Open AccessEpigenetic germline inheritance in mammals: looking to the past to understand the future
Author(s) -
Gapp K.,
Bohacek J.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
genes, brain and behavior
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.315
H-Index - 91
eISSN - 1601-183X
pISSN - 1601-1848
DOI - 10.1111/gbb.12407
Subject(s) - germline , epigenetics , biology , inheritance (genetic algorithm) , epigenome , skepticism , genetics , heredity , zygote , mechanism (biology) , germ cell , evolutionary biology , dna methylation , gene , embryogenesis , epistemology , gene expression , philosophy
Life experiences can induce epigenetic changes in mammalian germ cells, which can influence the developmental trajectory of the offspring and impact health and disease across generations. While this concept of epigenetic germline inheritance has long been met with skepticism, evidence in support of this route of information transfer is now overwhelming, and some key mechanisms underlying germline transmission of acquired information are emerging. This review focuses specifically on sperm RNAs as causal vectors of inheritance. We examine how they might become altered in the germline, and how different classes of sperm RNAs might interact with other epimodifications in germ cells or in the zygote. We integrate the latest findings with earlier pioneering work in this field, point out major questions and challenges, and suggest how new experiments could address them.