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Wimmer ME, Vassoler FM, White SL, Schmidt HD, Sidoli S, Han Y, Garcia BA, Pierce RC. Impaired cocaine-induced behavioral plasticity in the male offspring of cocaine-experienced sires. Eur J Neurosci 2019; 49:1115-1126. [PMID: 30565761 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14310] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2018] [Revised: 10/19/2018] [Accepted: 11/23/2018] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Our previous work indicated that male, but not female, offspring of cocaine-experienced sires display blunted cocaine self-administration. We extended this line of investigation to examine behavioral sensitization, a commonly used model of cocaine-induced behavioral and neuronal plasticity. Results indicated that male, but not female, offspring of cocaine-taking sires showed deficits in the ability of repeated systemic cocaine injections to induce augmented locomotor activity. The reduced cocaine sensitization phenotype in male progeny was associated with changes in histone post-translational modifications, epigenetic processes that regulate gene expression by controlling the accessibility of genes to transcriptional machinery, in the nucleus accumbens of first-generation male progeny. Thus, five histone post-translational modifications were significantly altered in the male progeny of cocaine-exposed sires. In contrast, self-administration of nicotine was unaltered in male and female offspring suggesting that the intergenerational effects of paternal cocaine taking may be drug-specific. Interestingly, the reduced sensitivity to cocaine previously observed in the male offspring of cocaine-taking sires dissipated in the grand-offspring. Both male and female grand-progeny of cocaine-exposed sires showed unaltered cocaine-induced behavioral sensitization and cocaine self-administration. Taken together, these findings indicate that paternal cocaine taking produces changes in multiple cocaine addiction-related behaviors in male progeny, which do not persist beyond the first generation of offspring. Moreover, the altered sensitivity to cocaine in first-generation male progeny of cocaine-sired male offspring was associated with epigenetic modifications in the nucleus accumbens, a nucleus that plays a critical role in cocaine-associated behavioral plasticity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mathieu E Wimmer
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program, College of Liberal Arts, Temple University, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Fair M Vassoler
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, Tufts University, Grafton, Massachusetts
| | - Samantha L White
- Department of Psychiatry, Center for Neurobiology and Behavior, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Heath D Schmidt
- Department of Psychiatry, Center for Neurobiology and Behavior, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.,Department of Biobehavioral Health Sciences, School of Nursing, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Simone Sidoli
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Yumiao Han
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - Benjamin A Garcia
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Epigenetics Institute, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
| | - R Christopher Pierce
- Department of Psychiatry, Center for Neurobiology and Behavior, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
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53
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Ibn Lahmar Andaloussi Z, Taghzouti K, Abboussi O. Behavioural and epigenetic effects of paternal exposure to cannabinoids during adolescence on offspring vulnerability to stress. Int J Dev Neurosci 2018; 72:48-54. [PMID: 30476535 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijdevneu.2018.11.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2018] [Revised: 10/03/2018] [Accepted: 11/21/2018] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic cannabinoid exposure during adolescence in male rats induces chronic cognitive and emotional impairments. However, the impact of this form of exposure on offspring vulnerability to stress is unknown. The aim of this study was to evaluate the behavioural and epigenetic effects of stress in the offspring of male rats whose fathers were exposed to cannabinoids during adolescence. Male adolescent offspring of Win55,212-2 (1.2 mg/kg) treated rats were exposed during one week to variable stressors and subjected to behavioural tests of anxiety and episodic-like memory, followed by an assessment of global DNA methylation and expression of DNA methyltransferases enzymes DNMT1 and DNMT3a mRNA in the prefrontal cortex. Stress exposure induced a significant anxiogenic-like effect but did not affect the episodic-like memory in the offspring of Win55,212-2 exposed fathers in comparison to the offspring of non-exposed fathers. These behavioural changes were subsequent to a significant increase in global DNA methylation and DNMT1 and DNMTa3 transcription in the prefrontal cortex. These data suggest that the deleterious effect of chronic exposure to cannabinoids during adolescence are not limited to the exposed individuals but may increase the vulnerability to stress-induced anxiety in the offspring and alter their epigenetic programming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zineb Ibn Lahmar Andaloussi
- Physiology and Physiopathology Team, Faculty of Sciences, Genomic of Human Pathologies Research Centre, Mohammed V University in Rabat, Morocco
| | - Khalid Taghzouti
- Physiology and Physiopathology Team, Faculty of Sciences, Genomic of Human Pathologies Research Centre, Mohammed V University in Rabat, Morocco
| | - Oualid Abboussi
- Institute of Academic Anaesthesia, Division of Neuroscience, Ninewells Hospital and Medical School, University of Dundee, Dundee, UK.
