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Epigenetic Bearing on Fertility in Farm Animals

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Current Concepts in Bovine Reproduction

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Abstract

Epigenetics studies alterations in gene expression occurring without changing the nucleotide sequence. Epigenetic modifications are mediated by DNA methylation, histone modifications, and RNA-based gene expression regulation, although influenced by environmental and nutritional factors. It has been well-established in both humans and farm animals that DNA methylation plays a crucial role in epigenetic reprogramming of germ cells, and any aberrance in this process could generate incompetent germ cells unable to fertilize. Additionally, aberrant histone modifications and protamine expression are directly related to infertility. The present chapter provides a comprehensive understanding of mechanisms of epigenetic modifications in germ cells and attempts to correlate the implications of DNA methylation during epigenetic reprogramming, epigenetic potential of the nuclear proteome, and abnormal protamine expression with the fertility in farm animals. It also highlights the epigenetic alterations associated with ART failure, ageing oocytes, and poor fertilizing ability.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Animal Genomics Laboratory, Animal Biotechnology Centre, NDRI, Karnal, Haryana, India

    T. K. Datta, Sandeep Kumar, Vivek Verma, Vipul Batra & Rakesh Kumar

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  1. T. K. Datta
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  2. Sandeep Kumar
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  3. Vivek Verma
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  4. Vipul Batra
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  5. Rakesh Kumar
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  1. Theriogenology Laboratory, Southern Regional Station of ICAR-National Dairy Research Institute, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India

    A. Kumaresan

  2. Agricultural Scientist Recruitment Board, New Delhi, Delhi, India

    A. K. Srivastava

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Datta, T.K., Kumar, S., Verma, V., Batra, V., Kumar, R. (2022). Epigenetic Bearing on Fertility in Farm Animals. In: Kumaresan, A., Srivastava, A.K. (eds) Current Concepts in Bovine Reproduction. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-19-0116-4_16

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