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Updated: May 15, 2026
10:28
Analysis of Transgenerational Epigenetic Inheritance in C. elegans Using a Fluorescent Reporter and Chromatin Immunoprecipitation (ChIP)
Published on: May 5, 2023
Inducible mouse models illuminate parameters influencing epigenetic inheritance
Mimi Wan1, Honggang Gu, Jingxue Wang
1Department of Immunobiology, Yale University, New Haven, CT 06520, USA.
Development (Cambridge, England)
|January 18, 2013
Summary
Environmental factors can alter the epigenome, but inheritance depends on timing for mitotic and location for transgenerational epigenetic changes. The fetal epigenome shows remarkable malleability.
Area of Science:
- Epigenetics
- Developmental Biology
- Genetics
Background:
- Environmental factors can induce stable epigenetic changes in individuals and their offspring.
- Understanding the mechanisms of mitotic and transgenerational epigenetic inheritance is challenging due to pleiotropic effects.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the determinants of mitotic and transgenerational epigenetic inheritance.
- To explore the malleability of the fetal epigenome and its implications for metastable epialleles.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a tetracycline-dependent transcription factor to manipulate epigenetic states of target genes.
- Administered transient epigenetic manipulations during specific embryonic development stages in animal models.
Main Results:
- Transient epigenetic perturbations during embryogenesis resulted in aberrant epigenetic modifications in adults, irrespective of modification patterns, gene sequences, or locations.
- Strong transgenerational inheritance was observed only for transgenes at the Col1a1 locus, with both activating and repressive chromatin modifications being heritable for multiple generations.
- Mitotic inheritance depended on perturbation timing, while transgenerational inheritance was influenced by both timing and genomic location.
Conclusions:
- The fetal epigenome exhibits significant malleability, impacting metastable epialleles.
- Epigenetic inheritance is critically dependent on the timing of perturbation for mitotic inheritance and on both timing and genomic location for transgenerational inheritance.
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