA, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, Long Beach, CA, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Saddleback Memorial Medical Center, Laguna Hills, CA, USA
| | - Fayez Bany-Mohammed
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, Long Beach, CA, USA
| | - Jacob V Aranda
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA.,Department of Ophthalmology, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA
| | - Kay D Beharry
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, University of California, Irvine Medical Center, Orange, CA, USA. .,Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, Long Beach Memorial Medical Center, Long Beach, CA, USA. .,Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA. .,Department of Ophthalmology, Division of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA. .,Departments of Pediatrics & Ophthalmology, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA. .,Department of Pediatrics & Ophthalmology, Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine Clinical & Translational Research Labs, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, 450 Clarkson Avenue, Box 49, Brooklyn, NY, 11203, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Pembrey ME. Does cross-generational epigenetic inheritance contribute to cultural continuity? ENVIRONMENTAL EPIGENETICS 2018; 4:dvy004. [PMID: 29732169 PMCID: PMC5920305 DOI: 10.1093/eep/dvy004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2018] [Revised: 02/28/2018] [Accepted: 03/04/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Human studies of cross-generational epigenetic inheritance have to consider confounding by social patterning down the generations, often referred to as 'cultural inheritance'. This raises the question to what extent is 'cultural inheritance' itself epigenetically mediated rather than just learnt. Human studies of non-genetic inheritance have demonstrated that, beyond foetal life, experiences occurring in mid-childhood before puberty are the most likely to be associated with cross-generational responses in the next generation(s). It is proposed that cultural continuity is played out along the axis, or 'payoff', between responsiveness and stability. During the formative years of childhood a stable family and/or home permits small children to explore and thereby learn. To counter disruptions to this family home ideal, cultural institutions such as local schools, religious centres and market places emerged to provide ongoing stability, holding the received wisdom of the past in an accessible state. This cultural support allows the growing child to freely indulge their responsiveness. Some of these prepubertal experiences induce epigenetic responses that also transfer molecular signals to the gametes through which they contribute to the conception of future offspring. In parallel co-evolution with growing cultural support for increasing responsiveness, 'runaway' responsiveness is countered by the positive selection of genetic variants that dampen responsiveness. Testing these ideas within longitudinal multigenerational cohorts will need information on ancestors/parents' own communities and experiences (Exposome scans) linked to ongoing Phenome scans on grandchildren; coupled with epigenome analysis, metastable epialleles and DNA methylation age. Interactions with genetic variants affecting responsiveness should help inform the broad hypothesis.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marcus E Pembrey
- Centre for Child and Adolescent Health, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK
- Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, Faculty of Population Health Sciences, University College London, London, UK
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Preston JD, Reynolds LJ, Pearson KJ. Developmental Origins of Health Span and Life Span: A Mini-Review. Gerontology 2018; 64:237-245. [PMID: 29324453 DOI: 10.1159/000485506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2017] [Accepted: 11/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND A vast body of research has demonstrated that disease susceptibility and offspring health can be influenced by perinatal factors, which include both paternal and maternal behavior and environment. Offspring disease risk has the potential to affect the health span and life span of offspring. KEY FINDINGS Various maternal factors, such as environmental toxicant exposure, diet, stress, exercise, age at conception, and longevity have the potential to influence age-associated diseases such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, and cancer risk in offspring. Paternal factors such as diet, age at conception, and longevity can potentially impact offspring health span and life span-reducing traits as well. PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS Continued research could go a long way toward defining mechanisms of the developmental origins of life span and health span, and eventually establishing regimens to avoid negative developmental influences and to encourage positive interventions to potentially increase life span and improve health span in offspring.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Joshua D Preston
- Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences, University of Kentucky College of Medicine, Lexington, KY, USA
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
5
|
Abstract
The ability of non-genotoxic agents to induce cancer has been documented and clearly requires a reassessment of testing for environmental and human safety. Drug safety testing has historically relied on test batteries designed to detect DNA damage leading to mutation and cancer. The standard genetic toxicology testing battery has been a reliable tool set to identify small molecules/chemicals as hazards that could lead to genetic changes in organisms and induction of cancer. While pharmaceutical companies and regulatory agencies have extensively used the standard battery, it is not suitable for compounds that may induce epigenetic changes. Additionally, many pharmaceutical companies have changed their product portfolios to include peptides and/or other biological molecules, which are not expected to be genotoxic in their own right. If we are to best use our growing knowledge regarding chemicals and biomolecules that induce heritable changes via epigenetic mechanisms, then we must ask what changes may be needed in our testing paradigm to predict long-term downstream effects through epigenetic mechanisms.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Sweder
- Forensic and National Security Sciences Institute, Center for Science & Technology, Syracuse University, Syracuse, NY, USA
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Wells JCK. Between Scylla and Charybdis: renegotiating resolution of the 'obstetric dilemma' in response to ecological change. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 370:20140067. [PMID: 25602071 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2014.0067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Hominin evolution saw the emergence of two traits-bipedality and encephalization-that are fundamentally linked because the fetal head must pass through the maternal pelvis at birth, a scenario termed the 'obstetric dilemma'. While adaptive explanations for bipedality and large brains address adult phenotype, it is brain and pelvic growth that are subject to the obstetric dilemma. Many contemporary populations experience substantial maternal and perinatal morbidity/mortality from obstructed labour, yet there is increasing recognition that the obstetric dilemma is not fixed and is affected by ecological change. Ecological trends may affect growth of the pelvis and offspring brain to different extents, while the two traits also differ by a generation in the timing of their exposure. Two key questions arise: how can the fit between the maternal pelvis and the offspring brain be 'renegotiated' as the environment changes, and what nutritional signals regulate this process? I argue that the potential for maternal size to change across generations precludes birthweight being under strong genetic influence. Instead, fetal growth tracks maternal phenotype, which buffers short-term ecological perturbations. Nevertheless, rapid changes in nutritional supply between generations can generate antagonistic influences on maternal and offspring traits, increasing the risk of obstructed labour.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan C K Wells
- Childhood Nutrition Research Centre, UCL Institute of Child Health, 30 Guilford St., London WC1N 1EH, UK
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Hochner H, Allard C, Granot-Hershkovitz E, Chen J, Sitlani CM, Sazdovska S, Lumley T, McKnight B, Rice K, Enquobahrie DA, Meigs JB, Kwok P, Hivert MF, Borecki IB, Gomez F, Wang T, van Duijn C, Amin N, Rotter JI, Stamatoyannopoulos J, Meiner V, Manor O, Dupuis J, Friedlander Y, Siscovick DS. Parent-of-Origin Effects of the APOB Gene on Adiposity in Young Adults. PLoS Genet 2015; 11:e1005573. [PMID: 26451733 PMCID: PMC4599806 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1005573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2015] [Accepted: 09/15/2015] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
