RCN: Epigenetics, Behavior and Reproduction

在过去的10年里，生物学领域最重要的进步之一是表观遗传学领域的发展。表观遗传学的字面意思是？高于基因？它描述了一套机制，通过这种机制，基因结构的变化可以在有机体中发生，而不需要对DNA序列进行任何改变，DNA序列是遗传密码的组成部分。这些变化发生的机制尚不清楚，但它们包括对蛋白质的生化修饰，将DNA缠绕成致密的球体，从而将DNA的长链包装到细胞核中。这些变化是动态的，在整个胚胎发育过程中普遍存在，也可以在对环境刺激的反应中发生。胚胎发育过程中的另一个重要过程是男女大脑组织方式的性别差异。这一研究领域的早期迹象表明，导致这些大脑变化的因素也是细胞表观遗传机制的一部分，但很少有研究将这两个研究领域结合在一起。这个性别差异表观遗传方法研究协调网络(RCN)的直接目标是开发一个结构化的框架，使行为和分子生物学家与生物信息学家和遗传学家可以直接合作，使用最先进的技术来解决新出现的问题，重点是表观遗传机制和大脑发育的性别差异之间的交集。为了实现这一目标，我们将每年举行一次会议，开发一个网站来共享信息和协议，并鼓励学生在实验室之间移动以学习新技术。这项工作的潜在影响包括对性别如何对其环境做出不同反应的新见解。例如，在战斗中服役后，女性显然比男性更容易患上创伤后应激综合征。因此，来自RCN的工作可能有助于解释细胞对压力的反应差异如何影响生理和/或行为方面的重要性别差异。

One of the most significant advances in Biology in the past 10 years is the development of the field of Epigenetics. Epigenetics literally means ?above the gene? and it describes a set of mechanisms whereby changes in gene structure can occur in an organism without any alternations to the DNA sequence, the building blocks of the genetic code. The mechanisms by which these changes occur are still unclear, but they include biochemical modifications to proteins that spool DNA into compacted spheres allowing the packaging of the long strands of DNA into cell nuclei. These changes are dynamic and are prevalent throughout embryonic development and can also occur in response to environmental stimuli. Another important process that occurs during embryonic development is the specification of gender differences in how male and female brains become organized. Early indications in this area of research suggest that factors that cause these brain changes are also part of the epigenetic machinery in cells, but few studies have brought these two research fields together in a cohesive manner. The immediate objective of this Research Coordinating Network (RCN) on Epigenetic Approaches to Sex Differences is to develop a structured framework whereby Behavioral and Molecular Biologists along with Bioinformaticians and Geneticists can collaborate directly using state-of-the art technology to address emerging questions focusing on the intersections between epigenetic mechanisms and gender differences of brain development. To achieve this we will hold a yearly meeting, develop a website to share information and protocols, and encourage students to move between laboratories to learn new techniques. The potential impact of the work includes novel insights into how the genders respond differentially to their environments. For example, women are apparently more susceptible to post-traumatic stress syndrome than men are after serving in combat. Thus, work from this RCN may help to explain how differences in cellular responses to stress influence important gender discrepancies in physiology and/or behavior.