Epigenetics: molecular mechanisms and implications for disease
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- 作者：Adam E. H ; el ; George C. Ebers ; Sreeram V. Ramagopalan
- 刊名：Trends in Molecular Medicine
- 出版年：2010
- 出版时间：January 2010
- 年：2010
- 卷：16
- 期：1
- 页码：7-16
- 全文大小：581 K
文摘
Epigenetics is rising to prominence in biology as a mechanism by which environmental factors have intermediate-term effects on gene expression without changing the underlying genetic sequence. This can occur through the selective methylation of DNA bases and modification of histones. There are wide-ranging implications for the gene–environment debate and epigenetic mechanisms are causing a reevaluation of many traditional concepts such as heritability. The reversible nature of epigenetics also provides plausible treatment or prevention prospects for diseases previously thought hard-coded into the genome. Here, we consider how growing knowledge of epigenetics is altering our understanding of biology and medicine, and its implications for future research.