Decades ago, someone’s grandmother was exposed to a toxic pesticide that was later banned. A Washington State University professor’s research suggests that person’s grandchild may be suffering the consequences of that environmental exposure.
The inheritance that WSU epigeneticist Michael Skinner studies does not come from genes – those are set in stone after birth. But epigenetics, the way those genes express themselves, do change throughout a person’s life and can also be passed down through the generations.
Skinner suggests that today’s high rates of obesity could be linked to epigenetics rather than just diet and exercise.
Though each cell in the body has an identical DNA sequence, the form and function of cells are often quite different. That is because different epigenetic processes can “turn on and turn off” different cells, according to Skinner.
“Disease we now know primarily comes from an abnormal epigenetics, which is causing an abnormal set of genes to turn on or off and gives genes an abnormal function,” he said.
Unlike DNA, the body’s epigenetics can change throughout their life – largely based on environmental factors. That’s how exposure to a chemical can cause disease decades later.
Over his decades of research, Skinner’s contribution to the field of epigenetics has been the discovery that epigenetics is inherited just like the genes themselves.
Read the full story:
Spokesman-Review
The Columbian