February 2019 | What is Epigenetics?

Doctor Handing Drug to Patient Epigenetics

Intended Epigenetic Drug Has Opposite Effect for Lung Cancer

February 26, 2019 WhatIsEpigenetics

Cancer is a complex disease influenced by numerous factors including genetic make-up, lifestyle, and the environment. Over the years, the growing field of epigenetics has greatly contributed to our understanding of cancer and tumor progression. It has also led to the development of novel drug therapies. Yet, despite the fact that epigenetic regulators have become attractive anticancer targets, many scientists believe that extra caution should be taken when assessing their overall effects. In a new study, one potential epigenetic therapy [more…]

Paternal Exercise Epigenetically Enhances Expression and Inheritance of a Key Gene Involved in Learning and Memory

February 19, 2019 Matthew Mahavongtrakul

It is widely known that a mother has substantial influence over her offspring during prenatal development. Her eating, exercising, and overall lifestyle can have lifelong effects for her children. But what about the father? It turns out that fathers are not off the hook when it comes to prenatal development, and his physical activity may have lasting effects on the epigenetic regulation of gene expression in an area of the brain important for learning and memory: the hippocampus. First, a [more…]

Circadian Rhythms, Epigenetics and Disease

February 12, 2019 Janeth Santiago Rios

Epigenetics has many connections to our cellular processes. It regulates the expression of our genes, so it wouldn’t surprise us that epigenetics is involved in the regulation of our circadian rhythms as well. But what exactly are these circadian rhythms and how can they be involved in certain processes of health and disease? What are circadian rhythms? Circadian rhythms are biological processes which govern not only our sleep-wake cycle, but also a wide variety of physiological functions, such as hormone release, feeding habits [more…]

Epigenetic Test Beats Pap & HPV for Detecting Cervical Cancer

February 5, 2019 Natalie Crowley

Cervical cancer used to be the number one cause of death in women about a hundred years ago. But thanks to advancements in medical science, this disease is almost preventable today. However, cervical cancer (CC) still claims the lives of over 4,000 women each year in the US. While Pap and human papillomavirus (HPV) testing have significantly contributed to the lower mortality rates, there are still certain types of CC that are not easily detected. Now, a new technique has [more…]

If you like reading our articles…