What Do You Mean, "Epigenetic"?
What Do You Mean, "Epigenetic"?
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DOI：
10.1534/genetics.114.173492
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发表时间：
2015-04-01
期刊：
影响因子：
3.3
通讯作者：
Maggert, Keith A.
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Deans, Carrie;Maggert, Keith A.
在过去的十年中，对表观遗传学领域的兴趣迅速增加，该术语在生物医学研究，分子科学以外的科学领域，如生态学和生理学，甚至主流文化中变得更加容易识别。然而，越来越清楚的是，不同的研究人员对这一术语有不同的定义。有些人利用表观遗传学来解释基因表达的变化，其他人则用它来指跨代效应和/或遗传表达状态。这种对明确定义的分歧使得沟通变得困难，跨领域的表观遗传研究的综合几乎是不可能的，并且在许多方面有偏见的方法和解释。本文讨论了自表观遗传学概念以来所采用的众多定义背后的历史，分析了这些定义的组成部分，并提供了澄清该领域和减轻由于这些定义模糊而出现的问题的解决方案。
Interest in the field of epigenetics has increased rapidly over the last decade, with the term becoming more identifiable in biomedical research, scientific fields outside of the molecular sciences, such as ecology and physiology, and even mainstream culture. It has become increasingly clear, however, that different investigators ascribe different definitions to the term. Some employ epigenetics to explain changes in gene expression, others use it to refer to transgenerational effects and/or inherited expression states. This disagreement on a clear definition has made communication difficult, synthesis of epigenetic research across fields nearly impossible, and has in many ways biased methodologies and interpretations. This article discusses the history behind the multitude of definitions that have been employed since the conception of epigenetics, analyzes the components of these definitions, and offers solutions for clarifying the field and mitigating the problems that have arisen due to these definitional ambiguities.