Epigenetics News

July 26, 2024

Top Headlines

Brain-Heart Axis: Strokes Change Epigenetics of Immune System

July 23, 2024 — A stroke not only causes acute damage to the brain, but can also have long-term health implications for other organs -- such as the heart. Researchers have worked on the hypothesis that the high rate of comorbidities that develop after a stroke ...

The on-and-Off Affair in DNA

June 26, 2024 — Researchers have discovered that in thale cresses histone H3 lysine-9 (H3K9) methylation, conventionally thought to be a mark of turning off gene transcription, can also turn on gene expression via the interactions of two other proteins and histone ...

Inhibition of Epigenetic Control Enzymes in Immune Cells as a Potential New Starting Point in Cancer Immunotherapy

June 7, 2024 — Immunotherapy is one of the pillars in the fight against cancer and aims to enable the body's own immune system to fight a tumor. A recent study now shows that removing certain enzymes that regulate ...

Father's Diet Before Conception Influences Children's Health

June 5, 2024 — A recent study provides new insights into how fathers' diets and overweight can affect their children's health even before conception. The findings of the study can help develop preventive health measures for men wishing to become fathers: The ...

Latest Headlines

updated 9:22pm EDT

Study Explores Role of Epigenetics, Environment in Differing Alzheimer's Risk Between Black and White Communities

May 14, 2024 — Environmentally caused alterations to specific areas of the genome -- known as imprint control regions -- during early development may contribute to ...

An Epigenome Editing Toolkit to Dissect the Mechanisms of Gene Regulation

May 9, 2024 — A recent study led to the development of a powerful epigenetic editing technology. The system unlocks the ability to precisely program chromatin modifications at any specific position in the genome, ...

Discovering Cancers of Epigenetic Origin Without DNA Mutation

Apr. 24, 2024 — A research team has discovered that cancer, one of the leading causes of death worldwide, can be caused entirely by epigenetic changes, in other words, changes that contribute to how gene expression ...

Mosaics of Predisposition Cause Skin Disease

Apr. 22, 2024 — Clarifying the cause of a skin disease led to the discovery of a new disease-causing gene, a new category of diseases, and new perspectives for both counseling and therapy. The discovery is the first ...

Cracking Epigenetic Inheritance: Biologists Discovered the Secrets of How Gene Traits Are Passed on

Mar. 7, 2024 — A research team has recently made a significant breakthrough in understanding how the DNA copying machine helps pass on epigenetic information to ...

Revealing the Evolutionary Origin of Genomic Imprinting

Mar. 6, 2024 — Some of our genes can be expressed or silenced depending on whether we inherited them from our mother or our father. The mechanism behind this phenomenon, known as genomic imprinting, is determined ...

Decoding the Language of Epigenetic Modifications

Mar. 6, 2024 — Epigenetic changes play important roles in cancer, metabolic and aging-related diseases, but also during loss of resilience as they cause the genetic material to be incorrectly interpreted in ...

New Tool Helps Decipher Gene Behavior

Feb. 28, 2024 — Scientists have extensively researched the structure and sequence of genetic material and its interactions with proteins in the hope of understanding how our genetics and environment interact in ...

Mechanism of Drug Reactivating Tumor Suppressors

Feb. 21, 2024 — Researchers have revealed the mechanism of the drug valemetostat shown to be effective in treating certain types of cancer by targeting a protein modification (histone methylation) silencing the ...

Multi-Generational Toxicant Exposures Show Cumulative, Inherited Health Effects

Jan. 23, 2024 — While exposure to a single substance like DDT has been shown to create inherited disease susceptibility, a recent study in animals found exposure to ...

Array Pinpoints Imprinted Genes With Potential Links to Disease

July 25, 2024 — Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed an array that assesses methylation levels of genes located in imprint control regions (ICRs) within the human genome. The array ...

New Study Sheds Light on the Mechanisms Underlying the Development of Malignant Pediatric Brain Tumors

Apr. 15, 2024 — A new study revealed how aberrant epigenetic regulation contributes to the development of atypical teratoid/rhabdoid (AT/RT) tumors, which are aggressive brain tumors that mainly affect young ...