Abstract
Loci identified in genome-wide association studies (GWAS) of cardio-metabolic traits account for a small proportion of the traits' heritability. To date, most association studies have not considered parent-of-origin effects (POEs). Here we report investigation of POEs on adiposity and glycemic traits in young adults. The Jerusalem Perinatal Family Follow-Up Study (JPS), comprising 1250 young adults and their mothers was used for discovery. Focusing on 18 genes identified by previous GWAS as associated with cardio-metabolic traits, we used linear regression to examine the associations of maternally- and paternally-derived offspring minor alleles with body mass index (BMI), waist circumference (WC), fasting glucose and insulin. We replicated and meta-analyzed JPS findings in individuals of European ancestry aged ≤50 belonging to pedigrees from the Framingham Heart Study, Family Heart Study and Erasmus Rucphen Family study (total N≅4800). We considered p<2.7x10-4 statistically significant to account for multiple testing. We identified a common coding variant in the 4th exon of APOB (rs1367117) with a significant maternally-derived effect on BMI (β = 0.8; 95%CI:0.4,1.1; p = 3.1x10-5) and WC (β = 2.7; 95%CI:1.7,3.7; p = 2.1x10-7). The corresponding paternally-derived effects were non-significant (p>0.6). Suggestive maternally-derived associations of rs1367117 were observed with fasting glucose (β = 0.9; 95%CI:0.3,1.5; p = 4.0x10-3) and insulin (ln-transformed, β = 0.06; 95%CI:0.03,0.1; p = 7.4x10-4). Bioinformatic annotation for rs1367117 revealed a variety of regulatory functions in this region in liver and adipose tissues and a 50% methylation pattern in liver only, consistent with allelic-specific methylation, which may indicate tissue-specific POE. Our findings demonstrate a maternal-specific association between a common APOB variant and adiposity, an association that was not previously detected in GWAS. These results provide evidence for the role of regulatory mechanisms, POEs specifically, in adiposity. In addition this study highlights the benefit of utilizing family studies for deciphering the genetic architecture of complex traits. To date, genetic variants identified in large-scale genetic studies using recent technical and methodological advances explain only a small proportion of the genetic basis of obesity, diabetes and other cardiovascular risk factors. These studies were typically conducted in samples of unrelated individuals. Here we utilize a family-based approach to identify genetic variants associated with obesity-related traits. Specifically, we examined the separate contribution of maternally- vs. paternally-inherited common genetic variants to these traits. By examining 1250 young adults and their mothers from Jerusalem, we show that a specific genetic variant, rs1367117, located in the APOB gene on chromosome 2 is related to body mass index and waist circumference when inherited from mother and not from father. This maternal effect is not restricted to Jerusalemites, but is also seen in a large sample of individuals of European descent from independent family studies worldwide. Our findings provide support of the role of complex genetic mechanisms in obesity, and highlight the benefit of utilizing family studies for uncovering genetic pathways underlying common risk factors and diseases.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hagit Hochner
- Braun School of Public Health, Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
- * E-mail:
| | - Catherine Allard
- Département de Mathématiques, Université de Sherbrooke and Centre de Recherche du Centre Hospitalier Universitaire de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, Quebec, Canada
| | | | - Jinbo Chen
- Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | - Colleen M. Sitlani
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- Cardiovascular Health Research Unit, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Sandra Sazdovska
- Braun School of Public Health, Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Thomas Lumley
- Department of Statistics, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
| | - Barbara McKnight
- Department of Biostatistics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Kenneth Rice
- Department of Biostatistics, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Daniel A. Enquobahrie
- Department of Epidemiology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - James B. Meigs
- Harvard Medical School and General Medicine Division, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Pui Kwok
- Institute of Human Genetics, University of California, San Francisco, California, United States of America
- Cardiovascular Research Institute, University of California, San Francisco, California, United States of America
- Department of Dermatology, University of California, San Francisco, California, United States of America
| | - Marie-France Hivert
- Department of Population Medicine, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Ingrid B. Borecki
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
| | - Felicia Gomez
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
| | - Ting Wang
- Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, United States of America
| | - Cornelia van Duijn
- Genetic Epidemiology Unit, Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus Medical Center, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Najaf Amin
- Genetic Epidemiology Unit, Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus Medical Center, University Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands
| | - Jerome I. Rotter
- Institute for Translational Genomics and Population Sciences and Department of Pediatrics, Los Angeles BioMedical Research Institute at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, Torrance, California, United States of America
| | - John Stamatoyannopoulos
- Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- Department of Genome Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Vardiella Meiner
- Department of Genetics and Metabolism, Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Orly Manor
- Braun School of Public Health, Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - Josée Dupuis
- Department of Biostatistics, Boston University School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America
| | - Yechiel Friedlander
- Braun School of Public Health, Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical Center, Jerusalem, Israel
| | - David S. Siscovick
- New York Academy of Medicine, New York, New York, United States of America
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Tarrade A, Panchenko P, Junien C, Gabory A. Placental contribution to nutritional programming of health and diseases: epigenetics and sexual dimorphism. J Exp Biol 2015; 218:50-8. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.110320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 158] [Impact Index Per Article: 17.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The recent and rapid worldwide increase in non-communicable diseases challenges the assumption that genetic factors are the primary contributors to such diseases. A new concept of the ‘developmental origins of health and disease’ (DOHaD) is at stake and therefore requires a paradigm shift. Maternal obesity and malnutrition predispose offspring to develop metabolic syndrome, a vicious cycle leading to transmission to subsequent generation(s), with differences in response and susceptibility according to the sex of the individual. The placenta is a programming agent of adult health and disease. Adaptations of placental phenotype in response to maternal diet and metabolic status alter fetal nutrient supply. This implies important epigenetic changes that are, however, still poorly documented in DOHaD studies, particularly concerning overnutrition. The aim of this review is to discuss the emerging knowledge on the relationships between the effect of maternal nutrition or metabolic status on placental function and the risk of diseases later in life, with a specific focus on epigenetic mechanisms and sexual dimorphism. Explaining the sex-specific causal variables and how males versus females respond and adapt to environmental perturbations should help physicians and patients to anticipate disease susceptibility.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anne Tarrade
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, F-78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Polina Panchenko
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, F-78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Claudine Junien
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, F-78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France
- UVSQ, Université Versailles-Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, France
| | - Anne Gabory
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, F-78350 Jouy-en-Josas, France
