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Handbook of Nutrition, Diet, and Epigenetics pp 727–744Cite as

Sperm Epigenome in Obesity

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Abstract

Male obesity may have intergenerational and even transgenerational effects in mammals. Studies in rodents have revealed alterations in energy metabolism and disease susceptibility in offspring of obese males, pointing to sperm epigenetic modifications as probable causal factors. To date there is a paucity of studies examining obesity-related changes in the sperm epigenome, and the available epidemiological studies are limited. Upon fertilization, modifications to sperm nuclear and cytoplasmic factors, like RNAs, and to sperm chromatin are likely to influence early embryo gene expression. The available data on the sperm epigenome suggest that sperm DNA methylation status and small noncoding RNA expression patterns are susceptible to obesity-associated modifications. Very little information exists on potential diet-induced modification of sperm histones. Currently, the evidence is most convincing for the involvement of sperm RNA species from obese fathers in the modification of embryo development and offspring energy metabolism.

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Abbreviations

CD:

Control diet

DFI:

DNA fragmentation index

DMRs:

Differentially methylated regions

HFD:

High-fat diet

m2G:

N2-methylguanosine

m5C:

5-Methylcytidine

miRNA:

MicroRNA

piRNA:

PIWI-interacting RNA

RRBS:

Reduced-representation bisulfite sequencing

SCSA:

Sperm chromatin structure assay

sncRNA:

Small non-coding RNA

tsRNA:

tRNA-derived small RNA

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Molecular Biology, Infection Control and Environmental Health, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway

    Nur Duale & Gunnar Brunborg

  2. Faculty of Health Sciences, Oslo and Akershus University College of Applied Sciences, Oslo, Norway

    Oliwia Witczak & Trine B. Haugen

  3. Department of Toxicology and Risk, Infection Control and Environmental Health, Norwegian Institute of Public Health, Oslo, Norway

    Birgitte Lindeman

Authors
  1. Nur Duale
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  2. Oliwia Witczak
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  3. Gunnar Brunborg
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  4. Trine B. Haugen
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  5. Birgitte Lindeman
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Birgitte Lindeman .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. School of Life Sciences, University of Westminster, London, UK

    Vinood B. Patel

  2. Diabetes and Nutritional Sciences Research Division, Faculty of Life Sciences and Medicine, King’s College London, London, UK

    Victor R. Preedy

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Duale, N., Witczak, O., Brunborg, G., Haugen, T.B., Lindeman, B. (2019). Sperm Epigenome in Obesity. In: Patel, V., Preedy, V. (eds) Handbook of Nutrition, Diet, and Epigenetics. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55530-0_53

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-55530-0_53

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-55529-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-55530-0

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