The Experts below are selected from a list of 360 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Gal Raz - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance prevalence mechanisms and implications for the study of heredity and evolution
The Quarterly Review of Biology, 2009Co-Authors: Eva Jablonka, Gal RazAbstract:This review describes new developments in the study of transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance, a component of epigenetics. We start by examining the basic concepts of the field and the mechanisms that underlie epigenetic Inheritance. We present a comprehensive review of transgenerational cellular epigenetic Inheritance among different taxa in the form of a table, and discuss the data contained therein. The analysis of these data shows that epigenetic Inheritance is ubiquitous and suggests lines of research that go beyond present approaches to the subject. We conclude by exploring some of the consequences of epigenetic Inheritance for the study of evolution, while also pointing to the importance of recognizing and understanding epigenetic Inheritance for practical and theoretical issues in biology.
Emma Whitelaw - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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understanding transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance via the gametes in mammals
Nature Reviews Genetics, 2012Co-Authors: Lucia Daxinger, Emma WhitelawAbstract:It is known that information that is not contained in the DNA sequence — epigenetic information — can be inherited from the parent to the offspring. However, many questions remain unanswered regarding the extent and mechanisms of such Inheritance. In this Review, we consider the evidence for transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance via the gametes, including cases of environmentally induced epigenetic changes. The molecular basis of this Inheritance remains unclear, but recent evidence points towards diffusible factors, in particular RNA, rather than DNA methylation or chromatin. Interestingly, many cases of epigenetic Inheritance seem to involve repeat sequences.
Xiaorong Lin - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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prezygotic and postzygotic control of uniparental mitochondrial dna Inheritance in cryptococcus neoformans
Mbio, 2013Co-Authors: Rachana Gyawali, Xiaorong LinAbstract:Uniparental Inheritance of mitochondrial DNA is pervasive in nonisogamic higher eukaryotes during sexual repro- duction, and postzygotic and/or prezygotic factors are shown to be important in ensuring such an Inheritance pattern. Although the fungus Cryptococcus neoformans undergoes sexual production with isogamic partners of opposite mating types a and , most progeny derived from such mating events inherit the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) from the a parent. The homeodomain protein complex Sxi1/Sxi2a, formed in the zygote after a-cell fusion, was previously shown to play a role in this uniparental mtDNA Inheritance. Here, we defined the timing of the establishment of the mtDNA Inheritance pattern during the mating pro- cess and demonstrated a critical role in determining the mtDNA Inheritance pattern by a prezygotic factor, Mat2. Mat2 is the key transcription factor that governs the pheromone sensing and response pathway, and it is critical for the early mating events that lead to cell fusion and zygote formation. We show that Mat2 governs mtDNA Inheritance independently of the postzygotic fac- tors Sxi1/Sxi2a, and the cooperation between these prezygotic and postzygotic factors helps to achieve stricter uniparental mi- tochondrial Inheritance in this eukaryotic microbe. IMPORTANCE Mitochondrial DNA is inherited uniparentally from the maternal parent in the majority of eukaryotes. Studies done on higher eukaryotes such as mammals have shown that the transmission of parental mitochondrial DNA is controlled at both the prefertilization and postfertilization stages to achieve strict uniparental Inheritance. However, the molecular mecha- nisms underlying such uniparental mitochondrial Inheritance have been investigated in detail mostly in anisogamic multicellu- lar eukaryotes. Here, we show that in a simple isogamic microbe, Cryptococcus neoformans, the mitochondrial Inheritance is controlled at the prezygotic level as well as the postzygotic level by regulators that are critical for sexual development. Further- more, the cooperation between these two levels of control ensures stricter uniparental mitochondrial Inheritance, echoing what has been observed in higher eukaryotes. Thus, the investigation of uniparental mitochondrial Inheritance in this eukaryotic mi- crobe could help advance our understanding of the convergent evolution of this widespread phenomenon in the eukaryotic do- main.
Scott Kennedy - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance is negatively regulated by the heri 1 chromodomain protein
Genetics, 2018Co-Authors: Roberto Perales, Daniel J Pagano, Gang Wan, Brandon D Fields, Arneet L Saltzman, Scott KennedyAbstract:Transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance (TEI) is the Inheritance of epigenetic information for two or more generations. In most cases, TEI is limited to a small number of generations (two to three). The short-term nature of TEI could be set by innate biochemical limitations to TEI or by genetically encoded systems that actively limit TEI. In Caenorhabditis elegans, double-stranded RNA (dsRNA)-mediated gene silencing [RNAi (RNA interference)] can be inherited (termed RNAi Inheritance or RNA-directed TEI). To identify systems that might actively limit RNA-directed TEI, we conducted a forward genetic screen for factors whose mutation enhanced RNAi Inheritance. This screen identified the gene heritable enhancer of RNAi (heri-1), whose mutation causes RNAi Inheritance to last longer (> 20 generations) than normal. heri-1 encodes a protein with a chromodomain, and a kinase homology domain that is expressed in germ cells and localizes to nuclei. In C. elegans, a nuclear branch of the RNAi pathway [termed the nuclear RNAi or NRDE (nuclear RNA defective) pathway] promotes RNAi Inheritance. We find that heri-1(−) animals have defects in spermatogenesis that are suppressible by mutations in the nuclear RNAi Argonaute (Ago) HRDE-1, suggesting that HERI-1 might normally act in sperm progenitor cells to limit nuclear RNAi and/or RNAi Inheritance. Consistent with this idea, we find that the NRDE nuclear RNAi pathway is hyperresponsive to experimental RNAi treatments in heri-1 mutant animals. Interestingly, HERI-1 binds to genes targeted by RNAi, suggesting that HERI-1 may have a direct role in limiting nuclear RNAi and, therefore, RNAi Inheritance. Finally, the recruitment of HERI-1 to chromatin depends upon the same factors that drive cotranscriptional gene silencing, suggesting that the generational perdurance of RNAi Inheritance in C. elegans may be set by competing pro- and antisilencing outputs of the nuclear RNAi machinery.