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Pomeroy E, Wells JCK, Cole TJ, O'Callaghan M, Stock JT. Relationships of maternal and paternal anthropometry with neonatal body size, proportions and adiposity in an Australian cohort. AMERICAN JOURNAL OF PHYSICAL ANTHROPOLOGY 2014; 156:625-36. [PMID: 25502164 PMCID: PMC4404025 DOI: 10.1002/ajpa.22680] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2014] [Revised: 10/29/2014] [Accepted: 11/24/2014] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
The patterns of association between maternal or paternal and neonatal phenotype may offer insight into how neonatal characteristics are shaped by evolutionary processes, such as conflicting parental interests in fetal investment and obstetric constraints. Paternal interests are theoretically served by maximizing fetal growth, and maternal interests by managing investment in current and future offspring, but whether paternal and maternal influences act on different components of overall size is unknown. We tested whether parents' prepregnancy height and body mass index (BMI) were related to neonatal anthropometry (birthweight, head circumference, absolute and proportional limb segment and trunk lengths, subcutaneous fat) among 1,041 Australian neonates using stepwise linear regression. Maternal and paternal height and maternal BMI were associated with birthweight. Paternal height related to offspring forearm and lower leg lengths, maternal height and BMI to neonatal head circumference, and maternal BMI to offspring adiposity. Principal components analysis identified three components of variability reflecting neonatal “head and trunk skeletal size,” “adiposity,” and “limb lengths.” Regression analyses of the component scores supported the associations of head and trunk size or adiposity with maternal anthropometry, and limb lengths with paternal anthropometry. Our results suggest that while neonatal fatness reflects environmental conditions (maternal physiology), head circumference and limb and trunk lengths show differing associations with parental anthropometry. These patterns may reflect genetics, parental imprinting and environmental influences in a manner consistent with parental conflicts of interest. Paternal height may relate to neonatal limb length as a means of increasing fetal growth without exacerbating the risk of obstetric complications. Am J Phys Anthropol 156:625–636, 2015.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Emma Pomeroy
- Newnham College, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK; Division of Biological Anthropology, Department of Archaeology and Anthropology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
10
|
House SH. Epigenetics in adaptive evolution and development: the interplay between evolving species and epigenetic mechanisms: extract from Trygve Tollefsbol (ed.) (2011) Handbook of epigenetics--the new molecular and medical genetics. Chapter 26. Amsterdam, USA: Elsevier, pp. 423-446. Nutr Health 2014; 22:105-31. [PMID: 25178658 DOI: 10.1177/0260106014537160] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
By comparing epigenetics of current species with fossil records across evolutionary transitions, we can gauge the moment of emergence of some novel mechanisms in evolution, and recognize that epigenetic mechanisms have a bearing on mutation. Understanding the complexity and changeability of these mechanisms, as well as the changes they can effect, is both fascinating and of vital practical benefit. Our most serious pandemics of so-called 'non-communicable' diseases - mental and cardiovascular disorders, obesity and diabetes, rooted in the 'metabolic syndrome' - are evidently related to effects on our evolutionary mechanisms of agricultural and food industrialization, modern lifestyle and diet. Pollution affects us directly as well as indirectly by its destruction of ecologically essential biosystems. Evidently such powerful conditions of existence have epigenetic effects on both our health and our continuing evolution. Such effects are most profound during reproductive and developmental processes, when levels of hormones, as affected by stress particularly, may be due to modern cultures in childbearing such as excessive intervention, separation, maternal distress and disruption of bonding. Mechanisms of genomic imprinting seem likely to throw light on problems in assisted reproductive technology, among other transgenerational effects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Simon H House
- MA Natural Sciences and Theology, Peterhouse, Cambridge UK; Chair, McCarrison Society of Nutrition & Health Natural Sciences and Theology, UK
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Pembrey M, Saffery R, Bygren LO. Human transgenerational responses to early-life experience: potential impact on development, health and biomedical research. J Med Genet 2014; 51:563-72. [PMID: 25062846 PMCID: PMC4157403 DOI: 10.1136/jmedgenet-2014-102577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 196] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Mammalian experiments provide clear evidence of male line transgenerational effects on health and development from paternal or ancestral early-life exposures such as diet or stress. The few human observational studies to date suggest (male line) transgenerational effects exist that cannot easily be attributed to cultural and/or genetic inheritance. Here we summarise relevant studies, drawing attention to exposure sensitive periods in early life and sex differences in transmission and offspring outcomes. Thus, variation, or changes, in the parental/ancestral environment may influence phenotypic variation for better or worse in the next generation(s), and so contribute to common, non-communicable disease risk including sex differences. We argue that life-course epidemiology should be reframed to include exposures from previous generations, keeping an open mind as to the mechanisms that transmit this information to offspring. Finally, we discuss animal experiments, including the role of epigenetic inheritance and non-coding RNAs, in terms of what lessons can be learnt for designing and interpreting human studies. This review was developed initially as a position paper by the multidisciplinary Network in Epigenetic Epidemiology to encourage transgenerational research in human cohorts.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marcus Pembrey
- School of Social & Community Medicine, University of Bristol, Bristol, UK UCL Institute of Child Health, London, UK
| | - Richard Saffery
- Murdoch Childrens Research Institute, Parkville, Australia Department of Paediatrics, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia
| | - Lars Olov Bygren
- Department of Biosciences and Rehabilitation, Karolinska Institutet, Huddinge, Sweden Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, Umeå University, Umeå, Sweden
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
12
|
House SH. Transgenerational healing: Educating children in genesis of healthy children, with focus on nutrition, emotion, and epigenetic effects on brain development. Nutr Health 2014; 22:9-45. [PMID: 25005446 DOI: 10.1177/0260106013506666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Although our continuing evolution can never achieve our perfection, we long for our children's birth and health to be near-perfect. Many children are born healthy, though fewer than is possible. Birthing and health rapidly improved generally due to modern housing, sanitation and medicine, as well as birth interventions. Arguably interventions have exceeded the optimal level, without enough regard for natural physical and intuitive resources. Conception, often too easy, receives too little personal preparation unless a couple has problems. Nurturing the health of sperm and ovum seems hard to focus on, yet is needed by both parents - and even by the four grandparents. What are the key factors? Positive: The fields of hormones/emotions and of nutrition/metabolism. Negative: stress, poor nutrition, toxins, diseases; much being due to poverty. Positive and negative both have structural and also epigenetic effects. Interventions, essential or inessential, are seldom without negative side effects. Health can best, and most economically, be generated at the beginning of life, through healthy conception, gestation and birth. Understanding prime needs improves initial health. It also informs therapy of any early-life problems. Healing is therefore more efficient when transgenerational, and much more powerful than individual healing. My vision of healing is safeguarding our evolution in progress. Children's choices - eating, exercise, emotional attitudes and relationships - are already profoundly affecting any children they may have, their mental and physical health. The most practical starting point seems to be educating boys as well as girls. Childhood is therefore the time to educate them in choices. The correction of often unnoticed problems- nutrient deficits, toxins, uro-genital disease - has enabled nearly nine out of ten couples to bear fully healthy babies, even following severe problems - infertility, miscarriages, stillbirths and malformations. Correcting problems before conception prevents both structural faults and wrong setting of gene-switches. Children's habits set. Once courting most are preoccupied