You Are What Your Grandmother Ate

New Scientist ^ | 11-13-2006 | Roxanne Khamsi

[blam]

You are what your grandmother ate 22:00 13 November 2006
NewScientist.com news service
Roxanne Khamsi

The mice on the left-hand side have active AVY genes, giving them golden fur, while those on the right have silenced AVY genes (Image: Cropley et al/PNAS)

A mother’s diet can change the behaviour of a specific gene for at least two subsequent generations, a new study demonstrates for the first time.

Feeding mice an enriched diet during pregnancy silenced a gene for light fur in their pups. And even though these pups ate a standard, un-enriched diet, the gene remained less active in their subsequent offspring.

The findings could help explain the curious results from recent studies of human populations – including one showing that the grandchildren of well-fed Swedes had a greater risk of diabetes.

The new mouse experiment lends support to the idea that we inherit not only our genes from our parents, but also a set of instructions that tell the genes when to become active. These instructions appear to be passed on through “epigenetic” changes to DNA – genes can be activated or silenced according to the chemical groups that are added onto them.

Gene silencer

David Martin at the Children’s Hospital Oakland Research Institute in California, US, and colleagues used a special strain of genetically identical mice with an overactive version of a gene that influences fur colour. Mice with the AVY version of this gene generally have golden fur.

[Twinkie]

That was my grandmother, Bob. I mean, you're Bob, not my grandmother Bob. . I actually had some of that same good food, but also indulged in those Hostess cupcakes and Twinkies; hence, the name Twinkie dominates in my constitution.

[NicknamedBob]

I was sure that you would take it with good humor.

I'm not sure exactly what it was my grandmother ate, but if I'm snips and snails and puppydog tails, I came by it honestly.

[Pan_Yans Wife]

I'm a cup of tea and a nip of toast? Hmmm... no wonder why I am always HUNGRY.

[fortunecookie]

I wonder how that happened?

Nature ... and nurture. ;-)

I did not inherit my grandmother's (and mother's) green thumb. But she did plenty of successful gardening. I did inherit my grandfather's severe allergies to all that is green. As far as I was told, I'm the only one of my cousins who did, and I remember my relatives saying things like 'poor thing' because of that.