A study done at Duke University showed that obese yellow mice whose diets are supplemented during pregnancy give birth to normal brown mice that do not develop obesity as adults.
"The unusual strain of mouse carries a kind of trigger near the gene that determines not only the color of its coat but also its predisposition to obesity, diabetes and cancer. When pregnant mice were fed extra vitamins and supplements, the supplements interacted with the trigger in the fetal mice and shut down the gene. As a result, obese yellow mothers gave birth to standard brown baby mice that grew up lean and healthy.
Scientists have long known that what pregnant mothers eat — whether they are mice, fruit flies or humans — can profoundly affect the susceptibility of their offspring to disease. But until now they have not understood why, said Dr. Randy Jirtle, a professor of radiation oncology at Duke and senior investigator of the study, which was reported in the Aug. 1 issue of Molecular and Cellular Biology.
The research is a milestone in the relatively new science of epigenetics, the study of how environmental factors like diet, stress and maternal nutrition can change gene function without altering the DNA sequence in any way.
Such factors have been shown to play a role in cancer, stroke, diabetes, schizophrenia, manic depression and other diseases as well as in shaping behavioral traits in offspring."
The director of the National Institute of Mental Health is quoted as saying that epigenetic effects could be more important than gene sequences, on which most genetic research concentrates.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/10/07/science/07GENE.html?pagewanted=1I was glad to see that the scientists who did the study are urging caution about supplementing our diets in the hope it will benefit us in the same way that supplementation benefits the mice. The article also recounts the earlier discovery that folic acid deficiency in pregnant women was correlated with a higher incidence of neural tube defects in their babies. (Neural tube defects include spina bifida, microcephaly, anencephaly.) That discovery led to the decision to add folic acid to breads and other grain products. Now some scientists are questioning whether it was a good idea to alter the diet of the entire U.S. population, especially when they see levels of obesity, autism, and other disorders on the rise. Neural tube defects have declined but was it wise to give folic acid to the entire population in an attempt to "cover" women who don't get early prenatal care? This is one of my big concerns about GMOs in our foods: we have no idea how these new "improved" foods will impact human health.
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