and many pregnant unintentionally. Childhood is the time to be adopting a healthy lifestyle, the way to healthy babies The mother's nutritional and emotional status throughout pregnancy continues to affect her child's future physical and mental health, behaviour and ability. Before conception a woman needs to build her appropriate body stores - vitamins and minerals, proteins, docosahexaenoic acid. Before bearing another child, a replenishment time of 3 years is desirable. A return to childbearing in the 20s and early 30s could reduce risks that have risen with the recent shift towards conception by school children and by women in their late 30s or more. Governments, schoolteachers, health professionals, need to adopt this policy of transgenerational health. Empowerment with knowledge is the one way to fend off the growing pandemic of mental ill health and related disorders and to make the most of a nation's genetic potential. Financially there could be no better investment, let alone in enhancing people's lives. Childhood is the most appropriate time for education in this way to generating a healthy, able and peaceful human race. Essential to our amazing genetic systems are the resources of land, sea and air. We are one with our biosphere. We need urgently to follow up the vital work of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease, and of Far East initiatives in sea-bed and sea husbandry.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Simon H House
- The McCarrison Society for Nutrition & Health; International Society of Prenatal & Perinatal Psychology & Medicine; Association for Prenatal & Perinatal Psychology & Health; Royal Society of Medicine; Food & Health Council
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Haig D. Coadaptation and conflict, misconception and muddle, in the evolution of genomic imprinting. Heredity (Edinb) 2013; 113:96-103. [PMID: 24129605 DOI: 10.1038/hdy.2013.97] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2013] [Revised: 08/19/2013] [Accepted: 08/22/2013] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Common misconceptions of the 'parental conflict' theory of genomic imprinting are addressed. Contrary to widespread belief, the theory defines conditions for cooperation as well as conflict in mother-offspring relations. Moreover, conflict between genes of maternal and paternal origin is not the same as conflict between mothers and fathers. In theory, imprinting can evolve either because genes of maternal and paternal origin have divergent interests or because offspring benefit from a phenotypic match, or mismatch, to one or other parent. The latter class of models usually require maintenance of polymorphism at imprinted loci for the maintenance of imprinted expression. The conflict hypothesis does not require maintenance of polymorphism and is therefore a more plausible explanation of evolutionarily conserved imprinting.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- D Haig
- Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Attig L, Vigé A, Gabory A, Karimi M, Beauger A, Gross MS, Athias A, Gallou-Kabani C, Gambert P, Ekstrom TJ, Jais JP, Junien C. Dietary alleviation of maternal obesity and diabetes: increased resistance to diet-induced obesity transcriptional and epigenetic signatures. PLoS One 2013; 8:e66816. [PMID: 23826145 PMCID: PMC3691260 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0066816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2012] [Accepted: 05/15/2013] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
According to the developmental origins of health and diseases (DOHaD), and in line with the findings of many studies, obesity during pregnancy is clearly a threat to the health and well-being of the offspring, later in adulthood. We previously showed that 20% of male and female inbred mice can cope with the obesogenic effects of a high-fat diet (HFD) for 20 weeks after weaning, remaining lean. However the feeding of a control diet (CD) to DIO mice during the periconceptional/gestation/lactation period led to a pronounced sex-specific shift (17% to 43%) from susceptibility to resistance to HFD, in the female offspring only. Our aim in this study was to determine how, in the context of maternal obesity and T2D, a CD could increase resistance on female fetuses. Transcriptional analyses were carried out with a custom-built mouse liver microarray and by quantitative RT-PCR for muscle and adipose tissue. Both global DNA methylation and levels of pertinent histone marks were assessed by LUMA and western blotting, and the expression of 15 relevant genes encoding chromatin-modifying enzymes was analyzed in tissues presenting global epigenetic changes. Resistance was associated with an enhancement of hepatic pathways protecting against steatosis, the unexpected upregulation of neurotransmission-related genes and the modulation of a vast imprinted gene network. Adipose tissue displayed a pronounced dysregulation of gene expression, with an upregulation of genes involved in lipid storage and adipocyte hypertrophy or hyperplasia in obese mice born to lean and obese mothers, respectively. Global DNA methylation, several histone marks and key epigenetic regulators were also altered. Whether they were themselves lean (resistant) or obese (sensitive), the offspring of lean and obese mice clearly differed in terms of several metabolic features and epigenetic marks suggesting that the effects of a HFD depend on the leanness or obesity of the mother.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Linda Attig
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, Jouy-en-Josas, France
- INSERM U781 AP-HP; Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants, Paris, France
| | - Alexandre Vigé
- INSERM U781 AP-HP; Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants, Paris, France
| | - Anne Gabory
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, Jouy-en-Josas, France
- INSERM U781 AP-HP; Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants, Paris, France
| | - Moshen Karimi
- Laboratory for Medical Epigenetics, Center for Molecular Medicine, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Aurore Beauger
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, Jouy-en-Josas, France
- INSERM U781 AP-HP; Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants, Paris, France
| | - Marie-Sylvie Gross
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, Jouy-en-Josas, France
- INSERM U781 AP-HP; Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants, Paris, France
| | - Anne Athias
- IFR100 Santé-STIC, Plateau Technique Lipidomique, CHU Bocage Bat B2, Dijon, France
| | - Catherine Gallou-Kabani
- INSERM U781 AP-HP; Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants, Paris, France
| | - Philippe Gambert
- IFR100 Santé-STIC, Laboratoire de Biochimie Médicale, Plateau Technique de Biologie, Dijon, France
| | - Tomas J. Ekstrom
- Laboratory for Medical Epigenetics, Center for Molecular Medicine, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Jean-Philippe Jais
- Service de Biostatistique et Informatique Médicale, Université Paris Descartes, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, Paris, France
| | - Claudine Junien
- INRA, UMR1198 Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, Jouy-en-Josas, France
- INSERM U781 AP-HP; Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants, Paris, France
- Laboratory for Medical Epigenetics, Center for Molecular Medicine, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Grossniklaus U, Kelly WG, Ferguson-Smith AC, Pembrey M, Lindquist S. Transgenerational epigenetic inheritance: how important is it? Nat Rev Genet 2013; 14:228-35. [PMID: 23416892 PMCID: PMC4066847 DOI: 10.1038/nrg3435] [Citation(s) in RCA: 167] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Much attention has been given to the idea of transgenerational epigenetic inheritance, but fundamental questions remain regarding how much takes place and the impact that this might have on organisms. We asked five leading researchers in this area--working on a range of model organisms and in human disease--for their views on these topics. Their responses highlight the mixture of excitement and caution that surrounds transgenerational epigenetic inheritance and the wide gulf between species in terms of our knowledge of the mechanisms that may be involved.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ueli Grossniklaus
- Institute of Plant Biology and Zürich-Basel Plant Science Center, University of Zürich, Zollikerstrasse 107, CH-8008 Zürich, Switzerland.
| | - William G. Kelly
- Biology Department, Emory University, 1510 Clifton Road NE, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA.
| | - Anne C. Ferguson-Smith
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience and the Centre for Trophoblast Research, University of Cambridge, Downing Street, Cambridge CB2 3EG, UK.
| | - Marcus Pembrey
- Clinical and Molecular Genetics Unit, Institute of Child Health, University College London, London WC1N 1EH, UK; Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Children, School of Social and Community Medicine, Oakfield House, Oakfield Grove, University of Bristol, Bristol BS8 2BN, UK.
