Paternal influences on offspring development: behavioural and epigenetic pathways.
1Department of Zoology/Developmental Neurobiology, Institute of Biology, Otto von Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany.
Journal of Neuroendocrinology
|July 22, 2014
Summary
Fathers significantly impact offspring development through direct care, epigenetic inheritance of environmental effects, and indirect influence on mother-infant interactions. These paternal effects contribute to transgenerational trait transmission.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Biology
- Behavioral Neuroscience
- Epigenetics
Background:
- Mammalian parent-offspring interactions are traditionally viewed as maternal, but paternal influences are increasingly recognized.
- Understanding the mechanisms of paternal influence is crucial for comprehending offspring development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review the diverse pathways through which fathers exert influence on offspring development in mammals.
- To highlight the direct, epigenetic, and indirect routes of paternal effects.
Main Methods:
- Literature review synthesizing existing research on paternal effects in mammals.
- Analysis of studies investigating direct paternal care, environmentally induced epigenetic inheritance, and indirect influences.
Main Results:
- Fathers influence offspring via direct care (biparental species).
- Fathers transmit environmentally induced phenotypes (stress, nutrition, toxins) to offspring, potentially via epigenetic mechanisms.
- Fathers indirectly affect offspring by modulating mother-infant interactions.
Conclusions:
- Paternal influences are multifaceted and not mutually exclusive.
- These pathways contribute to the complex mechanisms of parental influence.
- Paternal effects can lead to the transgenerational transmission of neurobiological and behavioral phenotypes.
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