29 Questions
What are epigenetic mechanisms?
Inheritance mechanisms outside the DNA sequence of genes
What does chromatin remodeling involve?
Various forms of remodeling leading to facilitation or hindrance of transcription
What are nucleosomes?
Fundamental structural units of chromatin
What is the role of H1 in relation to core histones?
Securing DNA to core histones
How does chromatin remodeling affect the length of DNA in eukaryotic nuclei?
Shortens its length by at least a factor of 10,000
What is the role of histones in relation to DNA?
Combine with DNA to form nucleosomes
What is the impact of maternal undernutrition, obesity, and diabetes during gestation and lactation on offspring?
Increased risk of obesity and impaired glucose tolerance in offspring
What was the observed effect of exposing pregnant agouti mothers to Bisphenol A (BPA) without supplements?
Pups were yellow and obese
What did the study on BPA and childhood obesity in JAMA 2012 find?
22% of children with the highest BPA level in their urine were obese
What is a potential reason for the association between urinary BPA concentration and childhood obesity being observed only in white children?
White children consume more BPA from canned sodas
What is the role of gut microbiome in influencing health and disease?
The gut microbiome is associated with health and disease
What is the function of MicroRNA (miRNA) in gene regulation?
Regulate transcription of ~60% of all protein-encoding genes through sequence-specific binding to RNA
What is the impact of dysregulation in the expression of miRNAs on pathological pathways?
Modulate pathological pathways involved in cancer, type 2 diabetes, and cardiovascular disease
What are some of the social determinants of health mentioned in the text?
Education, Income, Neighborhood
What are some examples of environmental stressors mentioned in the text?
Noise pollution, Lack of green space, Environmental pollution
What has been shown to modulate miRNA expression?
Both acute and long-term Mediterranean dietary patterns
What are some examples of epigenetic mechanisms mentioned in the text?
Pollution, Stress, Physical activity
What do health disparities arise from according to the text?
Both environmental exposure and social experiences
What are some examples of nonchemical stressors mentioned in the text?
Noise pollution, Lack of green space, Violence or threat of violence
What are some examples of social determinants of health related to economic stability?
Income, Expenses, Debt
What are some examples of health outcomes mentioned in the text?
Mortality, Morbidity, Life Expectancy
What are some examples of social determinants of health related to physical environment?
Housing, Transportation, Safety
Which nutrient, found in foods like sesame seeds, leafy vegetables, and egg yolks, can be used for making methyl groups, altering gene expression?
Folic acid
What is the consequence of deficiencies in methyl-donating folate or choline during fetal or postnatal development?
Lifelong under-methylation
How did feeding pregnant agouti mice with different levels of methionine and folic acid affect the offspring?
Affected coat color in offspring and subsequent generations
What did the Dutch Mothers Study show about the impact of malnutrition during gestation?
Malnutrition during gestation can have multi-generational effects, passed down to subsequent generations
What does histone deacetylation do to transcription?
Inhibits transcription
What is the effect of methylation of CpG islands in gene promoters?
Represses gene expression
How does acetylation of lysine residues in histone proteins affect transcription?
Reduces affinity with DNA, enhancing transcription
Study Notes
Epigenetics and Nutrition: How Diet Can Influence Gene Expression
- DNA tightly wound around histones is not available for transcription
- Acetylation of lysine residues in histone proteins reduces affinity with DNA, enhancing transcription
- Histone deacetylation inhibits transcription
- DNA methylation is the addition of a methyl group to a cytosine residue, regulated by DNA-methyl transferase
- Methylation of CpG islands in gene promoters can repress gene expression, but intron hypermethylation can lead to gene activation
- Nutrients like folic acid, B vitamins, and choline from food can be used for making methyl groups, altering gene expression
- Foods like sesame seeds, leafy vegetables, and egg yolks contain nutrients that affect the epigenome
- Deficiencies in methyl-donating folate or choline during fetal or postnatal development can cause lifelong under-methylation
- Feeding pregnant agouti mice with different levels of methionine and folic acid affected coat color in offspring and subsequent generations
- Dutch mothers who experienced malnutrition during pregnancy had offspring with long-term health consequences
- Babies malnourished early in the womb had higher rates of obesity as adults and were more likely to have obese children
- The Dutch Mothers Study showed that malnutrition during gestation can have multi-generational effects, passed down to subsequent generations
Test your knowledge of how nutrition can influence gene expression through epigenetics with this quiz. Explore the impact of nutrients like folic acid and choline on DNA methylation and histone modification, and learn about studies linking maternal nutrition to multi-generational health effects.
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