Transgenerational inheritance of altered gene expression via stress

父亲的“低蛋白”饮食改变了子代肝脏中的基因表达，主要涉及脂肪和胆固醇的生物合成，即使母亲的饮食没有改变(Carone BR，Cell，2010)。我们研究了ATF-7对这些基因表达的影响，并发现使用ATF-7基因敲除的雄性小鼠的低蛋白饮食不会改变胆固醇生物合成基因的表达。我们还发现，ATF-7与大约一半的胆固醇生物合成基因的启动子区域结合。此外，在这些基因的启动子区域，组蛋白H3K9甲基化程度降低。

A paternal “low-protein” diet altered gene expressions, mainly involved in lipid and cholesterol biosynthesis, in the livers of offspring even though the maternal diet was unaltered (Carone BR, Cell, 2010). We have studied the effect of ATF-7 on these gene expressions and have found that using Atf-7 knockout male mice low-protein diet didn’t alter expressions of cholesterol biosynthesis genes. And we have found that ATF-7 binds to the promoter regions of about half of these cholesterol biosynthesis genes. And also, in the promoter regions of these genes, the degrees of histone H3K9 methylation were reduced.