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DNA Methylation Gives Epigenetic Hope to Cocaine Addiction Treatment

June 2, 2015 Bailey Kirkpatrick

Not only is cocaine a highly addictive drug, but it also comes with an incredibly high chance of relapse even after someone has abstained and experienced symptoms of withdrawal. A new study is illuminating the epigenetic changes made to DNA during the withdrawal stage for those trying to rid themselves of the drug and offers new hope for more effective epigenetic-based treatments for drug addiction. According to researchers from McGill University and Bar Ilan University, the genes found in your [more…]

Smoking Linked to Epigenetic Warning Signs of Cancer in Cheek Cells

May 26, 2015 Bailey Kirkpatrick

New research published in JAMA Oncology shows that DNA damage that occurs as a result of smoking may be found in cheek swabs. In light of this research, smoking is thought to adjust the epigenetic profile of cheek cells and the resulting epigenetic landscape may even be used as an early warning sign of other cancers typically unrelated to smoking, such as gynecological and breast cancers. Professor Martin Widschwendter, Head of the Department of Women’s Cancer at the UCL Institute [more…]

DNa methylation and glucocorticoid resistance helps fight cancer

DNA Methylation and Glucocorticoid Resistance Offers Clues to Improve Cancer Drugs

May 12, 2015 Bailey Kirkpatrick

Scientists from St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital conducted a study that illuminates a mechanism by which leukemia cells resist steroids, a key factor detrimental to the success of chemotherapy. This discovery could help create more effective cancer drugs and improve the treatment of many autoimmune related diseases. The researchers looked at a certain type of steroid hormones involved in the immune system, known as glucocorticoids. These hormones are crucial components to the chemotherapy drug cocktail that has helped increase long-term [more…]

Can An Infection Alter Your Epigenome?

May 5, 2015 Bill Sullivan

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 is prone to bite other animals. The single-celled parasite known as Toxoplasma gondii is another clever puppeteer of its host. Rodents infected with this microbe [more…]

How Eating Zinc Could Affect DNA Methylation and the Immune System

April 28, 2015 Bailey Kirkpatrick

Zinc is a mineral that’s vital to our health and is involved in several aspects of cellular metabolism. According to the National Institutes of Health, zinc plays a role in a wide range of important processes like healing wounds, synthesizing proteins and DNA, and the division of cells. It’s even required to be able to taste and smell properly. Published in Molecular Nutrition & Food Research, recent evidence conducted at the Oregon State University also suggests that zinc affects the [more…]

X Chromosome Inactivation and Epigenetics

Slaying the X in the Fairer Sex

April 14, 2015 Alexandre Daly

In arguably the greatest feat of epigenetic orchestration, every single cell in female marsupial and eutherian mammals permanently silences an entire chromosome. While many studied instances of epigenetic regulation involve the repression of a handful of genes, the process of X chromosome inactivation (XCI) effectively silences a 900-gene chromosome over the course of several days and does so for the entire life of the organism (1)(2). The process of entirely yet exclusively silencing one of the largest chromosomes in the [more…]

Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus and Epigenetics

April 7, 2015 Mary Vagula

Type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) is a polygenic metabolic disease characterized by elevated blood sugar levels due to pancreatic beta-cell functional impairment and insulin resistance in tissues such as skeletal muscle, adipose tissue and the liver (1). Millions of people around the globe are diagnosed with diabetes, and its incidence is estimated to double by 2030. It has become one of the most challenging public health issues of 21st century and the fifth leading cause of death worldwide (2). The [more…]

DNA Methylation Influences Continuous Variation in Ant Worker Size

March 31, 2015 Bailey Kirkpatrick

Scientists have thought that differences in traits that exist along a continuum like skin color, height, intelligence, ability to gain weight, and risk for developing diseases were due to genetic and environmental factors. The connection between these two factors and how they interact together, however, has long been uncertain. Researchers from McGill University have conducted an epigenetic study on carpenter ants that reinforces the importance of a key epigenetic mechanism, known as DNA methylation, and supports the hypothesis that environmental [more…]

The Epigenetics of Depression

March 17, 2015 Adam Alonzi

Major depressive disorder (MDD) affects up to 17% of the world’s population. The WHO estimates it will be the second most costly disease to world governments by 2020. As devastating as it is to those who suffer from it, and to their loved ones, relatively little is known about its exact causes, and while diagnosis and treatment have advanced greatly over the past twenty years, far too many people continue to slip through the cracks (only about 50% of patients [more…]

dna methylation asthma allergies epigenetic research for discovery of new drug targets

Epigenetic Study Finds New Potential Drug Targets for Asthma and Allergies

February 24, 2015 Bailey Kirkpatrick

A new epigenetic study has identified 30 genes connected to allergies and asthma that make people more susceptible to these conditions. Using the newly discovered gene targets from this study, scientists could potentially create drugs to combat allergic diseases and reduce allergic responses. About 6.8 million children and 18.7 million adults in the U.S. suffer from asthma. According to the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America, 60 million people suffer from both asthma and allergies, affecting 1 out of every [more…]

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