These technologies will allow site-directed integration of a therapeutic cassette into a defined locus in the target cell, thus minimizing dysregulation of gene expression at the integration site, while protecting the therapeutic cassette from epigenetic effects.
Help her investigate the epigenetic effects of Twitter: @enniscath.
Prime among them is how long epigenetic effects such as these might last.
There are lab experiments with mice and rats in which epigenetic effects on coat colour and obesity can be inherited.
While monozygotic twins have near identical genomes, environmental factors can lead to chemical changes to DNA and RNA (epigenetic effects).
The body of data has provided insights into perinatal nutrition, and, in one study published in 2008, into the lingering epigenetic effects of famine.
There is some evidence that they may have what are called epigenetic effects as well, altering gene expression in cells, including those which give rise to eggs and sperm, and allowing toxic effects to be passed on to future generations.
In either way, epigenetic mechanisms will help interpret toxicological data or toxicogenomic approaches to identify epigenetic effects of environmental exposures.
He also raised concerns about epigenetic effects and mismatching of nuclear and mitochondrial DNA.
This paper briefly introduces these topics and mainly focuses on (1) transgenerational phenotypes and epigenetic effects in mammals, (2) environment-induced intergenerational epigenetic effects, and (3) the inherent difficulties in establishing a role for epigenetic inheritance in human environmental disease.
