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The mechanisms of transgenerational inheritance and their potential contribution to human phenotypes

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Abstract

As of today, classical genetics has already completed the majority of groundwork to describe the laws of inheritance, identify the causes of many human diseases, and dissect the mechanisms of transfer of genetic information from parents to offspring. However, recent studies indicate that inheritance of phenotypic traits may also occur through nongenetic factors, in particular, through epigenetic factors, that manifest their effects in a transgenerational fashion. This review discusses findings in the area of transgenerational inheritance that open a new era in modern genetics. We discuss the mechanisms of transgenerational inheritance, including DNA methylation, histone modifications, and noncoding RNA transfer, and give an overview of the approaches to detect transgenerational effects in humans.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Center for Medical Genetics, Moscow, 115478, Russia

    M. Yu. Skoblov & A. V. Baranova

  2. Evdokimov Moscow State Medical Stomatological University, Moscow, 127473, Russia

    M. Yu. Skoblov

  3. Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology, Dolgoprudny, Moscow region, 141700, Russia

    M. Yu. Skoblov & A. V. Baranova

  4. Department of Biological Evolution, Moscow State University, Moscow, 119234, Russia

    V. A. Scobeyeva

  5. School of Systems Biology, George Mason University, Fairfax, VA, 22030, USA

    A. V. Baranova

  6. Atlas Biomed Group, Moscow, 123317, Russia

    A. V. Baranova

Authors
  1. M. Yu. Skoblov
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  2. V. A. Scobeyeva
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  3. A. V. Baranova
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Correspondence to M. Yu. Skoblov.

Additional information

Original Russian Text © M.Yu. Skoblov, V.A. Scobeyeva, A.V. Baranova, 2016, published in Genetika, 2016, Vol. 52, No. 3, pp. 283–292.

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Skoblov, M.Y., Scobeyeva, V.A. & Baranova, A.V. The mechanisms of transgenerational inheritance and their potential contribution to human phenotypes. Russ J Genet 52, 249–256 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1022795416030145

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1134/S1022795416030145

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