Biological embedding of experience: A primer on epigenetics

Maria J. Aristizabal; Ina Anreiter; Thorhildur Halldorsdottir; Candice L. Odgers; Thomas W. McDade; Anna Goldenberg; Sara Mostafavi; Michael S. Kobor; Elisabeth B. Binder; Marla B. Sokolowski; Kieran J. O'Donnell

doi:10.1073/pnas.1820838116

Biological embedding of experience: A primer on epigenetics

Maria J. Aristizabal, Ina Anreiter, Thorhildur Halldorsdottir, Candice L. Odgers, Thomas W. McDade, Anna Goldenberg, Sara Mostafavi, Michael S. Kobor, Elisabeth B. Binder, Marla B. Sokolowski^*, Kieran J. O'Donnell^*

^*Corresponding author for this work

Anthropology

Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

171 Scopus citations

Abstract

Biological embedding occurs when life experience alters biological processes to affect later life health and well-being. Although extensive correlative data exist supporting the notion that epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation underlie biological embedding, causal data are lacking. We describe specific epigenetic mechanisms and their potential roles in the biological embedding of experience. We also consider the nuanced relationships between the genome, the epigenome, and gene expression. Our ability to connect biological embedding to the epigenetic landscape in its complexity is challenging and complicated by the influence of multiple factors. These include cell type, age, the timing of experience, sex, and DNA sequence. Recent advances in molecular profiling and epigenome editing, combined with the use of comparative animal and human longitudinal studies, should enable this field to transition from correlative to causal analyses.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	23261-23269
Number of pages	9
Journal	Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume	117
Issue number	38
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1820838116
State	Published - Sep 22 2020

Funding

We thank all members of CIFAR’s Child and Brain Development (CBD) Program for helpful discussions of this manuscript. A.G., C.L.O., E.B.B., M.S.K., M.B.S., S.M., and T.W.M. are fellows in the CBD Program. M.J.A. is supported by a Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada postdoctoral fellowship. K.J.O. is a CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar in the CBD Program. M.B.S. is a CIFAR Weston Fellow.

Keywords

Biological embedding of experience
Epigenetic mechanisms
Epigenome
Gene-environment interplay
Translational research

ASJC Scopus subject areas

General

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10.1073/pnas.1820838116

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Aristizabal, M. J., Anreiter, I., Halldorsdottir, T., Odgers, C. L., McDade, T. W., Goldenberg, A., Mostafavi, S., Kobor, M. S., Binder, E. B., Sokolowski, M. B., & O'Donnell, K. J. (2020). Biological embedding of experience: A primer on epigenetics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 117(38), 23261-23269. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1820838116

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abstract = "Biological embedding occurs when life experience alters biological processes to affect later life health and well-being. Although extensive correlative data exist supporting the notion that epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation underlie biological embedding, causal data are lacking. We describe specific epigenetic mechanisms and their potential roles in the biological embedding of experience. We also consider the nuanced relationships between the genome, the epigenome, and gene expression. Our ability to connect biological embedding to the epigenetic landscape in its complexity is challenging and complicated by the influence of multiple factors. These include cell type, age, the timing of experience, sex, and DNA sequence. Recent advances in molecular profiling and epigenome editing, combined with the use of comparative animal and human longitudinal studies, should enable this field to transition from correlative to causal analyses.",

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Aristizabal, MJ, Anreiter, I, Halldorsdottir, T, Odgers, CL, McDade, TW, Goldenberg, A, Mostafavi, S, Kobor, MS, Binder, EB, Sokolowski, MB & O'Donnell, KJ 2020, 'Biological embedding of experience: A primer on epigenetics', Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, vol. 117, no. 38, pp. 23261-23269. https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1820838116

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AU - Aristizabal, Maria J.

AU - Anreiter, Ina

AU - Halldorsdottir, Thorhildur

AU - Odgers, Candice L.

AU - McDade, Thomas W.

AU - Goldenberg, Anna

AU - Mostafavi, Sara

AU - Kobor, Michael S.

AU - Binder, Elisabeth B.

AU - Sokolowski, Marla B.

AU - O'Donnell, Kieran J.

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AB - Biological embedding occurs when life experience alters biological processes to affect later life health and well-being. Although extensive correlative data exist supporting the notion that epigenetic mechanisms such as DNA methylation underlie biological embedding, causal data are lacking. We describe specific epigenetic mechanisms and their potential roles in the biological embedding of experience. We also consider the nuanced relationships between the genome, the epigenome, and gene expression. Our ability to connect biological embedding to the epigenetic landscape in its complexity is challenging and complicated by the influence of multiple factors. These include cell type, age, the timing of experience, sex, and DNA sequence. Recent advances in molecular profiling and epigenome editing, combined with the use of comparative animal and human longitudinal studies, should enable this field to transition from correlative to causal analyses.

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Biological embedding of experience: A primer on epigenetics

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