Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 22, 2026

Stable Isotope In-Vivo Labeling for Mass-Spectrometry Identification of Paternal Metabolites Transferred from Sperm to Oocyte During Fertilization
Published on: June 17, 2025
Environmentally induced epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of ovarian disease
Eric Nilsson1, Ginger Larsen, Mohan Manikkam
1School of Biological Sciences, Center for Reproductive Biology, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA.
Abstract:
The actions of environmental toxicants and relevant mixtures in promoting the epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of ovarian disease was investigated with the use of a fungicide, a pesticide mixture, a plastic mixture, dioxin and a hydrocarbon mixture. After transient exposure of an F0 gestating female rat during embryonic gonadal sex determination, the F1 and F3 generation progeny adult onset ovarian disease was assessed. Transgenerational disease phenotypes observed included an increase in cysts resembling human polycystic ovarian disease (PCO) and a decrease in the ovarian primordial follicle pool size resembling primary ovarian insufficiency (POI). The F3 generation granulosa cells were isolated and found to have a transgenerational effect on the transcriptome and epigenome (differential DNA methylation). Epigenetic biomarkers for environmental exposure and associated gene networks were identified. Epigenetic transgenerational inheritance of ovarian disease states was induced by all the different classes of environmental compounds, suggesting a role of environmental epigenetics in ovarian disease etiology.
More Related Videos
06:49Orthotopic Ovarian Transplantation Procedures to Investigate the Life- and Health-span Influence of Ovarian Senescence in Female Mice
Published on: February 12, 2018
12:42Heterotypic Three-dimensional In Vitro Modeling of Stromal-Epithelial Interactions During Ovarian Cancer Initiation and Progression
Published on: August 28, 2012
Related Concept Videos
Oogenesis
Genomic Imprinting and Inheritance
The expression of some genes depends on which parent passed the gene to the offspring, through a phenomenon known as...
Epigenetic Regulation
X-chromosome...
Epigenetic Regulation
Background and Environment Affect Phenotype
An example of how genetic background affects phenotype can be seen in horses. The Extension gene in horses is responsible for their coat color. A wild-type gene (EE) produces black pigment in the coat, while a mutant gene (ee) produces red pigment. A...
Gene-Environment Interactions