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heri 1 is a chromodomain protein that negatively regulates transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance
bioRxiv, 2018Co-Authors: Roberto Perales, Daniel J Pagano, Gang Wan, Brandon D Fields, Arneet L Saltzman, Scott KennedyAbstract:Transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance (TEI) is the Inheritance of epigenetic information for two or more generations. In most cases, TEI is limited to 2-3 generations. This short-term nature of TEI could be set by innate biochemical limitations to TEI or by genetically encoded systems that actively limit TEI. dsRNA-mediated gene silencing (RNAi) can be inherited in C. elegans (termed RNAi Inheritance or RNA-directed TEI). To identify systems that might actively limit RNA-directed TEI, we conducted a forward genetic screen for factors whose mutation enhanced RNAi Inheritance. This screen identified the gene heritable enhancer of RNAi ( heri-1 ), whose mutation causes RNAi Inheritance to last longer (>20 generations) than normal. heri-1 encodes a protein with a chromodomain and a kinase-homology domain that is expressed in germ cells and localizes to nuclei. In C. elegans , a nuclear branch of the RNAi pathway (nuclear RNAi or NRDE pathway) is required for RNAi Inheritance. We find that this NRDE pathway is hyper-responsive to RNAi in heri-1 mutant animals, suggesting that a normal function of HERI-1 is to limit nuclear RNAi and that limiting nuclear RNAi may be the mechanism by which HERI-1 limits RNAi Inheritance. Interestingly, we find that HERI-1 binds to genes targeted by RNAi, suggesting that HERI-1 may have a direct role in limiting nuclear RNAi and, therefore, RNAi Inheritance. Surprisingly, recruitment of the negative regulator HERI-1 to genes depends upon that same NRDE factors that drive co-transcriptional gene silencing during RNAi Inheritance. We therefore speculate that the generational perdurance of RNAi Inheritance is set by competing pro- and anti-silencing outputs of the NRDE nuclear RNAi machinery.
Eva Jablonka - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Is Non-genetic Inheritance Just a Proximate Mechanism? A Corroboration of the Extended Evolutionary Synthesis
Biological Theory, 2013Co-Authors: Alex Mesoudi, Laurel Fogarty, Thomas J. H. Morgan, Anne Charmantier, Eva Jablonka, Etienne Danchin, Gerd B. Müller, Simon Blanchet, Kevin N. Laland, F. John Odling-smeeAbstract:What role does non-genetic Inheritance play in evolution? In recent work we have independently and collectively argued that the existence and scope of non-genetic Inheritance systems, including epigenetic Inheritance, niche construction/ecological Inheritance, and cultural Inheritance—alongside certain other theory revisions—necessitates an extension to the neo-Darwinian Modern Synthesis (MS) in the form of an Extended Evolutionary Synthesis (EES). However, this argument has been challenged on the grounds that non-genetic Inheritance systems are exclusively proximate mechanisms that serve the ultimate function of calibrating organisms to stochastic environments. In this paper we defend our claims, pointing out that critics of the EES (1) conflate non-genetic Inheritance with early 20th-century notions of soft Inheritance; (2) misunderstand the nature of the EES in relation to the MS; (3) confuse individual phenotypic plasticity with trans-generational non-genetic Inheritance; (4) fail to address the extensive theoretical and empirical literature which shows that non-genetic Inheritance can generate novel targets for selection, create new genetic equilibria that would not exist in the absence of non-genetic Inheritance, and generate phenotypic variation that is independent of genetic variation; (5) artificially limit ultimate explanations for traits to gene-based selection, which is unsatisfactory for phenotypic traits that originate and spread via non-genetic Inheritance systems; and (6) fail to provide an explanation for biological organization. We conclude by noting ways in which we feel that an overly gene-centric theory of evolution is hindering progress in biology and other sciences.
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transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance prevalence mechanisms and implications for the study of heredity and evolution
The Quarterly Review of Biology, 2009Co-Authors: Eva Jablonka, Gal RazAbstract:This review describes new developments in the study of transgenerational epigenetic Inheritance, a component of epigenetics. We start by examining the basic concepts of the field and the mechanisms that underlie epigenetic Inheritance. We present a comprehensive review of transgenerational cellular epigenetic Inheritance among different taxa in the form of a table, and discuss the data contained therein. The analysis of these data shows that epigenetic Inheritance is ubiquitous and suggests lines of research that go beyond present approaches to the subject. We conclude by exploring some of the consequences of epigenetic Inheritance for the study of evolution, while also pointing to the importance of recognizing and understanding epigenetic Inheritance for practical and theoretical issues in biology.
