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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…]

DNA Methylation Could Explain How People Respond to Fear and Anger

February 17, 2015 Bailey Kirkpatrick

A region of the brain known as the amygdala is normally activated when people perceive fear and anger in others. This region, which is part of the limbic system, conveys the message to other regions of the brain to prepare oneself for what may be a threatening situation. We’ve seen previous research that offers an epigenetic connection between DNA methylation of the serotonin transporter gene (SLC6A4) and how an individual responds to stress. In the present study, peoples’ brains respond [more…]

Epigenetic Changes Result from Breathing in Diesel Exhaust

January 20, 2015 Bailey Kirkpatrick

New research exposes the epigenetic changes and harmful consequences that can occur as a result of exposure to diesel exhaust fumes. Researchers at the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health have found that breathing in diesel exhaust fumes can lead to changes in DNA methylation levels, switching on and off certain genes. Diesel exhaust is given off when an engine burns diesel fuel and, according to the Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, “is a complex mixture of [more…]

Epigenetic changes like DNA methylation occur to skeletal muscles after endurance training

Epigenetics of Skeletal Muscle Altered by Endurance Training

January 6, 2015 Bailey Kirkpatrick

We all know that exercise is good for us, but researchers at the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden are exploring the epigenetic impact good exercise has on our skeletal muscles. We have previously touched on the effects of epigenetic changes on the development of diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. In a recent study in Epigenetics, long-term endurance training has been shown to affect the epigenetic pattern present in the human skeletal muscle. The changed epigenetic patterns were shown to [more…]

epigenetic modification histone methylation caused by binge driniking

Binge Drinking Can Lead to Harmful Epigenetic Changes

December 30, 2014 Bailey Kirkpatrick

Recent research at the University of Missouri School of Medicine sheds some light on the epigenetic changes to proteins that occur as a result of . Their results could help progress treatments for liver diseases linked to alcohol consumption. The lead author of the study and Margaret Proctor Mulligan Professor at the MU School of Medicine, Shivendra Shukla, PhD, says that “we know that chronic alcohol use is damaging to the liver, but binge drinking amplifies that damage.” Chronic liver [more…]

The Epigenetics of Schizophrenia

December 8, 2014 Adam Alonzi

The nascent field of epigenetics has been helpful in elucidating upon other polygenic traits and diseases. Thus it only seems logical to apply it to the study of , a chronic and debilitating illness with a sundry of risk factors. In his widely cited 2013 article, Dr. Thomas Insel defines schizophrenia as “a collection of signs and symptoms of unknown aetiology, predominantly defined by observed signs of psychosis.” The NIMH estimates it affects 1 out of 100 people. Yet in [more…]

histone acetylation and deacetylation epigenetic modifications in mouse depression anxiety drug addiction study

Epigenetic Regulation of a Single Gene Controls Drug and Stress Responses

December 2, 2014 Bailey Kirkpatrick

Researchers have found that the regulation of a specific gene located in an area of the brain linked to depression and drug addiction can reduce the way someone responds to drugs and stressful situations. A mouse study that focused on the epigenetic regulation of a single gene was carried out at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and was recently published in Nature Neuroscience. Earlier research supports a connection between epigenetic regulation and diseases related to depression and [more…]

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