Rules of inheritance rewritten in worms

The idea that children inherit half of their DNA from each parent is a central tenet of modern genetics. But a team led by KAUST's Christian Frøkjær-Jensen has re-engineered this heredity pattern in roundworms, a commonly ...

Exploiting epigenetic variation for plant breeding

Epigenetic changes can bring about new traits without altering the sequence of genes. This may allow plants to respond quicker to changes in their environment. Plant biologists at the University of Zurich have now demonstrated ...

Does physical activity influence the health of future offspring?

Physical and mental exercise can affect the learning ability of future offspring, at least in mice. This particular form of inheritance is mediated by certain RNA molecules that influence gene activity. These molecules accumulate ...

Discovering a new mechanism of epigenetic inheritance

Giacomo Cavalli's team at the Institute of Human Genetics (University of Montpellier / CNRS), in collaboration with the French National Institute for Agricultural Research (INRA), has demonstrated the existence of transgenerational ...

Biological mechanism passes on long-term epigenetic 'memories'

According to epigenetics—the study of inheritable changes in gene expression not directly coded in our DNA—our life experiences may be passed on to our children and our children's children. Studies on survivors of traumatic ...

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