| | - Susan Lindquist
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Nine Cambridge Center, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02142, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Abstract
Health consequences of relative or absolute poverty constitute a definitive area of study in social medicine. As demonstrated in the extreme example of the Dutch Hunger Winter from 1944 to 1945, prenatal hunger can lead to adult schizophrenia and depression. A Norwegian study showed how childhood poverty resulted in a heightened risk of myocardial infarction in adulthood. In England, a study of extended impaired prenatal nutrition indicated three different types of increased cardiovascular risk at older ages. Current animal and human studies link both adverse and enriched environmental exposures to intergenerational transmission. We do not fully understand the molecular mechanisms for it; however, studies that follow up epigenetic marks within a generation combined with exploration of gametic epigenetic inheritance may help explain the prevalence of certain conditions such as cardiovascular disease, schizophrenia, and alcoholism, which have complex etiologies. Insights from these studies will be of great public health importance.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Lars Olov Bygren
- Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation, University of Umeå, SE-90187 Umeå, Sweden
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Rothstein MA. Legal and Ethical Implications of Epigenetics. ENVIRONMENTAL EPIGENOMICS IN HEALTH AND DISEASE 2013. [DOI: 10.1007/978-3-642-36827-1_14] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/11/2023]
|
18
|
Abstract
DNA methylation is an epigenetic form of gene regulation that is universally important throughout the life course, especially during in utero and postnatal development. DNA methylation aids in cell cycle regulation and cellular differentiation processes. Previous studies have demonstrated that DNA methylation profiles may be altered by diet and the environment, and that these profiles are especially vulnerable during development. Thus, it is important to understand the role of DNA methylation in developmental governance and subsequent disease progression. A variety of molecular methods exist to assay for global, gene-specific, and epigenome-wide methylation. Here we describe these methods and discuss their relative strengths and limitations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Karilyn E Sant
- Department of Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
19
|
Abstract
Genomic imprinting establishes the principle of epigenetic marks placed in one generation influencing gene expression in the next generation. This led to speculation that epigenetic gametic inheritance might underlie a form of transgenerational adaptation to major environmental challenges, such that exposures in one generation correlate with outcomes in the next generation(s). An ongoing collaboration between Umeå University, Sweden and the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents and Childhood, Bristol University, UK has documented transgenerational correlations between food supply during the early life of the paternal grandparents and the grandchild's longevity, including associations with cardiovascular and diabetic deaths, and correlations between the onset of paternal smoking in mid-childhood and the body mass index of future sons. Whilst the mediating molecular mechanism(s) is unknown, the sex-specific transmission patterns and exposure-sensitive periods suggest a pre-evolved transgenerational response mechanism.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Marcus E Pembrey
- Clinical and Molecular Genetics Unit, Institute of Child Health, University College, London, UK.
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Abstract
The eating disorders anorexia nervosa (AN), bulimia nervosa (BN), binge eating disorder and allied diagnoses such as eating disorder not otherwise specified are common, complex psychiatric disorders with a significant genetic component. Aetiology is unknown, but both phenotypic characteristics and genetic factors appear to be shared across these disorders, and indeed patients often change between diagnostic categories. Molecular studies have attempted to define genetic risk factors for these disorders, including case-control and family-based candidate gene association studies and linkage analysis of multiply affected nuclear families. These have used both clinical diagnoses and eating disorder-related intermediate phenotypes such as drive-for-thinness or body dissatisfaction. Candidate gene studies have focussed on neurotransmitter and neurodevelopmental systems [e.g. serotonergic, opioid, cannabinoid and dopaminergic receptors, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)], appetite regulatory peptides and their receptors [leptin, ghrelin, agouti-related protein (AgRP), melanocortin receptors, neuropeptide Y], energy balance systems (e.g. uncoupling proteins), genes implicated in obesity (e.g. FTO) and sex hormone systems (e.g. oestrogen receptors), either identified on the basis of their function alone or as positional candidates from linkage analysis. Of these studies, linkage analysis implicates 1p33-36 for AN, 1q31.3 for quantitative behavioural traits related to anorexia and 10p14 for BN, as well as other behavioural phenotypes across both disorders. Candidate gene association has implicated BDNF, delta 1 opioid receptor (OPDR1) and AgRP. More recently, with the advent of genome-wide association studies (GWAS), analysis with microsatellite markers has implicated novel candidate loci for AN at 1q41 and 11q22, and further GWAS results are expected in the near future.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sietske G Helder
- MRC Social Genetic and Developmental Psychiatry Centre, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, Denmark Hill, London, SE5 8AF, UK.
| | | |
Collapse
|
21
|
Gallou-Kabani C, Gabory A, Tost J, Karimi M, Mayeur S, Lesage J, Boudadi E, Gross MS, Taurelle J, Vigé A, Breton C, Reusens B, Remacle C, Vieau D, Ekström TJ, Jais JP, Junien C. Sex- and diet-specific changes of imprinted gene expression and DNA methylation in mouse placenta under a high-fat diet. PLoS One 2010; 5:e14398. [PMID: 21200436 PMCID: PMC3006175 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0014398] [Citation(s) in RCA: 183] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/24/2010] [Accepted: 11/26/2010] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Changes in imprinted gene dosage in the placenta may compromise the prenatal control of nutritional resources. Indeed monoallelic behaviour and sensitivity to changes in regional epigenetic state render imprinted genes both vulnerable and adaptable. METHODS AND FINDINGS We investigated whether a high-fat diet (HFD) during pregnancy modified the expression of imprinted genes and local and global DNA methylation patterns in the placenta. Pregnant mice were fed a HFD or a control diet (CD) during the first 15 days of gestation. We compared gene expression patterns in total placenta homogenates, for male and female offspring, by the RT-qPCR analysis of 20 imprinted genes. Sexual dimorphism and sensitivity to diet were observed for nine genes from four clusters on chromosomes 6, 7, 12 and 17. As assessed by in situ hybridization, these changes were not due to variation in the proportions of the placental layers. Bisulphite-sequencing analysis of 30 CpGs within the differentially methylated region (DMR) of the chromosome 17 cluster revealed sex- and diet-specific differential methylation of individual CpGs in two conspicuous subregions. Bioinformatic analysis suggested that these differentially methylated CpGs might lie within recognition elements or binding sites for transcription factors or factors involved in chromatin remodelling. Placental global DNA methylation, as assessed by the LUMA technique, was also sexually dimorphic on the CD, with lower methylation levels in male than in female placentae. The HFD led to global DNA hypomethylation only in female placenta. Bisulphite pyrosequencing showed that neither B1 nor LINE repetitive elements could account for these differences in DNA methylation. CONCLUSIONS A HFD during gestation triggers sex-specific epigenetic alterations within CpG and throughout the genome, together with the deregulation of clusters of imprinted genes important in the control of many cellular, metabolic and physiological functions potentially involved in adaptation and/or evolution. These findings highlight the importance of studying both sexes in epidemiological protocols and dietary interventions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Gallou-Kabani
- Inserm, AP-HP, Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, U781, Paris, France
| | - Anne Gabory
- Inserm, AP-HP, Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, U781, Paris, France
