Bones of Ancient Relatives Give Us Epigenetic Clues About Ourselves

April 30, 2014 Bailey Kirkpatrick

We already know a lot about early modern humans based on scientific evidence collected from our ancestors, gaining clues from migration patterns and remnants left abandoned for ages. However, very little is known about our prehistoric relatives, the Neanderthals and Denisovans, who lived thousands of years before us. With little evidence on hand and even smaller fragments of their DNA to spare, researchers are using epigenetics to give clues about why our archaic cousins differ from us, despite our very [more…]

A Father’s Stress Felt for Generations

April 23, 2014 Bailey Kirkpatrick

New scientific research suggests that the negative effects of trauma can be inherited. Fathers may actually transfer the consequences of their early experiences to their children via an epigenetic process. Researchers report that mice that experienced stress early on passed down the negative consequences – depression, underestimation of risk, and upset of metabolism – to their offspring, even if their offspring were not directly exposed to stress or trauma. In a recent study, Isabelle Mansuy and her colleagues at the [more…]

Eat Well, Exercise Regularly and Monitor Your Epigenome

April 11, 2014 Milka Rodriguez

Cardiometabolic disease (CMD) is a term used to define risk factors associated with the development of diabetes and cardiovascular disease.  One major characteristic which contributes to these risk factors is obesity. Worldwide, obesity has nearly doubled since 1980 and in 2008, more than 1.4 billion adults 20 and older were overweight (1).  Additionally more than 40 million children under the age of five were overweight in 2011 (1). Childhood obesity is associated with a higher chance of obesity, premature death [more…]

WIE-logo-icon

If you like reading our articles…

Join our e-newsletter! Stay up-to-date with our weekly posts on epigenetics and health, nutrition, exercise, and more.