If a woman could get a blood test telling her whether or not she’s likely to develop breast cancer, preventative measures could be taken, doctors could monitor her health, and she could explore potential options even before the cancer has started. A blood test like this could be possible as a result of new research … Continue reading Epigenetic Signature Found in Blood Predicts Chances of Getting Breast Cancer
Does A Slow Cellular Metabolism Speed Up Aging?
Aging is a universal human reality. Concern regarding aging—and a collective aversion to it—has even generated entire industry segments dedicated to anti-aging products, from expensive supplements through pricey lotions. People are afraid of the issues that can come up with advanced age: cancer, cognitive decline, wrinkles and age spots, mobility issues, sexual dysfunction, and any number of other … Continue reading Does A Slow Cellular Metabolism Speed Up Aging?
Histone Modifications and Epigenetic Regulation Could Hold the Key to Reversing Aging
Epigenetics has numerous connections to the process of aging, research hinting at the association between longevity and factors such as transcriptome length and DNA methylation patterns. Clearly, understanding the molecular controls of aging proves to be an intriguing endeavor as we try to interpret the clues of how we might slow down and perhaps even reverse aging. … Continue reading Histone Modifications and Epigenetic Regulation Could Hold the Key to Reversing Aging
Accurately Telling the Age of Human Tissues and Cells by DNA Methylation Clock
External signs of the human body’s age can be given by wrinkles and graying hair. However, these signs may not be accurate to tell the age of human tissues and cells that construct your body. Geneticist and biomathematician Steve Horvath at the University of California Los Angeles has developed a multi-tissue predictor of age that enables … Continue reading Accurately Telling the Age of Human Tissues and Cells by DNA Methylation Clock
Epigenetic Insights on Nutrition, Hormones and Eating Behavior
It is widely acknowledged that alterations of the intrauterine and early postnatal nutritional and hormonal environment can make individuals more susceptible to the development of diseases in later life, a phenomenon clearly explained by epigenetics. We know that what the mother eats during pregnancy can increase the risk of the baby becoming obese as an adult, among other … Continue reading Epigenetic Insights on Nutrition, Hormones and Eating Behavior
Eating Sweet, Fatty Foods During Pregnancy is Linked to ADHD in Children
A high-fat, high-sugar diet during pregnancy could be connected to ADHD in children, suggests new research. A mother’s diet may adjust epigenetic marks that attach to her child’s DNA, potentially increasing the odds that he or she will develop ADHD. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, or ADHD, has become a prevalent condition in modern society as researchers attempt … Continue reading Eating Sweet, Fatty Foods During Pregnancy is Linked to ADHD in Children
Can An Infection Alter Your Epigenome?
There are many examples of infectious agents that are capable of modifying the behavior of their host organism. Pathogens typically co-opt their host in ways that create an opportunity to spread into another host. For example, the rabies virus is transmitted through saliva, so the virus transforms its host into an unusually aggressive beast that … Continue reading Can An Infection Alter Your Epigenome?
Binge Drinking as a Teen May Epigenetically Harm the Health of Future Generations
Binge drinking as a teenager not only harms your brain and body, but may also epigenetically impact your future children, a new study reports. Excessive drinking in adolescents could turn genes on or off in their offspring’s brain, setting them up for susceptibility to certain diseases. The study, presented at the annual Society for Neuroscience … Continue reading Binge Drinking as a Teen May Epigenetically Harm the Health of Future Generations
Selective Survival In The Womb Based On Random Epigenetic Variation May Explain Adult Health Problems
It’s been said before that health begins in the womb. That’s because the conditions we encounter in utero impact not only our well-being in infancy but throughout our entire lives. But what happens when the nutritional environment in the womb is less than favorable? Most epigenetic studies have suggested that embryos respond to adverse environmental conditions by adjusting their gene … Continue reading Selective Survival In The Womb Based On Random Epigenetic Variation May Explain Adult Health Problems
Could Stressed Fathers Epigenetically Give their Children High Blood Sugar?
What if stress experienced by fathers could actually be passed down epigenetically to their children, who then experience its effects later in life? Previous research has hinted that, in mice, trauma experienced by a father leaves epigenetic marks on his sperm RNA, which is inherited by his offspring who later express the same depressive behaviors as … Continue reading Could Stressed Fathers Epigenetically Give their Children High Blood Sugar?
Dr. Eddy Bettermann MD 