- INRA, UMR1198, UMR INRA/ENV Maisons-Alfort/CNRS: Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, (ENV Maisons-Alfort; CNRS), Physiologie Animale et Systèmes d'Elevage, Centre de recherche de Jouy-en-Josas, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| | - Jörg Tost
- Laboratoire d'Epigénétique, CEA - Institut de Génomique, Centre National de Génotypage, Evry, France
| | - Mohsen Karimi
- Laboratory for Medical Epigenetics, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Sylvain Mayeur
- Unité Environnement Périnatal et Croissance, EA 4489, Université des Sciences et Technologies de Lille, Villeneuve d'Ascq, France
| | - Jean Lesage
- Unité Environnement Périnatal et Croissance, EA 4489, Université des Sciences et Technologies de Lille, Villeneuve d'Ascq, France
| | - Elsa Boudadi
- Inserm, AP-HP, Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, U781, Paris, France
| | - Marie-Sylvie Gross
- Inserm, AP-HP, Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, U781, Paris, France
| | - Julien Taurelle
- Inserm, AP-HP, Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, U781, Paris, France
| | - Alexandre Vigé
- Inserm, AP-HP, Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, U781, Paris, France
| | - Christophe Breton
- Unité Environnement Périnatal et Croissance, EA 4489, Université des Sciences et Technologies de Lille, Villeneuve d'Ascq, France
| | - Brigitte Reusens
- Laboratory of Cell Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Catholic University of Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Claude Remacle
- Laboratory of Cell Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, Catholic University of Louvain, Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium
| | - Didier Vieau
- Unité Environnement Périnatal et Croissance, EA 4489, Université des Sciences et Technologies de Lille, Villeneuve d'Ascq, France
| | - Tomas J. Ekström
- Laboratory for Medical Epigenetics, Department of Clinical Neuroscience, Centre for Molecular Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Claudine Junien
- Inserm, AP-HP, Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, U781, Paris, France
- INRA, UMR1198, UMR INRA/ENV Maisons-Alfort/CNRS: Biologie du Développement et Reproduction, (ENV Maisons-Alfort; CNRS), Physiologie Animale et Systèmes d'Elevage, Centre de recherche de Jouy-en-Josas, Jouy-en-Josas, France
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Tekes K, Gyenge M, Hantos M, Csaba G. Transgenerational hormonal imprinting caused by vitamin A and vitamin D treatment of newborn rats. Alterations in the biogenic amine contents of the adult brain. Brain Dev 2009; 31:666-70. [PMID: 19091501 DOI: 10.1016/j.braindev.2008.10.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2008] [Revised: 10/22/2008] [Accepted: 10/23/2008] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Biogenic amines (norepinephrine, dopamine, homovanillic acid, serotonin and 5-hyroxyindole acetic acid) were measured by HPLC method in adult F1 generation rats' brain regions (brainstem, hypothalamus, hippocampus, striatum and frontal cortex), whose mothers (P generation) were treated with vitamin A or vitamin D neonatally (hormonal imprinting). Many significant differences were found, related to the maternally untreated controls. In the earlier studied P generation females, vitamin A consistently influenced the serotonerg system (5HIAA), while vitamin D the dopaminerg system (DA or HVA). Vitamin A imprinting always resulted in reduced, while that by vitamin D always in increased tissue levels. In the present case (directly untreated F1 generation) the transgenerational effect was not unidirectional, however biogenic amine tissue levels were strongly disturbed and brain-area dependent. The results call attention to the transgenerational effect of hormonal imprinting in the case of receptor level acting vitamins which are frequently used in the most imprinting-sensitive period (perinatally) of human life and suggests that caution is warranted.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kornélia Tekes
- Department of Pharmacodynamics, Semmelweis University, H-1445 Budapest, Hungary
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
23
|
Pembrey M. Human inheritance, differences and diseases: putting genes in their place. Part II. Paediatr Perinat Epidemiol 2008; 22:507-13. [PMID: 19000287 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-3016.2008.00972.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Marcus Pembrey
- Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK.
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Intergenerational programming of impaired nephrogenesis and hypertension in rats following maternal protein restriction during pregnancy. Br J Nutr 2008; 101:1020-30. [PMID: 18778527 DOI: 10.1017/s0007114508057607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 96] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Associations between birth weight and CVD in adult life are supported by experiments showing that undernutrition in fetal life programmes blood pressure. In rats, the feeding of a maternal low-protein (MLP) diet during gestation programmes hypertension. The present study aimed to assess the potential for a nutritional insult to impact across several generations. Pregnant female Wistar (F0) rats were fed a control (CON; n 10) or MLP (n 10) diet throughout gestation. At delivery all animals were fed a standard laboratory chow diet. At 10 weeks of age, F1 generation offspring were mated to produce a second generation (F2) without any further dietary change. The same procedure produced an F3 generation. Blood pressure in all generations was determined at 4, 6 and 8 weeks of age and nephron number was determined at 10 weeks of age. F1 generation MLP-exposed offspring exhibited raised (P < 0.001) systolic blood pressure (male 143 (sem 4) mmHg; female 141 (sem 4) mmHg) compared with CON animals (male 132 (sem 3) mmHg; female 134 (sem 4) mmHg). Raised blood pressure and reduced nephron number was also noted in the F2 generation (P < 0.001) and this intergenerational transmission occurred via both the maternal and paternal lines, as all three possible offspring crosses (MLP x CON, CON x MLP and MLP x MLP) were hypertensive (132 (sem 3) mmHg) compared with CON animals (CON x CON; 123 (sem 2) mmHg). No effect was noted in the F3 generation. It is concluded that fetal protein restriction may play a critical role in determining blood pressure and overall disease risk in a subsequent generation.
Collapse
|
25
|
An integrative view of dynamic genomic elements influencing human brain evolution and individual neurodevelopment. Med Hypotheses 2008; 71:360-73. [DOI: 10.1016/j.mehy.2008.03.048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2008] [Revised: 03/01/2008] [Accepted: 03/06/2008] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
|
26
|
Stöger R. The thrifty epigenotype: An acquired and heritable predisposition for obesity and diabetes? Bioessays 2008; 30:156-66. [DOI: 10.1002/bies.20700] [Citation(s) in RCA: 190] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
|
27
|
Junien C, Nathanielsz P. Report on the IASO Stock Conference 2006: early and lifelong environmental epigenomic programming of metabolic syndrome, obesity and type II diabetes. Obes Rev 2007; 8:487-502. [PMID: 17949354 DOI: 10.1111/j.1467-789x.2007.00371.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 65] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Now that analysis of the organization of the human genome sequence is reaching completion, studies of the finely tuned chromatin epigenetic networks, DNA methylation and histone modifications, are required to determine how the same DNA sequence generates different cells, lineages and organs, i.e. the phenotype. Maternal nutrition, behaviour and metabolic disturbances as well as other environmental factors have been shown to have major effects on these epigenetic processes, potentially affecting the predisposition of offspring to obesity and related adult disorders. The March 2006 Stock Conference considered the latest evidence from studies in the field of obesity and other related areas that elucidate mechanisms by which the environment can modify gene expression and the resulting individual phenotype. Presentations included evaluation of the molecular basis of epigenetic memory and the nature of relevant sequence targets, windows of susceptibility, and maternal dietary and behavioural factors that determine epigenetic changes. Imprinted genes, age and tissue-related exposures, transgenerational and potential interventions were also discussed. In summary, it is clear that epigenetic alterations can no longer be ignored in evaluations of the causes of obesity and its associated disorders. There is a need for systematic large-scale epigenetic studies of obesity, employing appropriate strategies and techniques and appropriately chosen environmental factors in critical spatio-temporal windows.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- C Junien
- Inserm U 781, Clinique Maurice Lamy, Hôpital Necker Enfants Malades 149 rue de Sèvres, Paris, France.