Aging Mouse Sperm Affects MicroRNA, Increasing the Risk of Neurodevelopmental Disorders

Jan. 12, 2024 — Much is known about the added complication to pregnancy when it comes to the age of the mother, but recent studies show that the age of the father can also heighten the risk of neurodevelopmental ...

Epigenetic Therapy Shows Promise for Endocrine-Resistant Breast Cancer

Jan. 9, 2024 — Researchers have revealed a reason why endocrine resistance develops in breast cancers and how to potentially treat it in ...

Epigenetic Changes Can Cause Type 2 Diabetes

Dec. 13, 2023 — Do epigenetic changes cause type 2 diabetes, or do the changes occur only after a person has become ill? A new study provides increased support for the idea that epigenetic changes can cause type 2 ...

Clever Dosage Control Mechanism of Biallelic Genes

Nov. 29, 2023 — Researchers have uncovered a mechanism that safeguards the biallelic expression of haploinsufficient genes, shedding light on the importance of having two copies of each chromosome. A study ...

How Cell Identity Is Preserved When Cells Divide

Nov. 16, 2023 — A new theoretical model helps explain how epigenetic memories, encoded in chemical modifications of chromatin, are passed from generation to generation. Within each cell's nucleus, researchers ...

AI Model Can Help Predict Survival Outcomes for Patients With Cancer

Nov. 16, 2023 — Investigators have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model based on epigenetic factors that is able to predict patient outcomes successfully across multiple cancer ...

Epigenetic Changes Are Paramount in Cancer Progression

Nov. 6, 2023 — The path a cell takes from healthy to metastatic cancer is mostly driven by epigenetic changes, according to a new computational ...

Epigenetic Signature for Obesity Found in Study of Twins

Nov. 1, 2023 — A susceptibility to gain weight may be written into molecular processes of human cells, a new study indicates. The proof-of-concept study with a set of 22 twins found an epigenetic signature in ...

Epigenetic Regulator MOF Drives Mitochondrial Metabolism

Oct. 9, 2023 — Researchers have unveiled a new mechanism for regulating mitochondrial function. The findings reveal the critical role played by the enzymatic activity of the lysine acetyltransferase MOF in ...

Study Illuminates Mechanism That Annotates Genetic Information Passed from Fathers to Offspring

Sep. 6, 2023 — Scientists have identified a key part of a mechanism that annotates genetic information before it is passed from fathers to their offspring. The findings shed new light on genomic imprinting, a ...

Epigenetic Mechanism That Causes Bitter Taste Distortion Discovered

Aug. 24, 2023 — A bitter taste in the mouth is often a symptom or side effect of illness, which may be the result of how the body reacts to pathogens. A new study sheds light on the mechanisms involved in the ...

Researchers Discover Potential Target for Gastric Cancers Associated With Epstein-Barr Virus

Aug. 22, 2023 — Scientists have discovered a potential target for gastric cancers associated with Epstein-Barr ...

Immune Memory Is Achieved by Epigenetic and Topological Rearrangements of DNA in Immune Cells

July 11, 2023 — A team of researchers has discovered that the memory of the immune system relies on characteristic epigenetic features and a specific 3D arrangement of the DNA in the nucleus of memory cells, ...

Unexpected Link Between Chromosomal Instability and Epigenetic Alterations

June 7, 2023 — New research finds an unexpected link between chromosomal instability and epigenetic alternations, both of which are hallmarks of cancer -- especially advanced, drug-resistant ...

Epigenetic Landscape Modulates Pioneer Transcription Factor Binding

May 24, 2023 — Scientists studied how the epigenetic landscape influences the binding of pioneer transcription factors, affecting access to ...

Impact of Maternal Stress During Pregnancy on Child's Health

Apr. 20, 2023 — New research examines the impact that maternal stress during pregnancy has on the neuro-development of ...

Researchers Discover Two Subtypes of Insulin-Producing Cells

Mar. 28, 2023 — A team of scientists has identified two distinct subtypes of insulin-producing beta cells, or ß cells, each with crucial characteristics that may be leveraged to better understand and treat Type 1 ...

Small Differences in Mom's Behavior May Show Up in Child's Epigenome

Mar. 2, 2023 — Adding evidence to the importance of early development, a new study links neutral maternal behavior toward infants with an epigenetic change in children related to stress response. Epigenetics are ...