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54
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Rompala GR, Simons A, Kihle B, Homanics GE. Paternal Preconception Chronic Variable Stress Confers Attenuated Ethanol Drinking Behavior Selectively to Male Offspring in a Pre-Stress Environment Dependent Manner. Front Behav Neurosci 2018; 12:257. [PMID: 30450042 PMCID: PMC6225737 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2018] [Accepted: 10/12/2018] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
Stress-related psychiatric disorders such as major depression are strongly associated with alcohol abuse and alcohol use disorder. Recently, many epidemiological and preclinical studies suggest that chronic stress prior to conception has cross-generational effects on the behavior and physiological response to stress in subsequent generations. Thus, we hypothesized that chronic stress may also affect ethanol drinking behaviors in the next generation. In the first cohort of mice, we found that paternal preconception chronic variable stress significantly reduced both two-bottle choice and binge-like ethanol drinking selectively in male offspring. However, these results were not replicated in a second cohort that were tested under experimental conditions that were nearly identical, except for one notable difference. Cohort 1 offspring were derived from in-house C57BL/6J sires that were born in the animal vivarium at the University of Pittsburgh whereas cohort 2 offspring were derived from C57BL/6J sires shipped directly from the vendor. Therefore, a third cohort that included both in-house and vendor born sires was analyzed. Consistent with the first two cohorts, we observed a significant interaction between chronic stress and sire-source with only stressed sires that were born in-house able to impart reduced ethanol drinking behaviors to male offspring. Overall, these results demonstrate that paternal preconception stress can impact ethanol drinking behavior in males of the next generation. These studies provide additional support for a recently recognized role of the paternal preconception environment in shaping ethanol drinking behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory R Rompala
- Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Alison Simons
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Brooke Kihle
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Gregg E Homanics
- Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.,Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.,Department of Anesthesiology, University of Pittsburgh School Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.,Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
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55
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Goldberg LR, Gould TJ. Multigenerational and transgenerational effects of paternal exposure to drugs of abuse on behavioral and neural function. Eur J Neurosci 2018; 50:2453-2466. [PMID: 29949212 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.14060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2018] [Revised: 06/08/2018] [Accepted: 06/25/2018] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Addictions are highly heritable disorders, with heritability estimates ranging from 39% to 72%. Multiple studies suggest a link between paternal drug abuse and addiction in their children. However, patterns of inheritance cannot be explained purely by Mendelian genetic mechanisms. Exposure to drugs of abuse results in epigenetic changes that may be passed on through the germline. This mechanism of epigenetic transgenerational inheritance may provide a link between paternal drug exposure and addiction susceptibility in the offspring. Recent studies have begun to investigate the effect of paternal drug exposure on behavioral and neurobiological phenotypes in offspring of drug-exposed fathers in rodent models. This review aims to discuss behavioral and neural effects of paternal exposure to alcohol, cocaine, opioids, and nicotine. Although a special focus will be on addiction-relevant behaviors, additional behavioral effects including cognition, anxiety, and depressive-like behaviors will be discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa R Goldberg
- Department of Biobehavioral Health, Penn State University, 219 Biobehavioral Health Building, University Park, PA, 16801, USA
| | - Thomas J Gould
- Department of Biobehavioral Health, Penn State University, 219 Biobehavioral Health Building, University Park, PA, 16801, USA
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56
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You C, Vandegrift B, Brodie MS. Ethanol actions on the ventral tegmental area: novel potential targets on reward pathway neurons. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2018; 235:1711-1726. [PMID: 29549390 PMCID: PMC5949141 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-018-4875-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2017] [Accepted: 03/06/2018] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The ventral tegmental area (VTA) evaluates salience of environmental stimuli and provides dopaminergic innervation to many brain areas affected by acute and chronic ethanol exposure. While primarily associated with rewarding and reinforcing stimuli, recent evidence indicates a role for the VTA in aversion as well. Ethanol actions in the VTA may trigger neuroadaptation resulting in reduction of the aversive responses to alcohol and a relative increase in the rewarding responses. In searching for effective pharmacotherapies for the treatment of alcohol abuse and alcoholism, recognition of this imbalance may reveal novel strategies. In addition to conventional receptor/ion channel pharmacotherapies, epigenetic factors that control neuroadaptation to chronic ethanol treatment can be targeted as an avenue for development of therapeutic approaches to restore the balance. Furthermore, when exploring therapies to address reward/aversion imbalance in the action of alcohol in the VTA, sex differences have to be taken into account to ensure effective treatment for both men and women. These principles apply to a VTA-centric approach to therapies, but should hold true when thinking about the overall approach in the development of neuroactive drugs to treat alcohol use disorders. Although the functions of the VTA itself are complex, it is a useful model system to evaluate the reward/aversion imbalance that occurs with ethanol exposure and could be used to provide new leads in the efforts to develop novel drugs to treat alcoholism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chang You
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Illinois at Chicago, 835 S. Wolcott Ave, Room E-202, M/C 901, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
- Center for Alcohol Research in Epigenetics, Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Bertha Vandegrift
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Illinois at Chicago, 835 S. Wolcott Ave, Room E-202, M/C 901, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
- Center for Alcohol Research in Epigenetics, Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA
| | - Mark S Brodie
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Illinois at Chicago, 835 S. Wolcott Ave, Room E-202, M/C 901, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA.