| | | |
Collapse
|
28
|
Gallou-Kabani C, Vigé A, Gross MS, Junien C. Nutri-epigenomics: lifelong remodelling of our epigenomes by nutritional and metabolic factors and beyond. Clin Chem Lab Med 2007; 45:321-7. [PMID: 17378726 DOI: 10.1515/cclm.2007.081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The phenotype of an individual is the result of complex interactions between genotype, epigenome and current, past and ancestral environment, leading to lifelong remodelling of our epigenomes. Various replication-dependent and -independent epigenetic mechanisms are involved in developmental programming, lifelong stochastic and environmental deteriorations, circadian deteriorations, and transgenerational effects. Several types of sequences can be targets of a host of environmental factors and can be associated with specific epigenetic signatures and patterns of gene expression. Depending on the nature and intensity of the insult, the critical spatiotemporal windows and developmental or lifelong processes involved, these epigenetic alterations can lead to permanent changes in tissue and organ structure and function, or to reversible changes using appropriate epigenetic tools. Given several encouraging trials, prevention and therapy of age- and lifestyle-related diseases by individualised tailoring of optimal epigenetic diets or drugs are conceivable. However, these interventions will require intense efforts to unravel the complexity of these epigenetic, genetic and environment interactions and to evaluate their potential reversibility with minimal side effects.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Gallou-Kabani
- 1. Inserm, AP-HP, Université Paris-Descartes, Faculté de Médecine, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, Inserm U781, Paris, France
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
29
|
Csaba G. Hormonal imprinting: phylogeny, ontogeny, diseases and possible role in present-day human evolution. Cell Biochem Funct 2007; 26:1-10. [PMID: 17437316 DOI: 10.1002/cbf.1412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Hormonal (chemical) imprinting which was first observed (and named) by us in the seventies of the last century, is a general biological phenomenon which takes place when the developing receptor meets its target hormone for the first time. Under the effect of imprinting, receptors mature and reach their maximal binding capacity. It also influences the cells' hormone production and different functions depending on receptors and hormones. Hormonal imprinting is present already at the unicellular level causing the development of specific receptors and helping the easier recognition of useful or harmful surrounding molecules. The phenomenon is an important factor in the survival of the species, as the effect of imprinting is transmitted to the progeny cell generations. At the same time it possibly helps the selection of molecules which are suitable for acting as hormones in higher ranked animals. In mammals, hormonal imprinting takes place perinatally and determines the function of receptor-signal-transduction systems as well as hormone production for life. However, there are other critical imprinting periods for continuously developing cells. Excess of the target hormones or presence of foreign molecules which are able to bind to the receptors, provoke faulty imprinting in the critical periods with life-long morphological, biochemical, functional or behavioural consequences. As many receptor-bound foreign molecules are used as medical treatments and many such molecules are present around us and inside us as environmental pollutants, they--causing faulty imprinting--are able to predispose the (human) organism to cardiovascular, endocrine, metabolic and cancerous diseases. It seems likely that this effect is connected with disturbance of DNA methylation process in the critical periods of life. There are some signs of the transgenerational effect of faulty imprinting and this could be manifested in the evolution of humans by an epigenetic route.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- G Csaba
- Department of Genetics, Cell and Immunobiology, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary.
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Waterland RA, Lin JR, Smith CA, Jirtle RL. Post-weaning diet affects genomic imprinting at the insulin-like growth factor 2 (Igf2) locus. Hum Mol Genet 2006; 15:705-16. [PMID: 16421170 DOI: 10.1093/hmg/ddi484] [Citation(s) in RCA: 268] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
IGF2 loss of imprinting (LOI) is fairly prevalent and implicated in the pathogenesis of human cancer and developmental disease; however, the causes of this phenomenon are largely unknown. We determined whether the post-weaning diet of mice affects allelic expression and CpG methylation of Igf2. C57BL/6JxCast/EiJ F1 hybrid mice were weaned onto (1) a standard natural ingredient control diet, (2) a synthetic control diet or (3) a synthetic methyl-donor-deficient diet lacking folic acid, vitamin B(12), methionine and choline. Maternal Igf2 expression in kidney was negligible at birth, but increased to approximately 10% of total expression after 60 days on the natural control diet. By 60 days post-weaning, both synthetic diets caused significant LOI of Igf2 relative to animals weaned onto the natural control diet. Total Igf2 expression was significantly reduced in these groups, however, indicating that the increase in relative maternal Igf2 expression was caused by specific down-regulation of the paternal allele. The LOI induced by the synthetic-deficient diet persisted during a subsequent 100-day 'recuperation' period on natural ingredient diet. There were no group differences in overall or allele-specific CpG methylation in the H19 differentially methylated region (DMR), Igf2 DMR0 or Igf2 DMR1. At 30 and 60 days post-weaning, however, the paternal allele of Igf2 DMR2 was hypermethylated in the kidneys of mice on the control synthetic diet. These results indicate that post-weaning diet can permanently affect expression of Igf2, suggesting that childhood diet could contribute to IGF2 LOI in humans.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robert A Waterland
- Departments of Pediatrics and Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, USDA Children's Nutrition Research Center, Houston, TX 77030-2600, USA.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
31
|
Abstract
Human epidemiological studies and appropriately designed dietary interventions in animal models have provided considerable evidence to suggest that maternal nutritional imbalance and metabolic disturbances, during critical time windows of development, may have a persistent effect on the health of the offspring and may even be transmitted to the next generation. We now need to explain the mechanisms involved in generating such responses. The idea that epigenetic changes associated with chromatin remodeling and regulation of gene expression underlie the developmental programming of metabolic syndrome is gaining acceptance. Epigenetic alterations have been known to be of importance in cancer for approximately 2 decades. This has made it possible to decipher epigenetic codes and machinery and has led to the development of a new generation of drugs now in clinical trials. Although less conspicuous, epigenetic alterations have also been progressively shown to be relevant to common diseases such as atherosclerosis and type 2 diabetes. Imprinted genes, with their key roles in controlling feto-placental nutrient supply and demand and their epigenetic lability in response to nutrients, may play an important role in adaptation/evolution. The combination of these various lines of research on epigenetic programming processes has highlighted new possibilities for the prevention and treatment of metabolic syndrome.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Catherine Gallou-Kabani
- INSERM Unit 383, Clinique Maurice Lamy, porte 15, Hôpital Necker-Enfants Malades, 149 rue de Sèvres, 75743 Paris, France
| | | |
Collapse
|
32
|
Junien C, Gallou-Kabani C, Vigé A, Gross MS. Épigénomique nutritionnelle du syndrome métabolique. Med Sci (Paris) 2005; 21:396-404. [PMID: 15811305 DOI: 10.1051/medsci/2005214396] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023] Open
Abstract
The importance of epigenetic alterations has been acknowledged in cancer for about two decades by an increasing number of molecular oncologists who contributed to deciphering the epigenetic codes and machinery and opened the road for a new generation of drugs now in clinical trials. However, the relevance of epigenetics to common diseases such as metabolic syndrome and cardiovascular disease was less conspicuous. This review focuses on converging data supporting the hypothesis that, in addition to "thrifty genotype" inheritance, individuals with metabolic syndrome (MetS)--combining disturbances in glucose and insulin metabolism, excess of predominantly abdominally distributed weight, mild dyslipidemia and hypertension, with the subsequent development of obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2D) and cardiovascular disease (CVD)--have suffered improper "epigenetic programming" during their fetal/postnatal development due to maternal inadequate nutrition and metabolic disturbances and also during their lifetime. Moreover, as seen for obesity and T2D, MetS tends to appear earlier in childhood, to be more severe from generation to generation and to affect more pregnant women. Thus, in addition to maternal effects, MetS patients may display "transgenerational effects" via the incomplete erasure of epigenetic marks endured by their parents and grandparents. We highlight the susceptibility of epigenetic mechanisms controlling gene expression to environmental influences due to their inherent malleability, emphasizing the participation of transposable elements and the potential role of imprinted genes during critical time windows in epigenetic programming, from the very beginning of development throughout life. Increasing our understanding on epigenetic patterns significance and small molecules (nutrients, drugs) that reverse epigenetic (in)activation should provide us with the means to "unlock" silenced (enhanced) genes, and to "convert" the obsolete human thrifty genotype into a "squandering" phenotype.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claudine Junien
- Inserm U.383, Génétique, chromosome et cancer, Hôpital Necker Enfants-Malades, 149, rue de Sèvres, 75743 Paris Cedex 15, France.