- Center for Alcohol Research in Epigenetics, Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL, 60612, USA.
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57
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Nonprotein-coding RNAs in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. PROGRESS IN MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND TRANSLATIONAL SCIENCE 2018; 157:299-342. [PMID: 29933954 DOI: 10.1016/bs.pmbts.2017.11.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Early developmental exposure to ethanol, a known teratogen, can result in a range of neurodevelopmental disorders, collectively referred to as Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASDs). Changes in the environment, including exposure to teratogens, can result in long term alterations to the epigenetic landscape of a cell, thereby altering gene expression. Noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) can affect transcription and translation of networks of genes. ncRNAs are dynamically expressed during development and have been identified as a target of alcohol. ncRNAs therefore make for attractive targets for novel therapeutics to address the developmental deficits associated with FASDs.
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58
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Campbell EJ, Flanagan JPM, Marchant NJ, Lawrence AJ. Reduced alcohol-seeking in male offspring of sires exposed to alcohol self-administration followed by punishment-imposed abstinence. Pharmacol Res Perspect 2018; 6:e00384. [PMID: 29468070 PMCID: PMC5813436 DOI: 10.1002/prp2.384] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/18/2017] [Accepted: 01/03/2018] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Emerging evidence has demonstrated that paternal alcohol use can modify the behavior of offspring, particularly male offspring. However, preclinical studies to date have not used voluntary self-administration of alcohol to examine alcohol-related behaviors in offspring. Here, we tested the hypothesis that paternal alcohol self-administration followed by punishment-imposed abstinence alters alcohol consumption and seeking in male offspring. Male inbred alcohol preferring iP rats were trained to self-administer alcohol in one context followed by punishment-imposed suppression of alcohol-seeking in a different context using contingent footshock. Following this, all rats were bred with alcohol naïve female iP rats. F1 offspring were then trained to self-administer alcohol in an identical operant paradigm as sires. Alcohol intake and self-administration behaviors of alcohol-sired offspring were compared to control-sired offspring whose fathers had not been exposed to the alcohol operant conditioning experience. We found that paternal alcohol self-administration reduced context-induced relapse to alcohol-seeking in male offspring. These findings indicate that voluntary paternal alcohol experience, operant conditioning, and punishment can result in intergenerational changes in offspring behavior, and that this effect may protect against the vulnerability to relapse after alcohol use. We also noted reduced alcohol responding in the punishment-associated context in alcohol-sired offspring, suggesting altered perception of punishment sensitivity or the anxiogenic response to footshock. Collectively, these findings provide evidence that paternal alcohol abuse can impact alcohol-related behaviors in male offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin J. Campbell
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Florey Department of Neuroscience and Mental HealthThe University of MelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Jeremy P. M. Flanagan
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Florey Department of Neuroscience and Mental HealthThe University of MelbourneVictoriaAustralia
| | - Nathan J. Marchant
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Florey Department of Neuroscience and Mental HealthThe University of MelbourneVictoriaAustralia
- Department of Anatomy & NeurosciencesVU University Medical CenterAmsterdamThe Netherlands
| | - Andrew J. Lawrence
- The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental HealthParkvilleVictoriaAustralia
- Florey Department of Neuroscience and Mental HealthThe University of MelbourneVictoriaAustralia
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Rompala GR, Mounier A, Wolfe CM, Lin Q, Lefterov I, Homanics GE. Heavy Chronic Intermittent Ethanol Exposure Alters Small Noncoding RNAs in Mouse Sperm and Epididymosomes. Front Genet 2018; 9:32. [PMID: 29472946 PMCID: PMC5809758 DOI: 10.3389/fgene.2018.00032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2017] [Accepted: 01/24/2018] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
While the risks of maternal alcohol abuse during pregnancy are well-established, several preclinical studies suggest that chronic preconception alcohol consumption by either parent may also have significance consequences for offspring health and development. Notably, since isogenic male mice used in these studies are not involved in gestation or rearing of offspring, the cross-generational effects of paternal alcohol exposure suggest a germline-based epigenetic mechanism. Many recent studies have demonstrated that the effects of paternal environmental exposures such as stress or malnutrition can be transmitted to the next generation via alterations to small noncoding RNAs in sperm. Therefore, we used high throughput sequencing to examine the effect of preconception ethanol on small noncoding RNAs in sperm. We found that chronic intermittent ethanol exposure altered several small noncoding RNAs from three of the major small RNA classes in sperm, tRNA-derived small RNA (tDR), mitochondrial small RNA, and microRNA. Six of the ethanol-responsive small noncoding RNAs were evaluated with RT-qPCR on a separate cohort of mice and five of the six were confirmed to be altered by chronic ethanol exposure, supporting the validity of the sequencing results. In addition to altered sperm RNA abundance, chronic ethanol exposure affected post-transcriptional modifications to sperm small noncoding RNAs, increasing two nucleoside modifications previously identified in mitochondrial tRNA. Furthermore, we found that chronic ethanol reduced epididymal expression of a tRNA methyltransferase, Nsun2, known to directly regulate tDR biogenesis. Finally, ethanol-responsive sperm tDR are similarly altered in extracellular vesicles of the epididymis (i.e., epididymosomes), supporting the hypothesis that alterations to sperm tDR emerge in the epididymis and that epididymosomes are the primary source of small noncoding RNAs in sperm. These results add chronic ethanol to the growing list of paternal exposures that can affect small noncoding RNA abundance and nucleoside modifications in sperm. As small noncoding RNAs in sperm have been shown to causally induce heritable phenotypes in offspring, additional research is warranted to understand the potential effects of ethanol-responsive sperm small noncoding RNAs on offspring health and development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gregory R Rompala
- Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Anais Mounier
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Cody M Wolfe
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Qishan Lin
- Mass Spectrometry Facility, Center for Functional Genomics, University at Albany, Rensselaer, NY, United States
| | - Iliya Lefterov
- Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
| | - Gregg E Homanics
- Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.,Department of Anesthesiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.,Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States.,Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
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60
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Soubry A. Epigenetics as a Driver of Developmental Origins of Health and Disease: Did We Forget the Fathers? Bioessays 2017; 40. [PMID: 29168895 DOI: 10.1002/bies.201700113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2017] [Revised: 10/04/2017] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
What are the effects of our environment on human development and the next generation? Numerous studies have provided ample evidence that a healthy environment and lifestyle of the mother is important for her offspring. Biological mechanisms underlying these environmental influences have been proposed to involve alterations in the epigenome. Is there enough evidence to suggest a similar contribution from the part of the father? Animal models provide proof of a transgenerational epigenetic effect through the paternal germ line, but can this be translated to humans? To date, literature on fathers is scarce. Human studies do not always incorporate appropriate tools to evaluate paternal influences or epigenetic effects. In reviewing the literature, I stress the need to explore and recognize paternal contributions to offspring's health within the Developmental Origins of Health and Disease hypothesis, and coin this new concept the Paternal Origins of Health and Disease paradigm (POHaD). A better understanding of preconceptional origins of disease through the totality of paternal exposures, or the paternal exposome, will provide evidence-based public health recommendations for future fathers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Adelheid Soubry
- Epidemiology Research Group, Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Faculty of Medicine, KU Leuven - University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
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61
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Mahnke AH, Miranda RC, Homanics GE. Epigenetic mediators and consequences of excessive alcohol consumption. Alcohol 2017; 60:1-6. [PMID: 28395929 PMCID: PMC5439216 DOI: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2017.02.357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2017] [Accepted: 02/27/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Amanda H Mahnke
- Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, TX, United States.
| | - Rajesh C Miranda
- Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, TX, United States
| | - Gregg E Homanics
- Department of Anesthesiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States; Department of Neurobiology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States; Department of Pharmacology & Chemical Biology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, United States
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62
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Drinking beyond a lifetime: New and emerging insights into paternal alcohol exposure on subsequent generations. Alcohol 2015; 49:461-70. [PMID: 25887183 DOI: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2015.02.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2014] [Revised: 02/10/2015] [Accepted: 02/12/2015] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Alcohol-use disorder (AUD) is prevalent and associated with substantial socioeconomic costs. While heritability estimates of AUD are ∼50%, identifying specific gene variants associated with risk for AUD has proven challenging despite considerable investment. Emerging research into heritability of complex diseases has implicated transmission of epigenetic variants in the development of behavioral phenotypes, including drug preference and drug-induced behavior. Several recent rodent studies have specifically focused on paternal transmission of epigenetic variants, which is especially relevant because sires are not present for offspring rearing and changes to offspring phenotype are assumed to result from modifications to the sperm epigenome. While considerable interest in paternal transmission of epigenetic variants has emerged recently, paternal alcohol exposures have been studied for 30+ years with interesting behavioral and physiologic effects noted on offspring. However, only recently, with improvements in technology to identify epigenetic modifications in germ cells, has it been possible to identify mechanisms by which paternal ethanol exposure alters offspring behavior. This review presents an overview of epigenetic inheritance in the context of paternal ethanol exposure and suggests future studies to identify specific effects of paternal ethanol exposure on offspring behavior and response to ethanol.
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