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
33
|
Junien C, Gallou-Kabani C, Vigé A, Gross MS. Epigénomique nutritionnelle : impact de régimes alimentaires déséquilibrés sur les processus épigénétiques de programmation au cours de la vie et transgénérationnels. ANNALES D'ENDOCRINOLOGIE 2005. [DOI: 10.1016/s0003-4266(05)81742-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
|
34
|
Abstract
Epigenetics is comprised of the stable and heritable (or potentially heritable) changes in gene expression that do not entail a change in DNA sequence. The role of epigenetics in the etiology of human disease is increasingly recognized with the most obvious evidence found for genes subject to genomic imprinting. Mutations and epimutations in imprinted genes can give rise to genetic and epigenetic phenotypes, respectively; uniparental disomy and imprinting defects represent epigenetic disease phenotypes. There are also genetic disorders that affect chromatin structure and remodeling. These disorders can affect chromatin in trans or in cis, as well as expression of both imprinted and nonimprinted genes. Data from Angelman and Beckwith-Wiedemann syndromes and other disorders indicate that a monogenic or oligogenic phenotype can be caused by a mixed epigenetic and genetic and mixed de novo and inherited (MEGDI) model. The MEGDI model may apply to some complex disease traits and could explain negative results in genome-wide genetic scans.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yong-Hui Jiang
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas 77030, USA.
| | | | | |
Collapse
|
35
|
Waterland RA, Jirtle RL. Early nutrition, epigenetic changes at transposons and imprinted genes, and enhanced susceptibility to adult chronic diseases. Nutrition 2004; 20:63-8. [PMID: 14698016 DOI: 10.1016/j.nut.2003.09.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 506] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Robert A Waterland
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina 27710, USA.
| | | |
Collapse
|
36
|
Evolution of Imprinted Tumor Susceptibility Genes. Toxicol Pathol 2004. [DOI: 10.1080/714592158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
|
37
|
Pembrey ME. Time to take epigenetic inheritance seriously. Eur J Hum Genet 2002; 10:669-71. [PMID: 12404095 DOI: 10.1038/sj.ejhg.5200901] [Citation(s) in RCA: 100] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2002] [Revised: 08/06/2002] [Accepted: 08/29/2002] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Marcus E Pembrey
- Clinical and Molecular Genetics Unit, Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK
| |
Collapse
|
38
|
Affiliation(s)
- Arthur L Beaudet
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX 77030, USA
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Beaudet AL, Jiang YH. A rheostat model for a rapid and reversible form of imprinting-dependent evolution. Am J Hum Genet 2002; 70:1389-97. [PMID: 11992247 PMCID: PMC379123 DOI: 10.1086/340969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2002] [Accepted: 03/29/2002] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
The evolutionary advantages of genomic imprinting are puzzling. We propose that genomic imprinting evolved as a mechanism that maximizes the interindividual variability in the rates of gene expression for dosage-sensitive loci that, with minimal unrelated deleterious effects, can alter the phenotype over a wide continuum. We hypothesize (1) that genomic imprinting provides a previously suggested haploid selective advantage (HSA); (2) that many imprinted genes have evolved mechanisms that facilitate quantitative hypervariability (QH) of gene expression; (3) that the combination of HSA and QH makes possible a rapid and reversible form of imprinting-dependent evolution (IDE) that can mediate changes in phenotype; and (4) that this enhanced adaptability to a changing environment provides selective advantage to the population, as an assisted form of evolution. These mechanisms may have provided at least one of the driving forces for the evolution of genomic imprinting in mammals. The rheostat model suggests that both genetic and epigenetic variants can contribute to an integrated mechanism of mixed Mendelian and non-Mendelian inheritance and suggests the possibility that the majority of variants are not intrinsically deleterious but, depending on the environment, are each potentially advantageous. Moreover, this would be a reversible form of evolution, with the ability not only to protect a silent allele from selection for many generations but to reactivate and expand it in the population quickly.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Arthur L Beaudet
- Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Rm. T619, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
| | | |
Collapse
|
40
|
Waterland RA, Garza C. Early postnatal nutrition determines adult pancreatic glucose-responsive insulin secretion and islet gene expression in rats. J Nutr 2002; 132:357-64. [PMID: 11880555 DOI: 10.1093/jn/132.3.357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Human epidemiologic and experimental animal studies suggest strongly that prenatal and early postnatal nutrition influence adult susceptibility to diet-related chronic disease. To elucidate biologic mechanisms linking divergent early nutritional sufficiency to adult insulin axis function in an animal model of "metabolic imprinting," this research focused on the following two objectives: 1) identify a tissue responsible for effect persistence, and 2) identify genes showing sustained differential expression in that tissue. Newborn rats were assigned randomly to small (SL), control (C) or large litters (LL) until weaning. Glucose and insulin tolerance tests were conducted directly after weaning (age 26 d) and in adulthood (ages 110 and 255 d). Glucose-stimulated insulin secretion from isolated pancreatic islets was assessed at those ages. DNA microarrays were used to identify genes showing persistent between-group differential expression in isolated islets. Glucose and insulin tolerance tests suggested persistently reduced pancreatic glucose-responsiveness in SL and LL rats. Insulin tolerance tests showed no group differences in whole-body insulin-stimulated glucose uptake. These data support the hypothesis that the endocrine pancreas contributes to primary imprinting in this model. Persistent defects in glucose-stimulated insulin secretion from isolated islets also supported this hypothesis but only in SL rats. Of 13 named islet genes showing SL vs. C differential expression at age 26 d, 10 remained differentially expressed at age 110 d. These data indicate that the endocrine pancreas plays a primary role in the putative metabolic imprinting mechanism in SL rats.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Robert A Waterland
- Department of Radiation Oncology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
| | | |
Collapse
|
41
|
De Fonzo V, Bersani E, Aluffi-Pentini F, Parisi V. A new look at the challenging world of tandem repeats. Med Hypotheses 2000; 54:750-60. [PMID: 10859682 DOI: 10.1054/mehy.1999.0945] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Recent research has shown a correlation between some genetic diseases and genomic sequences tandemly repeated a variable and excessive number of times. The excessive number of tandem repeats is usually caused by a progressive expansion, generally considered as purely harmful. We put forward a number of hypotheses: the main one is that the number of repeats has normally a specific significance, and that there exist purposive mechanisms having as a primary function the management of tandem repeats length; such a function is generally useful and only rarely may it become harmful, because of some malfunctioning. These hypotheses are suggested by plausibility arguments, and are supported by a number of recent experimental results. They could provide a simple and unifying explanation of many pathological and non-pathological phenomena replacing many ad hoc assumptions. We finally propose to call the study of the above tandem repeat managing mechanisms 'dynamical genetics'.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- V De Fonzo
- EuroBioPark c/o Parco Scientifico, Università di Roma 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy
| | | | | | | |
Collapse
|